With exactly 30 days to go until the 10th edition of the Okpekpe International Road Race, excitement is building for the event, which will take place on Saturday, May 25, 2024, in Edo State. The race is scheduled to start at 8:00 am (GMT +1).

The Okpekpe Road Race is an annual 10-kilometer road race that takes place in Edo State, Nigeria. The race covers a scenic route over hills and tarred roads, starting from Apana Road and ending in Okpekpe town.

According to Dare Esan, Director of Media and Activation for the Okpekpe race, this year’s event marks a significant milestone.

“We are celebrating the 10th anniversary of the race that opened the door to World Athletics recognition for other races in Nigeria.”

Esan also highlighted the impressive performance of Daniel Ebenyo, who set a new course record of 28:28 last year.

“We are optimistic that this year’s race will produce the first sub-28-minute runner, and we are thrilled to have Daniel Ebenyo, the defending men’s 10km race winner and World Athletics Championships and World Road Running Championships silver medalist, returning to compete.”

In addition to the elite athletes, the event will also feature the participation of undergraduate students from Edo State University and Auchi Polytechnic, who will serve as volunteers and gain practical experience in event management.

“We are going to be making use of undergraduate students from both the Edo State University in Uzaire and the Auchi Polytechnic in Auchi as volunteers with most of them drawn from relevant departments so that they can have practical experience of what they have been taught. We started this program last year and it was a huge success.”

This year’s gold label Okpekpe International 10km road race will take place on Saturday, May 25, in Okpekpe, Edo state.

The race, now in its 10th edition, holds the distinction of being the first road running event in Nigeria to have its race course measured by a World Athletics-accredited course measurer and the first in West Africa to be granted a World Athletics label. It is also the first gold-label 10km road race to be organized in Nigeria.

Participating countries include Nigeria, the United States of America, South Africa, China, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Kenya.