American track and field star Nia Ali brought the world to her feet when she took her son to the victory lap after securing the 2016 World Indoor Championships 60m hurdle win. But at the recent Astana Indoor Meet at the Qazaqstan Athletics Sports Complex, it looks like she missed it. The 35-year-old mother of three has reappeared at the indoor stage with big hopeful eyes. But her Nigerian counterpart has spilled water quite gracefully.

The Philadelphia-born Ali is the 2016 Summer Olympics 100m hurdles silver medalist. So, we can assume that the Paris Olympics 2024 is one of her goals as well.  While she’s juggling mommy duties and making heads turn on the tracks, her dream of having the Amin Tuyakov Prizes 2024 in her name looks miles away.

Tobi Amusan, a sterling phoenix sprints to glory in Astana’s hallowed halls

According to recent news, RunBlogRun’s X post has posted the final title holders’ names. The caption says, “Astana Indoor Meeting, Women’s 60 hurdle final, 1. Tobi Amusan, NGR, 7.77, 2. Nia Ali, USA, 7.89, 3. Sarah Lavin, IRL, 7.91, 4. Amber Hughes, USA, 7.92, 5. Megan Tapper, JAM, 8.03, 6. Karin Strametz, AUT, 8.05 , #astana”. It looks like Tobi Amusan, the one who got saved by a fraction on account of Anti-Doping in 2023, has set her sight strong this time. The 26-year-old’s resume is rich enough to have her placed in our hearts. But the 60m title holder’s forte is 100m hurdles, for which she holds several records.

The record holder in Commonwealth and African Championships, Amusan has a 100m hurdle world record of  12.12 seconds set in Eugene 2022. Her Diamond League winning streak is almost impossible to touch, which she aims to carry forward in 2024 as well. With 13 total golds in her purse, 2023 was a year of ups and downs. But more set of ups and downs came Nia Ali’s way, who always planned to look beyond mere wins.

Ali – the epitome of strength

Having secured the silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics just a year after birthing her first child, Ali has always defied norms. Before the 2023 World Athletics Championships, the 35-year-old wished to make three of her kids the highlight of the victory lap. Though her win didn’t happen, her words still resonate.

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“When I first did it, there weren’t many sprinters, if any, who had (returned after childbirth), so it was a lot of mentions of ‘career suicide’. So, I was like: okay, something that people haven’t seen, but I think I can do it.” Not many athletes sports such athleticism as she does, and looking at her wins after childbirths, we can’t help but accolade her.

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