Kenya’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala is set for a tough and exhilarating show in the third 100m semi-final during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on Sunday, August 4, 2024.
After cruising into the semis with top-level performance in the initial race, the Kenyan sensational sprinter will come up against Jamaican Kishane Thompson, who is the world’s fastest man this year.
Others in the line-up are Britain’s Zharnel Hughes, the world’s bronze medallist, and Canadian Andre De Grasse, the Olympics bronze medallist over the distance.
To make it a top-level semi-final clash, former world champion Fred Kerley, the Olympics silver medalist, is also expected to compete with Omanyala.
Hopeful Omanyala
Omanyala hopes to reach the final after exiting at this point in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. He is confident of progressing to the ultimate stage as he eyes a historic gold medal in Paris.
“So many things have happened in the last three years. World Championships, Commonwealth Games, and a couple of Diamond League wins. I am happy we are here today to make the semis tomorrow [Sunday]. I am excited, so let us see what happens.
“Once we start the heat, it does not matter; what matters is the medal people will wear on their necks,” Omanyala said in a press conference on Saturday, August 3, 2024.
Should he advance in the semis that will be held at 9:23 EAT, the Commonwealth Games champion will clash with the other contestants in the final showdown later in the day.
Given that Omanyala became the world’s second-fastest timer this year after he clocked 9.79 in Nairobi in June before Thompson lowered it to 9.77, a clash between the two will be closely watched.
Meanwhile, USA’s Noah Lyles and Oblique Seville will headline Heat One, while the second one will see top talents Italy’s Marcell Jacobs, Kenny Bednarek of the US, Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo, Akani Simbine of South Africa, and Jamaica’s Ackeem Blake compete.
