Botswana Golden Grand Prix, The 100m showdown

Funmilayo Fameso 

Africa’s best sprinters in Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala, Botswana’s sprint sensation Letsile Tebogo, and Liberia’s Emmanuel Matadi will face off against some of the world’s best at the Botswana Golden Grand Prix on April 29th.

Omanyala, is the fastest in the field with his African Record (AR) of 9.77s, and will aim to lower his Season’s Best (SB) of 10.05s clocked last week at the ASA Grand Prix series in Germiston.

Ferdinand Omanyala

However, he will face stiff competition from world silver medallist Marvin Bracy, who was stunned last weekend at the LSU Gold Alumni by Nigeria’s LSU student-athlete Godson Brume, with a time of 9.97s (2.3) for the win, and Bracy finished a surprising eighth in 10.26s.

Notwithstanding, that was Bracy’s first outdoor race of the season, so he will target going much faster in Botswana.

Marvin Bracy

Another favourite tipped for a win is homeboy Tebogo with a Personal Best (PB) and World Junior Record of 9.91s set last year. The reigning world junior champion opened his season in the 200m with a joint world-leading time of 20.00s and will race for his country’s satisfaction by getting the famous win in the 100m.

Letsile Tebogo

Bracy’s compatriot Kenneth Bednarek is another top name in the stacked field, who will be making his season’s debut in the 100m at the meet. The American and world silver medallist in the 200m will pose a significant threat to the top names.

Also expected to be a stiff challenger is Liberia’s Emmanuel Matadi, who’s fourth on the 200m world list this year with 20.07s. With his fast 200m time, he will be gunning for another blazing time in the 100m and perhaps a sub-10s mark.

Emmanuel Matadi

Canada’s Aaron Brown is another strong competitor, having a wind-aided time of 9.97s clocked earlier this month. He’s also a favourite for a top-three finish in the event.

Finally, Botswana’s Thuto Masasa and USA’s Kyree King complete the stacked list expected to light up the tracks in Botswana. [pulsesports.ng]