Sports

Kenya’s 100m star, Omanyala dreams of WAC glory

Published

1 year ago

August 19, 2023

Africa’s fastest man, Ferdinand Omanyala of Kenya is confident of putting up a great performance as the World Athletics Championships (WAC) kicks off in Budapest, Hungary, on Saturday.

Omanyala, who made history as the first Kenyan to win a 100m race at the Diamond League in Monaco last month, told the BBC that he was in great shape for the WAC.

The 27-year-old Commonwealth Games champion compared the aggression of a 100m race to a boxing match as he targets gold at the Championships ahead of the likes of Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo, the junior 100m world record holder, and Jamaicans, Ackeem Blake and Yohan Blake, whom he dusted at the Diamond League to claim the victory in Monaco.

“The 100 metres is most popular because of its hype – I consider it like a boxing match,” the Kenyan police officer told BBC Sport Africa.

“In a boxing match, there’s a lot of hype around it, there’s a lot of media and the 100m race is like nine seconds of aggression.

“The concentration of a human being is 45 seconds. So for nine seconds, you understand that people pay a lot of attention, and it’s most interesting.

“For 100m athletes, I can say they’re very hyper-hyperactive, so that’s why we make the sport interesting,” Omanyala said.

The Kenyan athlete stormed to the top of Africa’s 100m spot after running a stunning 9.77 seconds in 2021, and claimed gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham after running 10.02secs.

At the 2024 Nairobi Kip Keino Classic in May, Omanyala ran a season best 9.84secs to win in a strong field of top athletes and is now targeting a first 100m podium finish at the World Championships.

The African continent has had great performances at the WAC with the likes of Namibia’s Frankie Fredericks winning in the men’s 200m, while Francis Obikwelu, who once starred for
Nigeria before switching allegiance to Portugal, and South Africans, Anaso Jobodwana and Wayde van Niekerk, also making the podium in the 200m race.

However, the continent has never won in the 100m and Omanyala is upbeat on changing the narrative.

“Africa has never medalled in this race and that’s something I want to break. I want to change that, so I want to win a medal – I want to win the gold.

“Going in as one of the top sprinters, people are looking at and counting on you – people are counting you in that medal bracket. I’m going for nothing less than a gold”, he said.

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Sports

Nigeria’s Lookman, Zambia’s Banda big winners at 2024 CAF Award

Published

2 days ago

December 17, 2024

Isaac Dachen

Nigerian sensation, Ademola Lookman, has wrapped his footballing year with another win after being declared as the Men’s Footballer of the Year by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Lookman, who plays for Italian club side Atalanta, was the biggest winner at the star-studded 2024 CAF Awards in Marrakech following 12 months with Italian side Atalanta and the Nigerian Super Eagles. He follows in the footsteps of compatriot Victor Osimhen, who claimed the award in 2023.

This is the first time Nigeria has had consecutive men’s award winners since nearly thirty years, when Nwankwo Kanu (1996) and Victor Ikpeba (1997) were awarded.

Other top African achievers recognized for their exploits during the event include South Africa’s Ronwen Williams and Zambia’s Barbra Banda. Banda was instrumental in leading Orlando Pride to the NWSL Shield and Championship in the 2024 National Women’s Soccer League season in the United States. She scored the game-winning goal in the final against Washington Spirit.

Other winners include Nigeria’s Chiamaka Nnadozie, who won Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year award for the second year in a row after another impressive season for French side Paris FC.

Sanaâ Mssoudy, a forward for AS FAR and Morocco, received the Women’s Interclub Player of the Year award after winning the 2024 CAF Women’s Champions League Best Player title. Agile box-to-box midfielder, Lamine Camara of Senegal and Monaco, won the Men’s Young Player of the Year award for his outstanding performances for both club and country.

Doha El Madani, a 19-year-old Moroccan and AS FAR player, won the Women’s Young Player of the Year award after scoring six goals in five games to win the Golden Boot at the 2024 CAF Women’s Champions League.

See the full winners list below:

2024 CAF AWARDS WINNERS

CAF PLAYER OF THE YEAR (MEN)
Ademola Lookman (Nigeria / Atalanta)

CAF PLAYER OF THE YEAR (WOMEN)
Barbra Banda (Zambia / Orlando Pride)

CAF GOALKEEPER OF THE YEAR (MEN)
Ronwen Williams (South Africa / Mamelodi Sundowns)

CAF GOALKEEPER OF THE YEAR (WOMEN)
Chiamaka Nnadozie (Nigeria / Paris FC)

CAF INTERCLUB PLAYER OF THE YEAR (MEN)
Ronwen Williams (South Africa / Mamelodi Sundowns)

CAF INTERCLUB PLAYER OF THE YEAR (WOMEN)
Sanaâ Mssoudy (Morocco / AS FAR)

CAF YOUNG PLAYER OF THE YEAR (MEN)
Lamine Camara (Senegal / AS Monaco)

CAF YOUNG PLAYER OF THE YEAR (WOMEN)
Doha El Madani (Morocco / AS FAR)

CAF COACH OF THE YEAR (MEN)
Emerse Fae (Cote d’Ivoire)

CAF COACH OF THE YEAR (WOMEN)
Lamia Boumehdi (TP Mazembe)

CAF NATIONAL TEAM OF THE YEAR (MEN)
Cote d’Ivoire

CAF NATIONAL TEAM OF THE YEAR (WOMEN)
Nigeria

CAF CLUB OF THE YEAR (MEN)
Al Ahly (Egypt)

CAF CLUB OF THE YEAR (WOMEN)
TP Mazembe (DR Congo)

CAF REFEREE OF THE YEAR (MEN)
Mutaz Ibrahim (Libya)

CAF REFEREE OF THE YEAR (WOMEN)
Bouchra Karboubi (Morocco)

CAF ASSISTANT REFEREE OF THE YEAR (MEN)
Elvis Guy Noupue Nguegoue (Cameroon)

CAF ASSISTANT REFEREE OF THE YEAR (WOMEN)
Diana Chikotesha (Zambia)

CAF GOAL OF THE YEAR
Mabululu (Angola)

Sports

Salah wins 6th EPL Player of the Month award

Published

4 days ago

December 15, 2024

Isaac Dachen

Egyptian national team captain and Liverpool forward, Mohamed Salah, was on Saturday voted the EA SPORTS Player of the Month for November 2024, making it his sixth POTM diadem in his career.

Salah, who has been in inspiring form this season, has scored and assisted five of Liverpool’s seven goals as the Reds won all three of their Premier League matches to stay top of the table.

Salah’s was November’s highest scorer in the Premier League and the Egyptian is now on 13 goals for the season, level with Erling Haaland in the Golden Boot race.

The 32-year-old also has 21 combined goals and assists this season, the most in the Premier League, four more than Cole Palmer, who ranked second in the voting.

This award also puts Salah alongside Premier League legends like Steven Gerrard and Cristiano Ronaldo, who also won the Player of the Month award six times, and is now just one win away from equaling the record of seven awards, held by Harry Kane and Sergio Aguero.