Ferdinand Omanyala vows to break own 100m African record

Local hero Ferdinand Omanyala said he wants to improve his African 100m record (9 sec 77 in 2021) at the Kip Keino Classic, an international meeting held on Saturday in Nairobi

"I've already run pretty fast this season. But if you think you have seen it all, you are wrong! The previous African record was too long. If the conditions are right tomorrow (Saturday), it's warm and it doesn't rain, then everything will be there (for a record)."

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who has a knee injury, has withdrawn from the competition where she had planned to make her comeback, announced Friday the two-time Olympic champion and five-time world champion in the 100m.

Barnabas Korir, the organizer of the Kip Keino Classic, announced that the Jamaican had injured her knee during training on Thursday at the Kasarani Stadium in Nairobi, the venue of the event.

"I am deeply disappointed to inform you that I will not be competing at the Kip Keino Classic," the Jamaican sprinter announced in a statement. "I had every intention of starting my season at one of the great track and field events in East Africa," the 36-year-old added.

Fraser-Pryce hopes to extend her career to the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024, for a fifth Olympic participation.

The Jamaican, who runs faster than ever for two years, had won last year in Eugene (USA) his fifth world title on the queen event. Her two Olympic titles on the straight line date back to the 2008 and 2012 Games.

Without Fraser-Pryce, the light is on the American Sha'Carri Richardson, announced in the 200m in the Kenyan capital, after a flamboyant 100m last week in Doha (victory in 10 sec 76).