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Africa’s fastest man missed his desired time in at the ASA Athletics Grand Prix II in South Africa but there are a number of reasons for him to achieve it in Gaborone
Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala will line up at the Botswana Golden Grand Prix on Saturday afternoon, hoping for his third win this month.
Omanyala has been in good form early in the season and claimed back-to-back wins at the ASA Athletics Grand Prix II in Pretoria and Germiston, South Africa this month.
The 26-year-old clocked 10.05 on April 19, seven seconds faster than his 10.12 in Pretoria a week earlier, but was not able to run his desired sub-10, setting the stage for a third attempt at the feat in Botswana on Saturday.
While it proved futile in South Africa, the Botswana Golden Grand Prix could just be the perfect opportunity for him to run under 10 seconds and there are a number of factors that could play in his favour.
Strong field
The men’s 100m race has attracted five men with sub-10s which means there will be intense competition for Omanyala with the race expected to be a fast one hence pushing him to the limit.
The field includes USA’s world silver medalist Marvin Bracy (9.85), junior champion Letsile Tebogo (9.91) competing on home soil, and Samuel Imeta (9.94) who has also proven to be in an impressive form.
World and Olympic 200m silver medalist Kenny Bednarek will step down from this distance to run the 100m. Bednarek set a personal best of 9.89 in the 100m in Eugene in 2021 while Canada’s world 4x100 champion Aaron Brown will run his second 100m race of the season three weeks after clocking a wind-assisted 9.97 in Miramar.
The line-up also features Emmanuel Matadi, who holds the Liberian record to 9.98 in the 100m. Omanyala, whose personal bets is 9.77, will, therefore, need to run a very fast race to emerge victorious which could help his course of achieving a sub-10.
Fast course
The National Stadium in Gaborone, the venue for Saturday’s race, is considered to be one of the fastest tracks in Africa hence fans should expect good times not just in 100m.
This will likely play in Omanyala’s favour given the strong field and he could even lower his African record if he comes off the blocks quick or if the weather is favourable, having found it hard in the chilly temperatures of South Africa.
Fans
“I am promising you a big show...I am coming to bring down the National Stadium in Gaborone down,” vowed Omanyala in January, while confirming his participation.
The Kenyan is a showman and thrives where there are crowds which is another thing that favours him. In his desire to excite fans, the 26-year-old will likely run a fast race, added to the fact that he will be seeking to upstage home favourite Tebogo.
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