Africa’s fastest man, Ferdinand Omanyala, lit up the track at the 2025 Adidas Atlanta City Games on Saturday, May 17, winning the men’s 150m in a record-breaking 14.70 seconds.
The Kenyan sprint star led from the gun, cruising to victory and shattering both the African and national records in the rarely run event.
Bahamian Terrence Jones came in second at 14.93, while American Matthew Boling finished third in 15.15. Dominican Republic’s Alexander Ogando was disqualified for a false start.
The much-hyped clash between Omanyala and Olympic champion Noah Lyles did not happen after Lyles withdrew due to a minor injury, disappointing fans eager for a head-to-head sprint duel.
Omanyala’s win comes as a strong rebound following a shaky start to the season at the Xiamen Diamond League. At 29 years old, he now holds two African records—9.77 seconds in the 100m and 14.70 seconds in the 150m.
Just weeks before the Atlanta meet, he had helped Kenya’s 4x100m relay team—with Boniface Mweresa, Steve Onyango, and Meshack Baabu—clock a national record 38.35 seconds at the World Relays in China, qualifying for the World Championships in Tokyo for the first time since 1983.
Omanyala now looks ahead to the Rabat Diamond League in Morocco on Saturday, May 24, with fans hopeful for another strong performance from the Commonwealth Games champion.
South Africa’s Akani Simbine continued his stellar form in the men’s 100m, winning in 9.86 seconds ahead of Nigeria’s Udodi Onwuzurike. Simbine, who has already beaten Omanyala this year in Xiamen and Botswana, is increasingly becoming a top contender on the global circuit.
Nigeria’s Favour Ofili delivered a historic moment in the women’s 150m, clocking 15.85 seconds to break the world record and become the first woman to run under 16 seconds in the distance.
In the men’s 200m, Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes won in 19.55 seconds, edging out South Africa’s Wayde van Niekerk who clocked 19.63, while Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards came third in 20.03.
