Kenyan sprinter Ferdinand Omanyala has revealed the strategy behind his season ahead of the Paris Olympics.

Omanyala opened his season with a shocking fifth-place finish at the Kip Keino Classic clocking 10.03 in the race won by American sprint sensation Kenneth Bednarek who clocked 9.91.

Omanya has however gone on to run a 10.00 at the Atalanta City Games and a season-best of 9.98 in Eugene on May 25, putting him on track for better timings ahead of the global showpiece in Paris.

Omanyala talks Kip Keino loss

In an episode of the ‘Road to Paris’ Omanyala talks about his heartbreak in front of a fully packed home crowd at Nyayo stadium and explains his late and relatively slow start to the season.

“Of course, it was hard losing at home, but you know, that day my best wasn’t the best. For me, I felt for those people who were waiting for me at the stands. The moment I was being introduced, it started raining. I think it was all blessings that God was pouring down upon us and me.

“The season had started and Kip Keino was my first 100 meters. And for the first time in April, I was running 100 meters, unlike the previous season where I’d been doing like six races before April. The explanation behind it is we want to have a progressive season and every 100 meters is progress towards the next perfection.” Omanyala told Jumpers World.

The sprinter explained that the move to start his season late was a strategic one to avoid fatigue at the Olympics, saying beginning a little too early would have been detrimental to his form.

“You want to get to the Olympics when you’re at your sharpest. So that’s the plan, start in April and then build it up as you go, as you make corrections in every round. So as soon as you get to the Olympics, you’re 100 percent.

“The other option would be starting in March, and then getting at your peak in May before starting to fade out again in June. Trying to regain your balance again in July, and then trying to bring back the body to where it was in May. So it’s kind of a different approach for us this season. So I’m trusting that everything is going to work out well.” Omanyala added.

Omanyala is one of the two Kenyan sprinters who have qualified for the Olympics ahead of the Athletics Kenya trials slated for Nyayo Stadium on June 14 and 15. The other is Zablon Ekwam in the 400m category.

Improving his time and finishing the season on a high will be a top priority for Africa’s fastest man as he looks to defend his national title.

“So now when we get back home we’ll be about hitting it hard for the Olympics. We have the races that we have run and now just picking the best out of those and picking the things that we need to improve on and now pushing them hard into the Olympic season. And of course, finishing the season on a high, but this looks very promising.” Omanyala added.

Omanyala’s other test will come at the African championships where he comes up against in-form sprinters including South Africa’s Akani Simbine, Cameroonian Esse Emmanuel, and Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo.