Ivorian sprinter Cisse joins Omanyala's camp
From left to right: Mouhamadou Fall from France, Michael Norman from USA, Ferdinand Omanyala from Kenya, Fred Kerley from USA, Akani Simbine from South Africa, Trayvon Bromell from USA, Rohan Browning from Australia and Arthur Cisse from Ivory Coast compete in the 100M men final at the Diamond League track and field meeting in Brussels on September 3, 2021.
By the time Ferdinand Omanyala, 28, won his first continental medal in 2022, Ivorian Arthur Cisse had quite a collection.
Among the medals Cisse has were the 2018 Asaba Africa and 2019 African Games 100 metres silvers, 2016 Durban Africa 4×100m silver and 2015 Brazzaville African Games 4×100m gold.
Cisse, who owns the Ivorian national records in the 100m, 150m, and 200m outdoor and 60m indoor, became the 131st man to run sub-10 seconds in the 100m when setting a national record of 9.94 on June 16, 2018.
Omanyala only ran his first sub-10 seconds in 2021, where he made history as the first Kenyan to achieve the feat, clocking 9.96 and 9.86, respectively, at the International Josko Laufmeeting in Austria in August.
The year 2021 ended beautifully for Omanyala when he snapped the African record, finishing second in 9.77 at the Kip Keino Classic in September at Kasarani.
All that has changed with Omanyala beating Cisse and defending champion Akani Simbine at the Africa Athletics Championships in Mauritius in June 2022.
Omanyala had beaten Cisse
Omanyala had beaten Cisse for the first time in the 60m indoor in Italy in May 2022.
Cisse now wants to discover what exactly Omanyala is doing.
The Ivorian will join Omanyala’s training regime in the next few days as he prepares to try and attain the qualifying standards for the Paris Olympic Games.
Cisse isn’t the first foreign athlete to join Omanyala’s training regime.
South Africa’s Henricho Bruintjies shifted his base to Kenya in February 2023 to train with Africa’s finest sprinter ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
Bruintjies, the 2018 Commonwealth Games 100-metre silver medallist, competed in a few Kenyan events before sustaining an injuiry, forcing him return to his home country.
“We are excited to have Cisse joining us because we are bound to learn a lot from him especially the starts while he will gain from us at the top end speed,” said Omanyala’s coach Geoffrey Kimani.
Kimani said that Cisse has been rebuilding since losing his coach Anthony Koffi in April last year. Koffi had coached many Ivorian sprinters and Olympians, Ben Youssef Meïté and Marie-Josée Ta Lou.
"He had just recovered from an injury before he competed at indoor in Miramas, France last month," said Kimani, adding that Omanyala must be doing something unique that his rivals want to emulate.
“Cisse is a fantastic addition to our team, great personality, and competitor. It's a good partnership for Omanyala,” said Kimani, who welcomed Cisse to Kenya.
