Ferdinand Omanyala Beats the Odds to Qualify for 100m Semi-Finals in Oregon

Ferdinand Omanyala Beats the Odds to Qualify for 100m Semi-Finals in Oregon.

Celebrated Kenyan athlete Ferdinand Omanyala has defied the odds and managed to qualify for the 100m world athletics championship semi-finals held in Oregon, USA. The athlete almost missed the qualifying race due to visa delays at the Kenyan Embassy.

Omanyala was set to travel to Oregon, which is 18hrs away from the championship qualification but was still stranded in Kenya two days before the event. The situation caught the attention of Kenyans with many coming out with incidents of visa delays in the country.

The delay saw the athlete leave the country on July 14th at 6 pm and arrived in Oregon at 2:30 am East African time, just 2 and a half hours before the start of the race. Omanyala took a connection flight to Doha, Qatar which was 5hrs then boarded for Oregon, 17hrs away.

Despite the challenges, Ferdinand finished his race third in 10.10 seconds, behind Nketia, 10.08 seconds, and Brown who won with 9.98 seconds. His effort saw him get praise from commentators who acknowledged the challenges he had faced to get to the race.