By Timothy Kiptoo
Africa’s fastest man, Ferdinand Omanyala, says Kenya’s qualification for the men’s 4x100m relay at the World Athletics Championships slated for September in Tokyo, Japan, is a game-changer for the nation’s sprinting ambitions.
Kenya’s men's relay team will compete on the world stage for the first time in 40 years. Omanyala says this milestone is only the beginning.
“It’s been my dream to grow sprinting in Kenya,” says Omanyala.
The Kenyan sprinter giant says the Tokyo Olympics will be the touchstone on which Athletics Kenya will grow into a global competitor through this exposure.
“Relays are the key,” he added. “They’re the springboard for creating more sprint stars in Kenya,” Omanyala added.
Last week, Omanyala broke Africa's 150m record at the Atlanta Games, proving he is still on top of his game.
He will face another litmus test at the 2025 Wanda Diamond League in Rabat, locking horns with some of the world's biggest names, including the American sprint star Fred Kerley and South Africa’s Akani Simbine, the season leader and Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo, the Olympic champion in 200m.
The men’s 100m showdown at the Meeting International Mohammed VI d'Athletisme is growing into one of the most anticipated sprints of the season.
Kerley, who was the 2022 world champion and the Olympic silver medalist, was arrested in Miami Beach, where he was charged with battery and disorderly conduct, after an altercation with his former partner, hurdler Alaysha Johnson. He will presumably have a hard nut to crack this year.
Despite this observation, the American sprinting star has dared to place numerous stumbling blocks in Omanyala and his rivals' winning lanes.
The Kenyan star will tighten his grip on racing in front of a passionate African crowd, hopeful that he will bring the medal home.
