'I called an ambulance'- Ferdinand Omanyala's first training sessions under new coach

Capital Sport

ATHLETICS 'I called an ambulance'- Ferdinand Omanyala's first training sessions under new coach

Abigael Wafula 13:00 - 20.02.2024

Ferdinand Omanyala has recounted how the first weeks of training under his new coach were hectic and he even had to call an ambulance at some point.

Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala has recounted how the first weeks of training under his new coach Geoffrey Kimani were hectic.

He admitted to having never experienced such things before, which was more of a culture shock for him. The Commonwealth Games champion remembered how he was almost giving up but with time, he developed a strong mentality that helped him endure.

Follow the Pulse Sports Kenya WhatsApp Channel for more news.

“The first week was tough and I was almost giving up and going back to where I was. However, having a strong mentality helped me. 

“He made me feel something I’ve never felt before, I have never puked at a training session…I puked at some point and I felt it was the end of the world for me. At some point, I called an ambulance.

“It was tough but things have been working out well because at the moment I step on the track, I don’t have that fear of getting the lactic before I cross that finish line. It’s been great,” Omanyala said on Sport On.

Omanyala also credited his former coach, Duncan Ayiemba who worked with him since he switched from rugby to athletics.

He noted that the previous two seasons were tough on him and that’s when he decided to make the coaching changes since he was running out of time ahead of the Olympic season.

“Of course, credit to Duncan, he did a good job. I worked with coach Kim in the Pre-Olympic camp and I learnt a lot of things and since then, we had been trying to bring him into our club to help other athletes but it was a bit of a challenge.

“The last two seasons, I have been going so high too early in the season and we couldn’t maintain that throughout the season and that has been affecting me.

“Time is not on my side as far as my targets are concerned so I believe that I’m here for a short time and I knew that if don’t maximise my time, I might lose it so I didn’t want to the Olympic season with doubts,” Omanyala said.

Tags: