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Runner Joel Jin Nwamadi bags 2 titles at National Sports Festival

Published: 20 Oct. 2025, 18:33

Joel Jin Nwamadi of the Yecheon County team celebrates after crossing the finish line first in the men’s 200-meter final at the National Sports Festival at Busan Asiad Main Stadium in Busan on Oct. 20. [NEWS1]

Joel Jin Nwamadi, a rising talent in Korean athletics, won both the men’s 100-meter and 200-meter titles at the National Sports Festival in his first year as a member of a professional team.

The 19-year-old from Yecheon County clocked 10.35 seconds to win the men’s 100-meter final Busan Asiad Main Stadium in Busan on Sunday and took gold in the 200-meter final with a personal best of 20.7 seconds on Monday.

Go Seung-hwan of the Gwangju Metropolitan Government team, previously considered the favorite in the 200-meter, came in second with a time of 20.78 seconds. Seo Min-jun of Seocheon County placed third at 20.85 seconds.

Nwamadi, who set a national high school record of 10.3 seconds in the 100 meters last year, has quickly emerged as a symbol of generational change in Korean sprinting. After graduating high school, he joined the Yecheon County team and won the 100-meter final at the national team trials this year with a time of 10.41 seconds, earning a spot on the national squad.

In May, he became one of the few first-year professional athletes selected for Korea’s 4x100-meter relay team at the World Athletics Relays in Guangzhou, China.

There, he helped the team break the national record twice in two days, improving the time from 38.56 seconds to 38.51 seconds. On May 31 in Gumi, North Gyeongsang, the team lowered the national record again to 38.49 seconds during the Asian Athletics Championships 4x100-meter relay, winning Korea’s first gold medal in the event.

In July, he contributed to another gold in the same event at the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games in Germany with a time of 38.5 seconds.

At the National Sports Festival, Nwamadi showed his acceleration in the latter half of the 100-meter final to cross the line first in 10.35 seconds. While the result still trails the Korean national record of 10.07 seconds set by Kim Kuk-young in 2017, it stands as the fastest time recorded in the country this year and underscores Nwamadi’s rapid progress.

Nwamadi, born to a Nigerian father and a Korean mother, stands at 186 centimeters (6.1 feet). Although his initial acceleration has been considered a weakness, national team head coach Ha Kyung-soo said his potential is clear.

“His muscle quality and midrace explosiveness are already the best in Korea,” Ha said. “His starting ability is also improving rapidly.”

The national team is currently developing Nwamadi with the 2026 Asian Games in Japan, the 2027 World Athletics Championships in China and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics in mind.

He has said his goal is to become the first Korean sprinter to run the 100 meters in under 10 seconds. Given that the peak for sprinters typically comes around age 25 or 26, he still has six to seven years of growth ahead.

After securing back-to-back victories, Nwamadi expressed surprise and satisfaction.

“I didn’t expect this at all. I’m happy to be rewarded for the training I’ve done so far,” he said. “I plan to compete in both the 100 meters and 200 meters at next year’s Asian Games selection trials in Aichi and Nagoya. I will aim to lower my 100-meter time to the low 10.1 range and make the final.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY LEE HAY-JUNE [[email protected]]