Ferdinand Omanyala and Bayanda Walaza Floored by Surprise Australian Challenger at Kip Keino Classic

Ferdinand Omanyala failed to rise to the occasion at home for the second year running when he could only manage third place at the Kip Keino Classic on Saturday.

Omanyala clocked 10.07 seconds for third place behind South African teen Bayanda Walaza, who timed 10.03 seconds, while Australian Lachlan Kennedy was the surprise winner after clocking a season’s best 9.98 seconds.

The spotlight was on the two African sprinters with Omanyala under immense pressure to deliver at home after his fifth-place finish in 2024.

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There appeared to be a false start, which left fans worried over the possible culprit, but those fears were allayed when the stadium announcer confirmed that no athlete was at fault.

When the gun went off, Omanyala got off the blocks well and he seemed to have a good command of the race, but Kennedy and Walaza got just ahead as the home favourite trailed.

Past the halfway mark, Kennedy had taken a good lead with Omanyala and Walaza left to fight for second place which the South African teen star edged ahead of the Kenyan.

“I felt good. It was a good line up it felt like a real championship. I love the atmosphere and how lovely Kenyan fans are. I will definitely be coming back for the next one,” said Walaza.

It was still an improvement on the fifth place of last year for Omanyala, when he could match American Kenny Bednarek, although the wait for a first sub-10 of the season is still on for the 29-year-old.