Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala will not be racing at the Diamond League Meeting final in Brussels after his seventh-place finish at the Diamond League Meeting in Rome.
After his performance in Rome, Omanyala is 12th in the 100m standings with nine points and with one Diamond League Meeting before the final, the Kenyan has no chance since there will be no 100m race for the men.
He has been silent after the Paris Olympics misstep and has raced thrice since then. The Commonwealth Games champion finished eighth in the men’s 100m semifinal in Paris to miss out on a slot in the final.
He bounced back to dip sub-10, clocking 9.95 seconds to win the race at the Int. JOSKO Laufmeeting before finishing second behind Fred Kerley at the Diamond League Meeting in Silesia. However, Omanyala then finished seventh at the Diamond League Meeting in Rome to end his journey in the Diamond League until next season.
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In a post on X after his Diamond League flop, Omanyala said: “Everyday is a fresh start, a chance to count your blessings and embrace the journey ahead.”
He now goes back to the drawing board, his focus shifting to the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan. Omanyala raced at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary and faded to finish seventh in the final. He hopes to impress and go one place better at the global showpiece in Tokyo.
The Kenyan sprint king opened his season with an indoor tour that culminated with a fourth-place finish at the World Indoor Championships. He then raced at the Kip Keino where he finished fifth before heading to the World Athletics Relays where Team Kenya finished fourth.
At the Prefontaine Classic, the Kenyan finished second before rounding up the podium at the Racers Grand Prix. Omanyala then proceeded to the Kenyan Olympic trials where he won the race and later claimed the win at the FBK Games in Hengelo before the Olympics.
