
via Imago
Credits: Instagram

via Imago
Credits: Instagram
Africa’s fastest man has seen his 2025 campaign unfold with both triumphs and interruptions, but the story took a sharper turn this week. He had opened the year with convincing victories and even shattered an African record over 150 meters, now finds his season interrupted at its most critical point. The sprinter’s decision regarding the Diamond League Final in Zurich has immediately shifted attention from his mixed summer form to the status of his health as the World Championships in Tokyo approach.
The season had begun in promising fashion. Ferdinand Omanyala claimed a win at the ASA Grand Prix in Johannesburg with a 10.08-second run and posted 10.09 seconds at Uganda’s National Trials. His highlight came in May at the Adidas Atlanta City Games, where he clocked 14.70 seconds in the rarely contested 150 meters, establishing a new African record and underlining his range and speed. He then took silver in Diamond League meetings at Xiamen and Rabat, though a last-place finish in Shanghai and a third-place 10.07-second showing at Nairobi’s Kip Keino Classic revealed inconsistencies and a struggle with the transition phase of his sprint. Even so, his season trajectory kept him within sight of the major championships.
That momentum halted on August 25. Omanyala confirmed on social media that he would not appear in Zurich, citing physical problems that emerged in recent weeks. “Due to recent hip, iliopsoas, and gluteal pain experienced over the past few weeks, I regret to inform you that I will be unable to participate in the Diamond League Finals 2025. I am optimistic about my recovery and anticipate being fully fit for Tokyo.” With that message, the Commonwealth Games champion closed the door on a marquee head-to-head with Christian Coleman, Akani Simbine, Trayvon Bromell, and Bayanda Walaza. His absence in Switzerland denies the final one of its most recognizable figures, while raising immediate questions about his fitness for September.
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Due to recent hip, iliopsoas, and gluteal pain experienced over the past few weeks, I regret to inform you that I will be unable to participate in the Diamond League Finals 2025. I am optimistic about my recovery and anticipate being fully fit for Tokyo.
— Ferdinand Omurwa OMANYALA M.B.S,O.G.W (@Ferdiomanyala) August 25, 2025
The timing is significant because the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo begin on September 13. Omanyala has been named to Kenya’s provisional squad, both in the 100 meters and the 4×100 meter relay, where he helped secure a rare qualification earlier this year at the World Relays in Guangzhou.
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A training base in Miramas has supported his recovery process, but every week lost to injury shortens the preparation window. For an athlete whose season has already displayed uneven results, the physical setback intensifies the challenge of arriving in peak condition.
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Omanyala has shown the ability to rebound from setbacks in the past like his first World Championships in 2022 being marred by visa delays that left him arriving in Eugene just hours before his opening heat. His statement suggests confidence that medical management will allow him to compete.
The Zurich withdrawal ensures a pause to his racing schedule, but the coming weeks will determine whether one of the world’s fastest man can carry his promise from the streets of Atlanta and the circuits of Rabat into the championship stage of Tokyo. While now he waits to be fit before the Worlds, Ferdinand Omanyala revealed that his only aim this season was to simply enjoy athletics.
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Can Omanyala's focus on joy over medals redefine success in athletics, or is it a risky move?
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Ferdinand Omanyala Chooses Joy Over Pressure in New Athletics Season
Ferdinand Omanyala opened his season with a declaration that is differed from the usual ambition-filled pledges expected of an athlete of his stature. Rather than mapping out medal targets or time benchmarks, he spoke of returning to the simple joy of sprinting. In his words, “I am getting into this season with just one goal; to enjoy athletics.” It was a deliberate step away from the calculations and burdens that had shaped his approach in earlier years.

via Reuters
Paris 2024 Olympics – Athletics – Men’s 100m Round 1 – Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France – August 03, 2024. Ferdinand Omanyala of Kenya reacts after finishing first place in heat 2. REUTERS/Alina Smutko
He reflected that the weight of last year’s expectations had distanced him from the very essence of why he competed. Omanyala admitted that he had filled his thoughts with races, targets, and outcomes, and in doing so, had lost sight of the satisfaction he once found simply by walking to the starting line. Now, his intent was to recover that early feeling, when every run carried an unforced sense of excitement. “I just want to appreciate every moment that I am on the track and walk to the starting blocks,” he explained, emphasizing a return to the mindset of his formative years.
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This season, the 29-year-old runner positioned himself not as a man chasing historic milestones, but as one intent on re-establishing harmony with his sport. He described a desire to step back from the conversation about medals and instead place his attention on the present. “I just want to feel happy, I want to enjoy runs just like I used to during my rookie years,” he said, underscoring that contentment would be his true marker of success. In choosing this perspective, Omanyala presented a vision of an athlete resolved to measure the season not by podium finishes, but by the restoration of his own enjoyment of athletics.
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"Can Omanyala's focus on joy over medals redefine success in athletics, or is it a risky move?"