Njadoe Helps Gambia Win Gold at Islamic Games
MANHATTAN, Kan. (Kansas State Athletics) – Former Kansas State track athlete Wurrie Njadoe recently helped her country of The Gambia to a gold medal in the women’s 4×100-meter relay at the fifth annual Islamic Solidarity Games in Konya, Turkey.
The quartet of Njadoe, Gina Bass, Maimuna Jallow and Ola Bowaro finished in an Islamic Games record time of 43.83 to win the country’s second gold medal of the day after Bass won her fifth in the 200 meters.
Njadoe also competed in the women’s 200 meters at the Islamic Games, finishing in fourth place with a time of 23.35. She posted a second-place time of 23.18 in the semifinals to advance to the finals.
The Islamic Solidarity Games, which is organized by the Turkish Olympic Committee, involved more than 4,200 athletes representing 54 countries.
It has been a busy summer for Njadoe, who dealt with injuries throughout her K-State career. She ran in both the 100 and 200 meters at the Commonwealth Games in early August, finishing in seventh in the 200 meters in the semifinals with a time of 23.95, while she posted a time of 11.50 in the 100 meters.
Njadoe capped her time at K-State by advancing to the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Championships in both the 200 meters and 4×400-meter relay. She turned in a time of 23.45 in the 200 to finish 21st overall, while she was part of the relay team that finished 22nd with a time of 3:37.70. She also placed in the top-10 in four events (200 meters, 4×100-meter and 4×400-meter relay teams and long jump) at the 2022 Big 12 Outdoor Championships, including top-5 finishes by the relay squads.
It has been an active summer for current and former Wildcat track and field student-athletes on the international stage, including alums Janee Kassanavoid (women’s hammer), Tejaswin Shankar (men’s high jump) and Kimberly Williamson (women’s high jump) capturing bronze medals at the World Championships and Commonwealth Games, respectively. Kassanavoid became the first Native American to win a medal at the World Championships, while Shankar became the first person from India to win a track and field medal at the Commonwealth Games.
Current sophomores Emil Uhlin and Carl af Forselles finished second and third, respectively, in the decathlon at the Swedish Outdoor Championships, while Uhlin won the silver in the high jump and Forselles the bronze in the long jump at the Swedish Championships. Senior Kyle Gale nearly helped Barbados win a medal in the 4×400-meter relay at the Commonwealth Games, as the quartet finished fourth with a season-best time of 3:03.92.
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