Africa's fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala is set for an electrifying 100m showdown against Canada’s 2020 Olympic 200m champion Andre De Grasse and South Africa’s Akani Simbine at the FNB Botswana Golden Grand Prix on April 12.
Omanyala heads into the continental clash fresh from sharpening his speed in the ASA South Africa Grand Prix, where he competed in two 100m races.
The 2022 Commonwealth Games champion opened his international campaign on March 13, finishing third in 10.22 behind South Africa’s Karabo Letebele (10.19) and Erasmus Emile (10.19).
A week later, he roared back with a statement win, storming to victory in 10.08 ahead of Matsoso Tsebo (10.12) and Bradley Nkoana (10.16).
Mark Odhiambo, another Kenyan sprinter, settled for fifth in 10.30. Before heading to South Africa, Omanyala had tested his early-season form at the Athletics Kenya track and field meeting in Thika.
Running on a murram track, he breezed through the first-round heats, clocking 10.7 ahead of Tonny Wekesa (11.3) and Martin Kariuki (11.5).
He cranked up the pace in the semifinals, posting 10.2 to dominate his heat, with Dennis Nyongesa (10.5) and Clinton Aluvi (10.7) trailing in second and third.
However, he opted out of the final, where Boniface Mweresa (10.1) edged out Dennis Mwai (10.2) and Omanyala’s younger brother, Isaac Omurwa (10.2), for the podium spots.
Omanyala will be hoping to use the race as part of his build up as he targets the Tokyo World Championships later in the year.
Simbine arrives in the clash riding high on momentum after clinching bronze in the 60m at the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China.
The South African speedster clocked 6.54, finishing behind Britain’s Jeremiah Azu (6.49) and Australia’s Lachlan Kennedy (6.50).
Simbine also made his presence felt in the indoor circuit, finishing second at the ISTAF Indoor meet in Germany (6.57) before storming to victory at the A-Bond Inter-High meet in South Africa clocking the same time.
De Grasse, meanwhile, has endured a sluggish start to his season, finishing sixth in the 60m at the Astana Indoor Meet with 6.74.
However, his credentials over the 100m remain undisputed. The Canadian sprint star boasts an Olympic bronze from Tokyo 2020 (9.89), a world bronze from Doha 2019 (9.90) and the Pan American gold from 2015 (10.05).
Kenya’s charge in the 800m will be spearheaded by World U20 champion Sarah Moraa and seasoned campaigner Nelly Jepkosgei.
However, they will face a stern challenge from Ethiopia’s Nigist Getachew, the 2019 African U20 400m bronze medallist.
