Heptathlon- The championships started with women's heptathlon.She was sad, Nigerian Glory Nwosu, when she learnt, in the stadium, that she wasn't allowed to compete. The Nigerian federation's decided to be strict and punished all athletes who failed to take part in the national championships. Sprinters Deji Aliu and Mercy Nku were also excluded from the team because they didn't take part in the events they were selected for in the Commonwealth Games.
- In the heptathlon, Margaret Simpson from Ghana immediately set the tone, winning the 100m hurdles in 13"93 and setting a new national record in the high jump (1,84m, former record 1,80m). She stopped there, deciding to preserve her strengths for the next events.
Triple jump .
- When she jumped 14,95m, Cameroon's Françoise Mbango went to the judges to know about the wind readings and she was told "about +1,2m/s", a legal wind for a new African record. So what a surprise to read on the result sheet the following day that the wind was +2,1m/s. No record any more. What happened? Where does the mistake come from? That's mysterious.
- Algerian Baya Rahouli, 3rd in the triple jump, disappeared from the stadium as soon as the event was over. Impossible to find her when the time of the medal ceremony came. She was then replaced by one of her fellow countrywomen on the podium, a change that was unnoticed on the whole.
100m
- The heats of the 100m, initially planned in the morning, were delayed in the evening to allow the Ghanean sprinters, still stranded in Manchester, to arrive on time in Tunis. It didn't happen though. There were so many last minute withdrawals that there were only two athletes in the fifth heat, maybe to the big surprise of Noberto Nsue Ondo from Equatorial Guinea who was thus an automatic qualifier for the semi-final with a time of 11"34.
1500m
- With hotels too far away from the stadium and inefficient transportation service, Bernard Lagat had to take a taxi to arrive in the stadium on time for the heats. He was not the only athlete in that case during the championships. The first race wasn't easy for Lagat as he was spiked and had to finish the race with a shoe almost off.
- Another shoe story. Ugandan Julius Acon lost all his sports apparel during his transfer from Paris. He got some assistance from steeplechaser Wilson Boit Kipketer who lent him his shoes and managed to qualify for the final in race that ended in close finish.
Shot put
- South Africa's Janus Robberts did only one throw in the shot put and ended the competition there. With 19,73m, he led his opponenents by more than two meters. Pity for those who missed their picture...
5000m
- The Kenyan were still waiting for Edith Masai to come in Tunis on the evening of the 5000m final. Actually, as she was not certain to win the title in the presence of Ethiopian Berhane Adere, Masai prefered to take a rest after the Commonwealth Games and focus on her preparation for Zurich.
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