Omanyala Shatters African Record: Sprinting to New Heights
Sunday morning in Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America, Ferdinand Omanyala warmed up for the Absa Kip Keino Classic by setting yet another African record in the 150m at the Atlanta City Games.
Omanyala placed third in 14.89 seconds, trailing race winner and local competitor Noah Lyles in 14.56 and runner-up Eriyon Knighton in 14.85.
Ferdinand, the Commonwealth Games and Africa 100m champion, was well ahead at the 100-meter mark before Lyles, the reigning two-time World 200m champion, put on a blazing performance.
Omanyala surpassed Frankie Fredericks’ mark of 14.99 and established a new African record, adding to his 100m record of 9.77 set at the 2020 Kip Keino Classic.
Fredricks established the 150m (bend) record at the 1993 World Athletics Championships in Stuttgart, Germany, when he won the 200m in a championship-record time of 19.85 seconds.
Lyles, who won the 200-meter bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, is now the third-fastest athlete in history over the distance, behind Jamaican Usain Bolt and American Tyson Gay.
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Before defending his 200-meter title at the World Athletics Championships from August 19-27 in Budapest, Hungary, Lyles issued a stern warning to his rivals with this victory.
However, World Athletics does not recognize the 150-meter distance. Omanyala will defend his Kip Keino Classic title at the Moi International Sports Centre in Kasarani on Saturday.
Angelika Cichocka of Poland, the 2014 World Indoor 800m silver medalist, is the first foreign athlete to arrive for the Kip Keino Classic.
Cichocka, who will compete in the 1,500-meter race at the Kip Keino Classic, stated, “I don’t want to get my hopes up, as this is only my second race of the year.”
Friday at the Doha Diamond League, Cichocka placed thirteenth in the 1,500m, a race won by Faith Chepng’etich, the Olympic and world 1,500m champion from Kenya.
Omanyala Shatters African Record: Sprinting to New Heights
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