Nairobi — African Champion and record holder Ferdinand Omanyala now wants to medal at the World Championship and clinch a Commonwealth Games gold after ruling the continent with a title win in Mauritius last week.
Omanyala left the touristic nation with double gold, winning the 100m and anchoring the 4x100m relay team to victory as well and he now plots to take it a step higher at the World Championship and Commonwealth Games.
"Right now the focus is just on the trials. Maybe I will run one more international race in the Diamond League or Continental Tour. But in July, I will not be doing any competition, I will just be training for the World Championships," said Omanyala.
He added; "I am going there as the fastest man in the world this year and I am not expecting less than a medal. I am looking at running 9.6 depending on the weather. I know the competition will be fine and I am an athlete who thrives under pressure. I hope I can get the pressure to run a good time."
"After Oregon I am looking towards the Commonwealth Games and I am going for gold. I want to take it away from Simbine again."
Omanyala clinched the African title in Mauritius after edging out defending champion Akani Simbine of South Africa in a thrilling photo finish. He however could not attain his target of a triple gold harvest after he missed out on the 200m final.
But to him, there wasn't pressure on the 200m.
"The 200m is all about technicalities and I think I was fatigued after running six races already in the 100m and the 4x100m. But there are no excuses. My main race is the 100m and that is what I am carrying on," Omanyala said.
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At the same time, the 26-year old has urged the government and Athletics Kenya to invest in a sprints camp in order to tap the immense sprinting talent in the country that is yet to be noticed.
He hopes that him thriving at the world stage will open up doors for more sprinters to take up the sport and continue in the short distance legacy he has started.
Meanwhile, the Kenyan team from Mauritius jetted back into the country on Monday and were received by government dignitaries led by Sports CS Amina Mohamed.
"We are very proud today with all the achievements made by this wonderful team of athletes. We expect the same results throughout. We won't accept anything less than now. They have really done us proud. We have proved that we can be unbeatable," said Amina as she received the team at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
