Omanyala beats Olympic champion Jacobs to set new 60m African record

ATHLETICS Omanyala beats Olympic champion Jacobs to set new 60m African record

Abigael Wafula • 07:13 - 16.02.2023

Ferdinand Omanyala has only lost one of his four races in his indoor meetings. He now jets back into the country to kick-off his outdoor season.

Africa's 100m record holder Ferdinand Omanyala on Wednesday, February 16, obliterated a strong field to win the 60m race at the Lievin World Indoor Tour meet in France.

Omanyala won the race in a new national and African record of 6.54. While at it, he shocked Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs after edging him out to first place. Jacobs crossed the finish line in 6.57 to finish second. Arthur Cisse from Cote d’Ivoire came third in 6.59.

https://twitter.com/Meeting_Lievin/status/1625970481345044480?s=20

Omanyala had a slow start off the blocks but gained momentum mid-way to shave off 0.1 seconds off his previous record. It came as sweet revenge for the Commonwealth Games 100m champion as Jacobs had defeated him in the same event last year.

This marked Omanyala’s third victory in his France tour, having lost only once to Cisse, in his first meeting in Miramas.

In the previous week on Wednesday, February 8, Omanyala ran a blistering race to win in a national record time of 6.55 in Mondeville, his third stop of the Indoor season. He maintained the hot streak at the Accor Arena in Paris on Saturday, February 11, where he clocked 6.56 seconds to win the race.

Omanyala now jets back into the country bubbling with enthusiasm after a successful indoor season. He will now shift to the outdoor season with the Nairobi leg of the Athletics Kenya meet scheduled for the end of the month.

Related content