Hot intermediate hurdles race Friday for Clayton’s Alexander Osayemi, a freshman at Alabama.
Osayemi ran 51.09 at the Battle on the Boyou in Baton Rouge, dropping his PR more than 1 ½ seconds from a 52.63 last weekend in Starkville, Miss. Before that his PR was 52.70 from last year’s Meet of Champions at Pennsauken. So he’s dropped his PR 1.61 seconds in nine days.
Osayemi’s time is No. 23 in NCAA Division 1 this year and fastest by an Alabama freshman since at least 2010, which is as far back as the TFRRS database goes.
It’s also 11th on the all-time South Jersey alumni list.
Osayemi’s time is 5th-fastest so far this year in the SEC and 3rd-fastest in Division 1 among freshmen, behind two other SEC intermediate hurdlers – Dannell Wright of Florida [50.76] and Njabulo Mbatha of Auburn [50.76].
Osayemi’s birthday is not on record with World Athletics, so his eligibility for World Juniors is unknown. If he turns 20 after New Year’s, he’ll be eligible for the U.S. Under-20 Championships, a qualifier for World Under 20 Championships in Eugene in August. If he is eligible, his 51.09 is currently fastest among U.S. intermediate hurdlers in the 20-and-under age group and 9th in the world.
48.37 … Reuben McCoy [Winslow Twp.], June 28, 2008, Eugene, Ore.
48.86 … Fred Sharpe [Paulsboro], May 18, 2003, Knoxville, Tenn.
49.50 … Dwight Ruff [Camden], June 12, 2003, Sacramento
50.00 … Bryce Tucker [Pennsauken], May 31, 2025, Jacksonville, Fla.
50.04 … Mike Brown [Lenape], June 12, 2002, Holmdel
50.52 … Martin Booker [Camden], May 12, 1984, Philadelphia
50.58 … Premier Wynn [Pennsauken], June 13, 2024, Eugene, Ore.
50.65 … Aaron Younger [Delsea], May 28, 2010, Greensboro, N.C.
50.69 … Danyne Brown [Camden], May 30, 2003, Fairfax, Va.
50.84 … Nick Brown [Bridgeton], July 16, 2005, New York
51.09 … Alexander Osayemi [Clayton], April 3, 2026, Baton Rouge
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 