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Africa’s fastest has taken a seven-week break after his exertions in the Diamond League but experts feel he is better off preparing away from home
Ferdinand Omanyala has been advised to train a way from Kenya if he has to post consistent good times ahead of the 2023 World Championships in August.
Omanyala has featured in three Diamond League races so far this season, coming third in Rabat before back-to-back second place finishes in Florence and Paris respectively.
He clocked identical 10.05 to finish third in Rabat behind American Fred Kerley and South African Akani Simbine before improving to second in Florence behind the American world champion.
He recorded his first sub-10 in the Diamond League in Paris last Friday when he timed 9.98 behind American Noah Lyles (9.97) in a star-studded race that also had Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs of Italy.
Africa’s fastest man announced that he will be taking a seven-week break after the Paris leg to focus on his training ahead of the World Championships and veteran sprints coach Stephen Mwaniki wants him to do that away from home.
“Omanyala should not be training in Kenya, he should train either in South Africa or in Europe,” Mwaniki, who coached Omanyala in his formative years told Pulse Sports.
“There are so many distractions here, a lot of people want to talk to him. He needs to be away from the media and work on some of his weaknesses.
“Look at what he did when he ran 9.84 (world lead at Kip Keino Classic), he achieved it after being in South Africa.
“When he went to Morocco (Rabat), he had trained in Kenya and he finished third, he stayed in France and run in Florence, you could see he still maintained the same speed. Now there is a big difference because he has cut almost seven microseconds because he has stayed in Europe.
“For him to make a big difference, he needs to stay away from home. Let him stay in South Africa or France because he has another base in France which is the best option for him.”
Before his Diamond League exertions, Omanyala had not lost an 100m race having won the season-opening ASA Grand Prix in Germiston and Pretoria in South Africa, the Botswana Golden Grand Prix before claiming victory at the Kip Keino Classic.
While Mwaniki is happy about his trajectory, he has warned the Commonwealth champion against featuring in a lot of competitions.
“Too much competition is not good for him also because he does not have time to rectify whatever mistakes he may have. I know running Diamond League has its financial rewards but he should look at the bigger picture,” he added.
Omanyala is already back home and was among the athletes rewarded by President William Ruto at State House, Nairobi on Tuesday for their exemplary performances in the Diamond League.
The 1,500m and 5,000m world record holder Faith Kipyegon and Commonwealth 800m champion Mary Moraa were the other athletes feted.
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