Paris Olympics: Scripture that inspires Ferdinand Omanyala before of his races

Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala is not just putting in the sweat and miles on the track in preparation for his Olympics 100m race, but he is also drawing strength from his faith.

A recent chat with Mozzart Sport revealed the spiritual side of him. Omanyala draws inspiration from his faith, particularly the book of Ecclesiastes 7:8.

The verse reads: "Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud."

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The bible verse resonates with Omanyala because it emphasizes patience, a virtue that has been crucial for him this season. The sprinter had a rather rocky start to the season that put him at the center of criticism.

He started his year with a fifth-place finish at the rainy 2024 edition of the Kip Keino Classic which happened in April at the Nyayo National Stadium. He ran 10.03.

The conversation would however change after he proved to be the African King of 100m on the same track in June after he registered a personal best of 9.79 during the Olympics trials to confirm his spot in the Paris 2024 Olympics.

That performance brought him too close to breaking his African record of 9.77 which he set during the 2020 Kip Keino Classic.

It also made him the only Kenyan sprinter to attain an Olympics qualification time.

That was also his second sub-10 this season having clocked 9.98 at the Prefontaine Classic in May.

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He then clocked 10.02 at the Racers Grand Prix in Jamaica in early June.

On Sunday 8 July, he was the talk of town after capping his Olympic preparations with a commanding victory at the FBK Games in Hengelo, Netherlands.

He was making a return to Europe for his final pre-Olympics race, and stepped out of the blocks with ferocity, taking the lead and ultimately easing to the finish line in a winning time of 10.01.

Omanyala viewed the milestone as a pivotal moment in his career and is now poised for even greater success; the Olympics.

“I started the season on a low and there were a lot of critics. But now I am peaking. It feels good,” he offered.

With less than three days to his first Olympic race, Omanyala is confident that he would impress. His first race will be on Saturday 3 August, followed by the semifinal and eventually finals on Sunday 4 should he qualify.

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He did not want to promise much, emphasizing that making bold promises would only lead to unnecessary pressure. He insists on focusing on one race at a time.

“Winning the FBK games means that the road is clear now, good things are coming,” he concluded.