NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 31 – World Championship silver medalist Marvin Bracy beat Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala by a hundredth of a second in the 100m race at the Spitzen Leichtathletik, a World Athletics Continental Tour Silver event in the Swiss city of Lucerne on Tuesday night.
Omanyala was competing for the first time since he won the Commonwealth Games title and was starting one of three European races to fold his season.
He finished second in 10.18secs, behind Bracy who won the race in 10.17secs.
The African record holder started side by side with American Bracy as they lined out in lane four and five. In very wet and chilly conditions with slight showers, Omanyala was off the blocks with a bit less of a punch, but once he hit the 40m mark, he started his acceleration.
He picked up good pace in the final 40m of the race, but it was Bracy who had just the slightest of nudges to finish ahead.
“It was very cold, very tough and it wasn’t easy to run fast times. But a second spot finish is good and I enjoyed myself,” said Omanyala after the race.
Jamaican Ackeem Blake wrapped up the podium with 10.22seconds for third place.
The only other Kenyan to compete in Lucerne was Boaz Kiprugut who paced the 1500m.
After Switzerland, Omanyala now shifts his attention to Germany where he will compete in the ISTAF 2022 in Berlin, also a Continental Tour Silver race before winding up his season in Croatia with the Memorial Borisa Hanžekovića Gold Tour event.
