Sunday Bada

Sunday Bada (22 June 1969 – 12 December 2011) was a Nigerian sprinter who specialized in the 400 metres event. He won three medals at the World Indoor Championships, including a gold medal in 1997. His personal best time was 44.63 seconds, and with 45.51 seconds indoor he holds the African indoor record. He set a national record in the 4 × 400 metres relay at the 2000 Olympics, where the Nigerian team also won gold medals after the disqualification of the US team who had finished first.

Early career Bada was born in Kaduna to parents from Ogidi, Kogi State. He broke through at the regional level in 1990, with bronze medals in both 200 and 400 metres at the 1990 African Championships. The next year, at the 1991 All-Africa Games, he won a silver in the 400 metres. He competed without reaching the final in the 400 metres of the 1992 Olympics, but in the 4 × 400 metres relay he managed to finish fifth with the Nigerian team. This happened at the 1992 IAAF World Cup, an event he won.

Bada became Nigerian 400 metres champion in 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 and 2001. He also participated in, and won, the Indian championships in 1994.

World championships Bada made his definite breakthrough in 1993, when he won the silver medal at the World Indoor Championships. In the same year he finished fifth at the 1993 World Championships.

In 1994 he added almost a second to his season's best, running in 45.55 seconds in Monaco. In 1995, however, he gained his second silver medal at the World Indoor Championships whereas at the World Championships he finished eighth. Finally, at the All-Africa Games he won the 200 metres and took the 400 m silver.

However, Bada just barely managed to improve this time during the outdoor season, with 45.37 seconds, and would never run a sub-45 race again. In individual competitions he was successively eliminated before the final of the 1997 World Championships, the 1999 World Indoor Championships, the 1999 World Championships, the 2000 Olympic Games, the 2001 World Indoor Championships and 2001 World Championships. Nigeria also established a national record time of 2:58.68 minutes.

Post-active career Bada retired following the 2001 season.