Omanyala eager to support other sports after successful tennis tourney
Commonwealth and Africa 100metres champion Ferdinand Omanyala poses with some of the winners during the Omanyala Tennis 10's tournament at the Nairobi Sports Club on September 30, 2023.
What you need to know:
- Omanyala said he wants to try and develop talent by giving the youth a stage to discover where their sports opportunities lie
- Omanyala said that he also wanted to drive the point that sports is a universal language and that a good performance in athletics can also spur inspiration and motivation in other sports
- Omanyala advised sports personalities never to give up but keep on trying until they succeed
Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala intends to venture into other sports following the success of the second edition of Omanyala Tennis 10’s at the Nairobi Club at the weekend.
Omanyala said he wants to try and develop talent by giving the youth a stage to discover where their sports opportunities lie.
“I started with tennis because Tennis Kenya was accommodative and had good development and age group structures," said Omanyala, the Commonwealth Games and Africa 100m champion.
Omanyala said that he also wanted to drive the point that sports is a universal language and that a good performance in athletics can also spur inspiration and motivation in other sports like tennis and football.
“Coming here and actually participating in matches is inspiration enough in that, they not only need to watch me on television but also in person,” said Omanyala, adding that he will soon be releasing his program for other sports.
“We need to understand that sports is an industry and career path hence the youth should be guided and motivated to follow that path,” said Omanyala, pointing out that to perform at top level, discipline, patience and consistency are key.
Omanyala advised sports personalities never to give up but to keep on trying until they succeed. “The path or road to success are different. One can succeed while a teenager while others do at the ages of 30 or even 40,” Omanyala noted.
During the one-day tournament, David Idah won the Boys' Under-10 Green category followed by Ayden Nurani and Muyanza Kahi.
The same age group but Orange category went to Fidel Castro as Ashiraka Hedrian and Mathhew Murage finished second and third respectively.
Zuri Ochieng won Girls' Under-10 Green in a category where Malia Mongina and Apoma Amai finished second and third respectively while Girls' Orange category in the same age group went to Gisele Mutiva.
Steve Fabian won Boys Under-8 with girls' top honours going to Nurani Aleyna. The boys' and girls Under-6 accolades went to Joshua Muchauraya and Mayahkay Rogoi respectively.
