Despite the rain-soaked conditions in Glasgow, Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme stormed to gold in the men’s 100m final at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, clocking a record-breaking 9.83 seconds to secure his country’s first Commonwealth Games medal in 20 years while setting a new national record. The victory marked a historic moment for Cameroonian athletics and crowned Eseme as the fastest man at the Games.
Eseme, who only took up sprinting at the age of 24 after leaving football, produced one of the biggest performances of his career to claim gold ahead of Australia’s Lachlan Kennedy, who finished in 9.85 seconds, and Nigeria’s Kayinsola Ajayi, who took bronze in 9.90 seconds.
Eseme’s rise on the continental and global stage has been remarkable. In 2024, he claimed gold in the men’s 100m at the African Games in Ghana, before continuing his impressive form in 2026 by finishing second in the men’s 100m at the Rome Diamond League in a then-national record time of 9.94 seconds.
For Eseme, success has always begun with a winning mentality. The 32-year-old’s journey is far from conventional—he transitioned from playing youth and university football as a goalkeeper in Cameroon to discovering sprinting at the age of 24 while studying Environmental Engineering. Against all odds, he has transformed into one of Africa’s fastest men and a growing force in world athletics.
