The Kenyan star sprinter, Ferdinand Omanyala, failed to clock in below 10 seconds once again. He competed in the 100m race at the International Josko Laufmeeting in Andorf, on 9th August 2025. Yes, he’s dubbed the fastest man in Africa. But that doesn’t mean he can keep on finishing his races in less than 10 seconds. Well, he was pretty close to breaking that barrier this time. He clocked in at just 10.03 seconds at Andorf. And yes, Omanyala won the race. But the track and field world remains unsatisfied.
Ferdinand Omanyala was pretty vocal about his stance as the fastest sprinter in Kenya. But he wasn’t too far away from reality. Prior to the 2024 Olympics, he told Olympics.com, “I’ll go down as the fastest sprinter Kenya has ever had. Of course, my records will be broken, but (I’ll be) the person who came about and changed the notion that Kenyans are only known for long and middle distance. That is what I’m going down in books for.”
Now, the Track & Field Gazette recently shared a still image of the Kenyan sprinter on X. In the caption, they highlighted Omanyala’s big win. After all, he dominated the 100m track against Arthur Cisse, the Italian who came in second with a record time of 10.13 seconds, who was followed by Retshidisitswe Mlenga with a difference of only 0.01 seconds. The race was Cisse’s season best, but let’s keep our focus on Omanyala for now.
Ferdinand Omanyala clocked a time of 10.03s (0.5) to win the men’s 100m at the International Josko Laufmeeting in Andorf!
He beat Arthur Cisse who ran a Season’s Best (SB) of 10.13s and Retshidisitswe Mlenga in 10.14s. pic.twitter.com/6q9JG9XTjg
— Track & Field Gazette (@TrackGazette) August 9, 2025
Soon after the X post went live, the track and field fans took control of the comments section. But they weren’t really happy with Omanyala’s performance. Let’s see what the fans had to say!
Fans diss Ferdinand Omanyala despite his recent win
One fan wasted no time and pointed out, “He hasn’t gone sub 10 this season .” So, does that mean Ferdinand Omanyala has actually crossed the finish line in less than 10 seconds? Back in 2021, at the Kip Keino Classic, Omanyala finished the race in 9.77 seconds with a tailwind of +1.2 m/s. He kept on clocking in below 10 seconds for three consecutive races. But in 2025, Omanyala began with 10.00 seconds at the FNB Botswana Golden Grand Prix.
But the shadow of doubt continued to shroud the Kenyan’s journey. One fan questioned, “Has he ever run sub 10 outside of Africa?” The answer is a fumbling yes. In 2021, Omanyala clocked in at 9.96 seconds in the semifinals and 9.86 in the finals of the International Josko Laufmeeting – Andorf, Austria. 2023 witnessed him finishing his race in 9.92 seconds at the Hercuylis Diamond League, Monaco; and then he crossed the finish line in 9.85 seconds at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene. But one thing is true. He’s struggling to run a sub-10, and one fan took note of it. The comment read, “Omanyala this season has been struggling to dash under 10 but all in vain.”
Meanwhile, one of the fans branded him as “The fakest 9.7 sprinter in history Ferdinand Omanyala .” Another fan claimed, “This brother still living off 2003 9.7 .” The comment seemed like a typo, since Omanyala’s 9.7-second record was in 2023. Nevertheless, we can still hope for the Kenyan to regain his honor and break his own record. But what are your thoughts on his latest win?
The post Fans Turn On Track and Field Sensation as Yet Another Sub-10 Bid Falls Short appeared first on EssentiallySports.