By Annie Fast
Five years ago, Kanyinsola Ajayi was playing football in Ikorodu, Nigeria, dreaming of a future in sport. Today, the 21-year-old track sensation is one of the fastest men in the world over 100m.
In a meteoric rise, Ajayi has established himself as one of the most exciting young names in global sprinting. The 21-year-old is the reigning NCAA 60m and 100m champion, broke the Nigerian 100m record, and backed up his collegiate success with consecutive Diamond League victories at the 2026 Prefontaine Classic and followed in London, defeating reigning world champion Oblique Seville on both occasions.
Now, Ajayi is preparing for another major test: lining up against the world’s best at the Commonwealth Games (23 July to 2 August), where he will carry the confidence of an athlete who has proven that he belongs on the world’s biggest stages.
“I’m not scared of anybody,” Ajayi told Olympics.com following his Prefontaine Classic victory, just weeks after winning the NCAA outdoor 100m title at the same Hayward Field track.
Kayinsola Ajayi: From a childhood of football to sprinting
Ajayi grew up in Ikorodu, Nigeria, where football, not athletics, was his first passion. Playing as a defender, sprinting wasn’t initially part of the plan.
“I only got into sprinting in 2022,” he told Olympics.com. “Since then, I’ve just been finding my way to where I am today.”
Much of that journey, he says, has been driven by self-belief and perseverance.
“You just have to do what you have to do. Find your own way. No matter if there’s support or no support, you just have to find your own way.”
Along the way, Ajayi credits his family, his faith and his coach for helping him realize his potential.
“By trusting myself, my family, the support I got from my family and my coach, and God helped me as well.”
His rapid rise soon caught the attention of Auburn University’s sprints and hurdles coach, two-time Olympian Ken Harnden, who recruited the Nigerian to one of the NCAA’s premier sprint programs.
Kayinsola Ajayi’s path from NCAA champion to Diamond League winner
Ajayi made his Olympic debut at Paris 2024, where he reached the 100m semifinal and competed in the 4×100m relay. The experience proved an important stepping stone.
A year later, he truly announced himself on the world stage by breaking the 10-second barrier for the first time, clocking 9.88 in the heats at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.
He advanced to the final, finishing sixth against one of the strongest sprint fields in the world, featuring Olympic champion Noah Lyles, Olympic silver medallist Kishane Thompson and eventual world champion Oblique Seville
His breakthrough continued in 2026.
Ajayi became Nigeria’s fastest man at the NCAA Division I East First Round (29 May), running a national record 9.84 (+0.7 m/s) in qualifying.
Two weeks later (13 June), he captured the NCAA outdoor 100m title in his senior season at Hayward Field, stopping the clock in a wind-assisted 9.72 (+2.2 m/s).
While the tailwind prevented the mark from counting as a collegiate record, it was the fastest time ever run at the NCAA Championships.
Just three weeks later, Ajayi returned to Hayward Field for the Prefontaine Classic (4 July) and proved his collegiate success translated to the professional ranks.
He matched his Nigerian record with a legal 9.84 (+0.1 m/s) to claim his first Diamond League victory ahead of a stacked field including Seville, Christian Coleman and Kenneth Bednarek.
“I told myself I had to come back here and do it legally,” Ajayi said after the race. “I was pretty happy about my performance.”
Lightning struck twice as he followed with a second Diamond League win in London (18 July), clocking 9.84 seconds, equalling his season’s best.
For Ajayi, the transition from NCAA competition to the professional circuit has been straightforward.
“I’m here—NCAA, professional level, no difference,” he said. “If you can take the pressure in the NCAA, you can take the pressure whatever is going on.”
The outdoor success followed an equally impressive final collegiate indoor campaign, where Ajayi won the NCAA 60m title in a collegiate record-equalling 6.45 seconds.
As for what comes next, the Nigerian is clear-eyed: “I’m just going to continue the momentum. We’re not going back, we’re going forward.”
Ajayi is among a new generation fueling Nigeria’s athletics resurgence
Ajayi is part of a new generation driving Nigeria’s track resurgence. Alongside athletes such as Samuel Ogazi, Ezekiel Nathaniel and Tobi Amusan, he is helping elevate Nigerian athletics on the world stage.
“We’re just trying to put Africa on the map and be like, ‘Yeah, we’re still here. Africa, yeah. Nigeria, still here,'” Ajayi said. “Just trying to do our best and fly the Nigerian flag.”
Despite his rapid rise, he remains grounded. He speaks with his family every day and says they are immensely proud of what he has accomplished.
Looking ahead, Ajayi insists his approach will not change.
“Go back to training, just practice, practice, then whatever next is next,” he said.
Nor does he expect the pressure to be any different as he continues his rise through the sport.
“It feels the same,” he said. “If I can take the pressure in the NCAA, I can take the pressure wherever the competition is.”
And does this hold true for LA28?
“For sure, yeah,” Ajayi said with a confident laugh.
Olympics.com