Ferdinand Omanyala, the African phenomenon, continued his remarkable form by winning gold in the Men’s 100m final at the 22nd African Senior Athletics Championships in Mauritius.
Omanyala upset defending champion Akani Simbine of South Africa in a photo finish on Thursday, June 9 after both men clocked 9.93 seconds.
Omanyala’s victory is Kenya’s first gold medal in the Africa 100 meters in 32 years.
Joseph Gikonyo, who won both the 100 and 200 meters in the 1990 Cairo Championships, held the previous mark.
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The Africa King is #FerdinandOmanyala
Well in @Ferdiomanyala pic.twitter.com/EUxS98TR1Z
— Moses Wakhisi (@moseswakhisi) June 9, 2022
The timing showed that the Kenyan athlete had beaten the previous Championship record of 9.94 seconds set by Nigeria’s Seun Ogunkoya in 1998.
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The timestamp meant that the Kenyan athlete shattered the Championship record that was initially held by Nigeria’s Seun Ogunkoya who clocked in at 9.94 seconds in 1998.
The win adds on to Omanyala’s stellar career as he holds the continental record of 9.77 seconds in the 100 metres event.
Lets clarify on the Omanyala win in the 100m finals; it is a photo finish. Simbine's head is ahead of Omanyala's. Omanyala's foot is ahead of Simbine's foot. But what matters is the torso. Rule 3.3.2. Clean win @Ferdiomanyala!! pic.twitter.com/0KT8UMdUsQ
— @MikeOkinyi HSC (@MikeOkinyi) June 9, 2022
Omanyala now looks to emulate Gikonyo’s feat with a double win as he is set to run the 200 metres event on Saturday, June 11.
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On the other hand, 1,500 m champion Winny Chebet retained her title at the event, clocking in at 4:16:10, followed by her counterpart, Purity Chepkirui who recorded 4:16:28.
Ethiopia’s Ayal Dagnachew came in third at 4:16:45 while another Kenyan athlete, Branda Chebet rounded up the top four list at 4:17:25.
