Samuel Adelebari Francis (born 27 March 1987 in Port Harcourt) is a sprinter who specializes in the

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

. He was born in Port Harcourt, the capital of

Rivers State, Nigeria Rivers State, also known as Rivers, is a state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed in 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include: Imo to the north, Abia and Akwa Ib ...

. He is a naturalized Qatari and has competed for Qatar from July 2007. His personal best of 9.99 seconds is the former Asian record for the 100 m. At the 2007 Asian Championships he first set a new championship record of 10.18 seconds during the heats. In the final he ran in a new Asian record, breaking the

10-second barrier The 10-second barrier is the physical and psychological barrier of completing the 100 metres sprint in under ten seconds. The achievement is traditionally regarded as the hallmark of a world-class male sprinter. Its significance has become less i ...

with a time of 9.99 seconds, bettering

Koji Ito is a retired Japanese track and field sprinter and Japan's fourth-fastest record holder of 100m sprint with a time of 10.00 seconds. He held the 100 metres Japanese national record between December 1998 and September 2017. He is a ...

's mark of 10.00 seconds at the

1998 Asian Games The 1998 Asian Games (), officially known as the 13th Asian Games and the XIII Asiad, was an Asian multi-sport event celebrated in Bangkok, Thailand from December 6 to 20, 1998, with 377 events in 36 sports and disciplines participated by 6,554 ...

. He also went on to win the silver medal as part of the 4×100 metres relay team for Qatar. At the 2007 World Championships held one month later, his goal was to reach the final. He did not finish the race, however, exiting in the first round. At the

2008 Olympic Games The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

he competed at the 100 metres sprint. He also was scheduled to compete in the 200 metres sprint but did not start. However, retesting of his blood samples from the game showed he had used

stanozolol Stanozolol (Abbreviation, abbrev. Stz), sold under many brand names, is an androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) medication derived from dihydrotestosterone (DHT). It is used to treat hereditary angioedema. It was developed by American pharmaceuti ...

, and all his results from the games were disqualified. He ran at the next major championships, the

2009 World Championships in Athletics The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg ...

, but though he ran one of the fastest times of the first round, he was knocked out at the quarter-finals stage. Francis has also competed indoors over

60 metres 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior at ...

. At the

2007 Asian Indoor Games The 2007 Asian Indoor Games, officially known as the 2nd Asian Indoor Games and also known as Macau 2007 were held in Macau, China from 26 October 2007 to 3 November 2007. Most events of the games took place at the Macao East Asian Games Dome. The ...

he won with a Games record time of 6.54 seconds. The following year at the 2008 Asian Indoor Athletics Championships he also won in championship record time. He competed at the 2009 Asian Indoor Games, but withdrew from the final due to injury, also missing the

2009 Asian Athletics Championships The 18th Asian Athletics Championships were held in Guangzhou, People's Republic of China, China in 2009. Results Men's results Track Field Women's results Track Field Medal table Participating nations * (12) * (1) * ...

as a result. He rebounded soon after, winning another gold at the 2010 Asian Indoor Athletics Championships in February and improving his own championship record to 6.58 seconds.

Personal bests

*All information taken from IAAF athlete profile.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Francis, Samuel 1987 births Living people Sportspeople from Port Harcourt Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Nigerian emigrants to Qatar Qatari people of Nigerian descent Athletes (track and field) at the 2010 Asian Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Asian Games Qatari sportspeople in doping cases Doping cases in athletics Asian Games competitors for Qatar Olympic athletes of Qatar