7th Bonny Island Marathon Winners Announced

Posted : 19 December 2024

The 7th edition of the Bonny Island Marathon, themed #OwnYourLegacy, concluded in spectacular fashion, with 17% female and 16% teen participation, marking its most inclusive edition yet.

Spotlight on Winners and Records
The event was historic as Musa Bala (Plateau State, Nigeria) emerged as the Elite Male Category Winner, setting a new course record with an incredible finish time of 55 minutes and 11 seconds, shattering the previous record of 55:19 held by Alliyu Abdullahi Muhammed for the 15-kilometre race. This triumph earned Musa Bala a ₦500,000 cash prize.

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Elite Female Champion Charity Agofure (Delta State, Nigeria) crossed the line in 1 hour, 6 minutes, and 15 seconds, securing victory and the ₦500,000 prize.

Among teens, Tamunosa Jackwilson Pepple (Rivers State) and Miracle Afangideh (Akwa Ibom) dominated the Teen Male and Teen Female Categories. The teen category, which returned for the third year, signifies a strong commitment to the "catch them young" initiative by the Bonny Island Marathon to encourage young, promising talents venturing into athletics.

Indigenous Glory: Nengiye Wilcox (Male) and Gloria Hart (Female) proudly clinched the Indigenous Winner titles, with Gloria also securing a podium finish in the Elite Female Category. Nengi Wilcox retained the Male title as the fastest runner in Bonny, having been the winner in 2023.

Top Results by Category
Elite Male Winners:
Musa Bala (Plateau State) – 55:11
Nkeki Maina Yakubu (Borno State) – 55:19
Idrissou Agani (Benin Republic) – 55:27

Elite Female Winners:
Charity Agofure (Delta State) – 1:06:15
Promise Isah (Rivers State) – 1:32:04
Gloria Hart (Rivers State) – 1:35:59

Teen Male Winners (5KM):
Tamunosa Jackwilson Pepple
Hanson Jumbo
Osaro Peter

Teen Female Winners (5KM):
Miracle Afangideh
Abigail Ozuomba
Josephina Joseph

Participation and Highlights

Recurrent Runners: Over 30% of participants were returning competitors, showcasing the marathon's growing popularity.

Diverse Representation: 33 Nigerian states accounted for 98% of participants, while 2% comprised international participants across elite and leisure categories.

Most Decorated Participant: Yakubu Maina (Borno State) made history with the most podium finishes to date, accumulating 6 finishes across the three possible podium positions.

“This year’s marathon showcased the best of our community and runners’ resilience. We are proud of the records broken and the growing legacy of the Bonny Island Marathon. Next year, we are looking forward to label status and more participation, which will be facilitated by the completion and opening of the Bonny-Bodo road, opening the island to the world via road,” said Boma Halliday, Race Director.

7th Bonny Island Marathon Winners Announced

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