Africa’s fastest man, Ferdinand Omanyala has been struggling with his mental health since he finished seventh in the final of the men’s 100m event at the 2023 World Athletics Championships.
Omanyala’s coach Duncan Ayiemba claims the Kenyan sprint star is yet to get over his disappointing result in Budapest after he finished the 100m final in 10.07 seconds.
USA’s Noah Lyles claimed the 100m gold with a Personal Best time of 9.83 seconds followed by Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo and USA’s Zharnel Hughes who both clocked 9.88 seconds.
Omanyala became the fastest man on the African continent on September 18, 2021 after clocking a time of 9.77 seconds in the 2021 Kip Keino Classic and he is the only Kenyan to win gold in the 100m at the Commonwealth Games.
“He had high medal hopes in Budapest. All Kenyans had high hopes and everyone supported him. However, not everything went as planned and that affected his mentality.” Ayiemba told Daily Nation.
Omanyala still stands a chance to end the 2023 season on a high despite the heartbreak at the World Championships.
The 27-year-old is in contention for a medal at the Diamond League final that will take place in Hayward Field, Oregon between September 16 and 17.
He has participated in four Diamond League meetings this season and he has 28 points so far, the second-most points in the men’s 100m event behind Fred Kerley who leads with 29 points.
