Nigeria’s impressive campaign in the swimming events at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow concluded on Saturday after Abduljabar Adama narrowly missed out on a place in the final of the men’s 50m freestyle.
The 17-year-old, who became the first and only Nigerian swimmer to reach the semi-finals in Glasgow, finished sixth in Semi-final 2 with a time of 22.44 seconds, bringing an end to a memorable outing.
Australia’s Jamie Jack topped the race in 21.55 seconds, while Canada’s Joshua Liendo followed in 21.61 seconds.
Australia’s Flynn Southam secured third in 21.86 seconds, ahead of Singapore’s Mikkel Jun Jie Lee (22.25sec) and the Bahamas’ Lamar Taylor (22.30sec). Adama crossed the line just behind them in sixth place.
Earlier on Saturday, Adama had booked his place in the semi-finals after progressing from the heats, standing out as Nigeria’s sole representative to advance beyond the opening round.
His compatriot, Clinton Opute, was unable to make it through after exiting in the heats of his event.
The teenager also competed in the men’s 100m butterfly, where he placed seventh in his heat with a time of 55.81 seconds.
Fellow Nigerian Colins Ebingha finished sixth in the same race in 55.45 seconds but also fell short of reaching the semi-finals.
Despite missing out on the championship race, Adama’s performance marked another encouraging chapter for Nigerian swimming at the Commonwealth Games.
He entered the competition with growing international recognition after becoming the first Nigerian to win a medal at the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships in Romania.
At the event, he claimed silver in the men’s 50m butterfly and rewrote the national record twice in a single day, while also establishing himself as the African junior record holder.
His qualification for the semi-finals of one of the Games’ most competitive sprint events further highlighted his rapid development and reinforced optimism about the future of Nigerian swimming, following Team Nigeria’s strong early success in para powerlifting.
