Ferdinand Omanyala is ecstatic after winning gold in the men’s 100m race at the African Senior Athletics Championships, in Mauritius.The 26-year-old felt a sense of vindication at officially being crowned the African Champion, after having already set the fastest time on the continent, and is still currently the record holder.
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| Akani Simbine and Ferdinand Omanyala at the Africa Championships in Mauritius. Photo; Deji Ogeyingbo |
“Yeah it’s one of the titles I’ve always wanted and dreamed of and it’s a stepping stone towards the upcoming championship. It was a great race. I must thank Akani who pushed me because if I was up alone I would have come second or third but thank God I finished first,” Omanyala said after winning.
Omanyala was swift to express his gratitude and share the victory with the team, thanking his wife Amutavi Laventa, physio Minoo Philomena and coach Duncan Charles in his tweet.
The AFRICAN RECORD HOLDER is now the AFRICAN CHAMPION.
Thanks to my team
Manager @ffa_sportsman
Coach @DuncanAy
Physio @MinooPhilomena
Sponser @adidas, @adidasrunning
Wife @AmutaviLaventa pic.twitter.com/wN1Ve6F3sa— Ferdinand Omurwa OMANYALA (@Ferdiomanyala) June 9, 2022
Following his slow start, Omanyala — Africa’s 100m record holder — was able to rally from behind to defeat defending champion, South Africa’s Akani Simbine, who emerged second in a photo-finish.
His time was judged to be a wind-assisted performance at +4.5 instead of the standard +2.5.
Omanyala was only a fraction short of breaking the Championship record set by Nigerian Seun Ogukonya in the 1998 Championship.
“I’ve not seen the official results yet but again it was still a good race and we will break Seun’s record someday,” Omanyala said.
Meanwhile, Simbine who clocked his personal best and at the same time as Omanyala with 9.93s had to settle for second place after Omanyala managed the impossible by just a fraction.
It has not been the best season for Simbine, whose previous personal best was 10.06s at the Ostrava Golden Spike held last month in Ostrava-Vítkovice, Czech Republic.
“It was a crazy race, very exciting, intense and it just didn’t go the way we wanted it to. But for me, it’s knowing that we are on track with my coach, I’m just happy I could run my personal best of the season. It’s really great to have Omanyala on this level, I’ve always wanted someone in the final with me from Africa. It’s just been me since 2016, so it will be two Africans going against the world,” Simbine remarked after the race.
Omanyala shared Simbine’s sentiments and felt more confident in Africa going into the World Championships with more than one representative in the men’s 100m.
“I hope we take Africa sprinting to the next level as we go for the World Championships and we are again meeting in the Commonwealth Games, so it is a good thing that Africa is now emerging and having more than one person representing the continent and I’m looking forward to it.”
After 32 years Omanyala joins Joseph Gikonyo as the only two Kenyans to win the Africa 100m men’s title in the Africa Championship. Omanyala also led Kenya’s 4×100 men’s relay team to finish ahead of South Africa and Zimbabwe in Mauritius.
Omanyala will next be in action in the 200m men’s final on Saturday, June 11, for a shot at another gold for Kenya.
