On Wednesday, Commonwealth Games 100m champion Ferdinand Omanyala stunned world indoor 60m champion Marcell Lamont Jacobs to win the 60m final at Meeting Lievin Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais, setting yet another Kenyan record.
Omanyala, Africa's 100m champion, dug deep to take the lead midway through before winning in 6.54 seconds, breaking his prior national record by 0.1 seconds. Omanyala defeated Jacobs, the Olympic 100m gold medalist, for the first time. The Italian finished second in a season-best 6.57, while Cote d'Ivoire's Arthur Cisse finished third in 6.59.
Omanyala got his revenge quickly and sweetly against Jacobs, who triumphed against him in the same event last year. The Italian won in a personal best time of 6.50 seconds, while Omanyala finished fourth in a national record of 6.57 seconds.
It was a fitting end to Omanyala's World Athletics Indoor Tour, in which he won three events, broke his national record twice, and finished second once.
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Omanyala finished second at the Elite Indoor Track Miramas meeting on February 3 in 6.60 seconds before winning the Mondeville Meeting in a national record of 6.55 seconds in early February. Omanyala then won the Meeting de Paris in 6.56 seconds, missing his record by 0.1 seconds.
In January, Omanyala graduated from the police academy, becoming a police officer in the event that was preceded by president William Ruto.
In a tweet, Omanyala confirmed his new status: "It's Official," Omanyala officially confirmed his graduation as a police constable yesterday afternoon. He accompanied the tweet with two pictures of himself in ceremonial police uniform: one alone and one with his wife smiling by his side.
He joins other top Kenyan athletes who are police officers, including David Rudisha, Vivian Cheruiyot, Ezekiel Kemboi, and former world javelin champion Julius Yego.
