Glasgow 2026: ‘I wish my parents were alive to see this,’ says Nigeria’s Edidiong Udo

Nigerian quarter-miler Edidiong Udo advanced in the men's 400m at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow on Tuesday, reflecting on the personal significance of the achievement.

"My parents are my biggest motivation. It would have been a nice thing if they witnessed it," Udo told PREMIUM TIMES in Glasgow after his race. "I use that as motivation to make them proud wherever they are. Life happens and you just have to find a way to move on." This emotional reflection comes more than a year after Udo endured the devastating loss of both parents within a six-day span in February 2025, while he was pursuing his athletics career in the United States.

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My parents are my biggest motivation. It would have been a nice thing if they witnessed it. I use that as motivation to make them proud wherever they are. Life happens and you just have to find a way to move on.

The tragedy struck just as Udo, an Ohio State athlete, was beginning to make headlines on the collegiate circuit. He had opened his season with a strong performance, ranking fourth on Nigeria's all-time indoor 400m list. Unable to return home immediately due to financial and logistical challenges, Udo grieved thousands of miles away. His situation garnered sympathy, and his Ohio State teammates launched a GoFundMe campaign to help him travel to Nigeria and support his family. As the eldest of three children, Udo also shouldered the responsibility of organizing and funding his parents' burial while navigating his first year as an international student-athlete.

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First of all, I give God all the glory. This is very important to me because it’s a dream come true. It’s something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time. I tried a couple of times to make Team Nigeria, but it didn’t happen. I realised I was competing in the wrong event, so I decided to step down to the 400m, and everything just started falling into place.

Despite the profound loss, Udo has shown remarkable resilience in rebuilding his career. He views the Commonwealth Games as another major milestone, attributing his career transformation to switching from the 800m to the 400m. "First of all, I give God all the glory. This is very important to me because it’s a dream come true," he said. "It’s something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time. I tried a couple of times to make Team Nigeria, but it didn’t happen. I realised I was competing in the wrong event, so I decided to step down to the 400m, and everything just started falling into place."

Before the tragedy, Udo had already established himself as a promising athlete at Ohio State, winning the men's 600m with a meet record and earning Big Ten Men's Freshman of the Week honors. He believes there is still significant room for improvement, stating, "All this while, I kept telling myself I was a 800m runner. This year, I had to convince myself that wasn’t really my event." He plans to focus on building endurance upon his return to the U.S.

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All this while, I kept telling myself I was a 800m runner. This year, I had to convince myself that wasn’t really my event.