Ferdinand Omanyala, the African 100m record holder, kicked off his international season with an outstanding performance at the Miramas Metropole Indoor meet in France on Friday night.
The Kenyan sprinter set a new meeting record in the 60m dash, crossing the finish line in 6.52 seconds. This impressive time not only established a new meet record for the Miramas event but also brought Omanyala close to the world lead of 6.48 seconds.
Omanyala’s dominance was evident as he left Cameroonian Eseme Emmanuel-Alobwede in second place with a time of 6.61 seconds, while Ivorian athlete Arthur Cisse secured third place with a time of 6.62 seconds.
Earlier, Omanyala had won his heat in 6.62 seconds to secure a spot in the final, where he further improved his performance.
Other Kenyan athletes who participated in the meet included Lydia Lagat, finishing seventh in the women’s 1500m with a time of 4:15.24, and Munguti Kyumbe, who also claimed seventh place in the men’s race. In the men’s 400m, Wiseman Were and Boniface Mweresa finished third and fourth, recording times of 48.05 and 48.61, respectively.
Following his success in Miramas, Omanyala is set to compete in his next indoor meet in the Capital Paris next weekend, aiming to continue his impressive performances on the international stage.
