Ajax sprinter Duan Asemota is pairing success on the international track stage with a growing commitment to helping children through play-based education in Rwanda.
The Duan Asemota Right To Play connection has become an important part of the 29-year-old athlete’s work beyond competition. Asemota, whose hometown is Ajax, recently earned a Commonwealth Games silver medal as part of Canada’s men’s 4×100-metre relay team in Glasgow and is also serving as a Right To Play ambassador.
Commonwealth silver adds to Asemota’s growing career
Asemota represented Canada at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, competing in the men’s 100 metres and 4×100-metre relay. He ran in the relay program as Canada went on to earn silver, adding another international achievement to a career that has already included an Olympic appearance.
The Ajax athlete made his Olympic debut at Paris 2024, where he competed in the men’s 100 metres. He has also been part of Canadian relay teams on the international circuit and owns a personal best of 10.03 seconds in the 100 metres.
Before representing Canada at the senior level, Asemota competed at Ohio State University, where he earned All-American recognition and contributed to a relay team that set a Big Ten record.
His latest medal gives him momentum as he continues preparing for major international competitions, including the World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest in September.
Visit to Rwanda shows power of play-based learning
Away from the track, the Duan Asemota Right To Play partnership has given the Ajax sprinter an opportunity to see how sport and play can support education.
Asemota visited Right To Play programs in Rwanda after becoming involved with the organization as an ambassador. During the trip, he observed classrooms where teachers use games, movement and collaborative activities to help children build academic, social and emotional skills.
He said the experience showed him how play-based learning can help students develop confidence while making education more engaging.
Right To Play has worked in Rwanda since 2003 and currently supports programs focused on early childhood education, primary learning, psychosocial well-being and STEM development. The organization works with teachers, families and local partners to incorporate play into learning.
Asemota was particularly impressed by STEM activities that allow students to work on robotics, engineering and other hands-on projects using the resources available to them.
Ajax athlete hopes to make an impact beyond sport
For Asemota, the Rwanda visit reinforced the idea that athletes can use their public platforms for purposes beyond competition.
His own connection with sport began early, and he has spoken about how play can create relationships and build confidence even among children from different backgrounds. That experience aligns closely with Right To Play’s approach of using active learning to support children facing barriers.
The organization trains educators to use play-based methods that promote communication, collaboration, problem-solving and confidence in addition to academic skills.
Asemota said seeing those methods in practice strengthened his support for the program and showed how athletes can help inspire young people simply by participating, listening and sharing their experiences.
The Duan Asemota Right To Play work gives the Ajax athlete another platform as he continues pursuing elite sprinting goals. With his Commonwealth silver medal now added to his résumé and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics on the horizon, Asemota is balancing ambitions on the track with an effort to create a positive impact away from it.
For Ajax residents, his story connects local athletic success with an international initiative focused on education, opportunity and confidence for children.
