Ferdinand Omanyala changes coach ahead of 2024 season
Ferdinand Omanyala after finishing fourth at the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais indoor 60 metres dash in Lievin, France, in 2022. Kenya could use the Miramas Meeting Metropole in France as trials for the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships.
What you need to know:
- However, the fate of Omanyala’s longtime coach Duncan Ayiemba is unknown.
- “Back on track, and greatly honored in taking up the role of Sprints Coach to @ferdiomanyala through a busy 2024 season, culminating with the Olympic Games later in the coming year,” said Kimani.
Renowned strength and conditioning coach Geoffrey Kimani is now Africa’s fastest man, Ferdinand Omanyala’s coach.
Kimani Tuesday announced on his social media forum that he has taken over Omanyala’s program as his sprints coach through the busy 2024 season.
However, the fate of Omanyala’s longtime coach Duncan Ayiemba is unknown.
“Back on track, and greatly honored in taking up the role of Sprints Coach to @ferdiomanyala through a busy 2024 season, culminating with the Olympic Games later in the coming year,” said Kimani.
Kimani said Omanyala, the Commonwealth Games and Africa 100 metres champion, will kick off the 2024 season at the World Indoor Tour in February ahead of the World Athletics Indoor Championships due March 1 to 3 in Glasgow, Scotland.
“Onto the hard work!” said Kimani.
Omanyala, who has had Ayiemba as his coach since the 2015/2016 season, joins several other top world sprinters in changing coaches ahead of the 2024 season.
The highlight of Omanyala’s performance with Ayiemba as coach was when he broke the Africa record, posting a new time of 9.77 seconds when he finished second during the 2021 Kip Keino Classic, losing the battle to American Trayvon Bromell in 9.76.
Omanyala would make his debut at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games that were rescheduled for 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic where he made history as the first Kenyan sprinter in 100m to reach the semi-finals.
Omanyala, who is now the all-time ninth fastest man in 100m, went on to win the Africa 100m and 4x100m title as well as Commonwealth Games 100m title last year.
Under Ayiemba, he reached the semi-finals of the World Athletics Championships held in Oregon, United States last year.
He was one of the favourites to clinch the title heading to the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary in August this year, but finished a disappointing seventh place in a race won by American Noah Lyles.
Before heading to Budapest, Omanyala had made history as the first Kenyan to win a 100m race at the Diamond League with victory in Monaco on July 21.
Last month, American Fred Kerley, who failed to defend his world 100m title, announced his plans to train under 1992 Olympic 400m gold medalist Quincy Watts, the current Director of Track and Field at the University of Southern California.
Grenada’s Alleyne Francique had previously handled Kerley, the 2022 World 100m champion, who was also eliminated in the 100m semi-finals in August this year in Budapest, Hungary.
Olympic 100m gold medalist Marcell Jacobs also changed coaches and moved from his home country of Italy to Florida last month.
Jacobs, 28, is now coached by Rana Reider, according to the Italian track and field federation. Reider’s athlete group in Jacksonville has included 2022 World 100m bronze medalist Trayvon Bromell.
Jacobs was coached by Paolo Camossi for several years, including 2021, when he broke Italian records in all three of his Olympic 100m rounds, capped by winning the final in 9.80 seconds.
