Nigeria’s Favour Ofili and Chukwuebuka Enekwechi delivered strong performances at the 2025 Gyulai István Memorial in Budapest but narrowly missed out on victory in a meet stacked with world-class talent and record-breaking moments.

In the women’s 200m, Ofili pushed Jamaica’s Ashanti Moore to the line in one of the evening’s closest finishes.

Both clocked 22.31 seconds, but a photo finish handed Moore the win, giving her a personal best while Ofili registered her season’s best.

Britain’s Daryll Neita was third in 22.37. Ofili’s participation in next month’s World Championships in Tokyo remains uncertain as she awaits confirmation on her nationality switch to Turkey.

Enekwechi, Africa’s shot put record-holder, placed third with a 21.15m effort. Olympic silver medallist Joe Kovacs of the United States won with 22.33m, the only throw over 22 metres, while New Zealand’s Tom Walsh was second with 21.52m.

Enekwechi, who threw an African record 22.10m earlier this year, now turns his focus to the Silesia Diamond League.

In the men’s 400m, Samuel Ogazi placed seventh in 45.85s on his return to international action after his NCAA title win. Zambia’s Muzala Samukonga took victory in 44.11, narrowly beating Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards and the United States’ Khaleb McRae.

There was disappointment for Nigeria in the men’s 100m as Kanyinsola Ajayi withdrew before the start. Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson won in 9.95, ahead of Ghana’s Abdul-Rasheed Saminu and South Africa’s Akani Simbine, both in 10.01.

The night’s biggest headline came from Sweden’s Mondo Duplantis, who broke his own pole vault world record with a clearance of 6.29m, adding one centimetre to the mark he set in June and reinforcing his dominance in the event.