South Africa’s 100m Commonwealth Silver medalist relocates to Kenya to tap into Omanyala’s brilliance

It is not every day we see a South African sprinter shifting his base to Kenya for his training.

However, 2018 Commonwealth Silver medalist Henricho Bruintjes has done just that, relocating to Kenya to train with reigning Commonwealth and African 100m champion Ferdinand Omanyala in a collaboration that the South African believes will thrust him back to his best.

Having previously broken the 10-second barrier with a run of 9.97 seconds back in 2015, the 29 year old athlete, who claimed bronze behind Omanyala and compatriot Akani Simbine at the 2022 African Athletics Championships held in Mauritius, is confident that the duo can get the best out of each other ahead of a busy campaign that includes the Budapest World Athletics Championships 2023 and the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Speaking to Mozzart Sport, Bruintjes, who has been in Kenya since December 2022, officially confirmed his move to the country as he revealed the reason that informed his decision.

“I will now be training in Kenya permanently. I came out here to train with Ferdinand and so far it has been going very well. The people here are good and very welcoming which gives me a warm feeling. The one good thing is that the athletes here have the hunger that I had nearly ten years ago. By coming here, I can now experience the same hunger the guys are having which just brings the best out of me,” the athlete exclusively told Mozzart Sport.

Already having represented his country at the Summer Olympics (Rio 2016), the World Championships and Commonwealth Games, Bruintjes disclosed how the two athletes made contact and why they decided to work together moving forward.

“The first time we met was when I was in Kenya for the 2022 KipKeino classic (finished fourth). That was the first time we talked. We spoke a little bit at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and after that is when our relationship started and we decided to start working together,” he revealed.

“The main focus is obviously running good times and preparing ourselves for the upcoming Olympics in 2024 and the World Championships. The plan is just to take the time now to work together to see how things go,” he added.

Bruintjes, coach Duncan Ayiemba and Ferdinand Omanyala

With the pleasure of training with Omanyala, the reigning Commonwealth and African champion, under coach Duncan Ayiemba, Bruintjes showered words for praise to the 27 year old Kenyan athlete who has changed the sprinting scene in the country.

“Training with Ferdinand is really good. He is a hardworking guy and like I said, these guys have the hunger so being around them helps me also get the best out of myself. As a competitor, you are always competitive but you also need to give credit when someone else is doing well. Personally, I give credit to Omanyala because he started something that I feel was needed. Having that mentality of saying let’s take it to the world is why we linked up to see how we can push each other for us to reach new heights,” he stated.

Omanyala begins promising 2023 season with new national record in France

With the 2023 season just beginning, a confident Bruintjes insisted that his main target is on improving his times this year and praying to stay fit. The South African also predicted more athletes from outside the country to follow in his steps owing to the progress Omanyala is making across the continent and the world.

“2023 is just about improving on my times that I have set in the past. If I can do that I think a lot of things are possible. So, that is the main focus and then to sure I stay injury free and have a good year.

Hopefully in the next three or four years, we will have more guys paying attention to what we are doing and will want to join us here in Kenya. Personally, the plan is to train well with the guys and hopefully see more guys come and do the same as I did,” he concluded.