Africa's fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala hopes to lower his time in the World Championships and Commonwealth Games after a disappointingly slow finish in the national trials over the weekend.
Despite winning the race in 10.04, Omanyala was underwhelmed with his performance but promised to make amends at Oregon and Birmingham respectively. Omanyala broke the African and national records at the 2021 Kip-Keino Classic, where he recorded a personal best of 9.77.
"I expected to run below 10 seconds but I didn't manage. 10.04 secs with a negative is still a good time to finish the race," Africa 100m champion said.
Despite the stiff competition that awaits Omanyala in both Oregon and Birmingham, he is determined to fight for a podium finish.
"There is tough competition especially from the US and Jamaica. I know it will not be easy but we now have to get down to business. We have limited time and my aim is to make everything better," Omanyala said.
After winning the Olympics in Mauritius and Kip-Keino Classic, Omanyala has admitted that he does not feel any pressure because athletics is a solitary activity and putting pressure on himself could be counterproductive.
"I do not have any pressure because this is an individual sport. When I pressurise myself to do better, things will be difficult...Athletics is all about executing the race according to your level of training. After that, everything will follow," Omanyala said.
He is also strategizing on the tactics he will apply to prevail in both Oregon and Birmingham. "I have to make sure I get out of the blocks very fast. Once I do that, it will be very difficult for anyone to defeat me," Omanyala highlighted.
Omanyala edged out Africa Championships gold medallist Samuel Imeta to the second position in 10.25. However, Imeta was very happy to have improved his time from 10.27 to 10.25.
"I was at 10.27 and I have improved to 10.25. This is my personal best and I thank God for the achievement. I want to train hard and gain experience because the competition is going to be tough. My target is to lower my time and run below 10.25," Imeta said.
Omanyala is set to solely represent the country in Oregon and will have the company of Imeta in Birmingham.
