Omanyala sets new 100m national record

Ferdinand Omanyala set a new 100m national record when he clocked 10.01 seconds on Tuesday night at the Making of Champion (MOC) Grand Prix in Lagos, Nigeria.

Omanyala’s new mark however still awaits the ratification from Athletics Kenya (AK) to be recognised as an official national record.

The University of Nairobi student was among the foreigners who graced the competition where he shaved off 13 seconds from the previous record of 10.14 seconds set by Mark Otieno at the 2017 national championships.

The two-day meet that attracted foreign athletes also from Togo and Benin also provided the athletes with an opportunity to secure qualification for the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics.

Similarly, Omanyala hit the qualification mark for the Games set at 10.05 seconds.

The in-form athlete had set an unofficial record 10.11 seconds at the second leg of AK relays series held at the Nyayo stadium in January.

Earlier this month, Omanyala had clocked 10.40 seconds over the distance at the second track and field series held at Kasarani, a race where Otieno reigned supreme in 10.24 seconds.

Despite hitting the qualifying standard for the Summer Games it remains to be seen if AK will clear the athlete to compete for the country owing to a previous doping issue. Having already completed his doping ban, the athlete is yet to be reinstated by the federation to compete in Kenyan colours.