)
American Olympian Fred Kerley has doubled down on his online feud with Kenyan sprinter Ferdinand Omanyala, seemingly taking a sly dig at the Commonwealth games champion.
Fred Kerley, the Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medalist in the men’s 100m, has reignited his feud with Kenyan sprinter Ferdinand Omanyala, Africa’s fastest man.
In a series of cryptic posts and comments, Kerley has not held back, openly questioning Omanyala's credibility on the global stage.
The most recent jab came via Kerley’s account on X (formerly Twitter), where he shared a photo of himself and Omanyala from the Silasia Diamond League final in August.
In the race, Kerley triumphed with a meet record of 9.87 seconds, edging out Omanyala, who clocked 9.89 seconds to finish second.
Accompanying the photo, Kerley wrote, “level to this ish kids,” implying that he operates on a level above the Kenyan sprinter.
This wasn’t Kerley’s first swipe at Omanyala.
Speaking on an episode of the Ready Set Go podcast, the former world champion dismissed Omanyala’s impressive times clocked on Kenyan soil, saying, “Them races in Kenya don’t really count.”
)
05:29 - 25.10.2024
'Them races in Kenya don’t really count'- American sprinter Fred Kerley aims dig at Ferdinand Omanyala
The 100m Olympic bronze medalist questioned Omanyala's record breaking time as Africa's fastest man.
He further elaborated, pointing to his own consistent performances worldwide.
“I run fast everywhere. I don’t run like they said we only run fast on home soil. We run fast everywhere. I ran 19 outside the soil. So, he got to tell me what it really is.”
The remarks seemed to reference Omanyala’s disappointing performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he clocked 10.08 seconds to finish eighth in his semi-final heat, failing to qualify for the final.
In contrast, Kerley advanced from the same heat with a time of 9.84 seconds and eventually secured bronze in the final, clocking 9.81 seconds.
Despite the provocations, Omanyala has chosen to remain silent, refraining from engaging with his American rival’s comments.
His muted response suggests a preference to focus on his performance rather than social media banter.
While Kerley continues to dominate conversations on and off the track, Omanyala’s focus will likely remain on proving his mettle in upcoming international events.
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)