Ferdinand Omanyala, known as Africa’s fastest man, thought he would not be able to compete in this week’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, which is one of the most significant events after the Olympics, due to delayed visa processing.
Omanyala is known to be one of the fastest sprinters of all time. He was scheduled to fly to the United States on Monday, allowing him some time to rest and prepare for his 100-meter race. But without his visa arriving and only a day left before the competition started, his chances of competing were slim.
Omanyala told the Washington Post that he applied for his visa with the rest of his team on July 7. Most of his teammates received their visas a day later, but he was still without one. The reasons why he did not obtain his visa are still unknown. He blames the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi for the unknown delay. “It’s really disappointing, and I hope they do better next time,” he said. “I know they are hosting the Olympics in 2028, so I really hope they learn from this and do much better next time.”
On Thursday, he finally received his visa and boarded a five-hour flight from Nairobi to Doha. After the flight, he boarded a 14-hour flight to Seattle, getting 9 hours of sleep. He then took a final flight from Seattle to Eugene, landing 3 hours before the race. He then drove directly to Hayward Field.
In the first round, Omanyala placed third with a speed of 10.10, which was off his season best of 9.85. However, the time was good enough to allow him to advance to the semifinals, where he was eliminated.
Omanyala’s close call sparked a reaction on social media, which caused many Kenyans to talk about the wait of the athletes and themselves. Some of them spoke about how the United States “deliberately” slowed down the processing of the athlete’s visas due to fear of the Americans losing. The near disaster has led to students complaining about how long their visas take to be approved.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1658069023865x991502925473258400/Ferdinand%20Omanyala%20visa%20delay_%20Outcry%20after%20top%20Kenyan%20sprinter%20nearly%20misses%20championships%20-%20The%20Washington%20Post.pdf
Omanyala is known to be one of the fastest sprinters of all time. He was scheduled to fly to the United States on Monday, allowing him some time to rest and prepare for his 100-meter race. But without his visa arriving and only a day left before the competition started, his chances of competing were slim.
Omanyala told the Washington Post that he applied for his visa with the rest of his team on July 7. Most of his teammates received their visas a day later, but he was still without one. The reasons why he did not obtain his visa are still unknown. He blames the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi for the unknown delay. “It’s really disappointing, and I hope they do better next time,” he said. “I know they are hosting the Olympics in 2028, so I really hope they learn from this and do much better next time.”
On Thursday, he finally received his visa and boarded a five-hour flight from Nairobi to Doha. After the flight, he boarded a 14-hour flight to Seattle, getting 9 hours of sleep. He then took a final flight from Seattle to Eugene, landing 3 hours before the race. He then drove directly to Hayward Field.
In the first round, Omanyala placed third with a speed of 10.10, which was off his season best of 9.85. However, the time was good enough to allow him to advance to the semifinals, where he was eliminated.
Omanyala’s close call sparked a reaction on social media, which caused many Kenyans to talk about the wait of the athletes and themselves. Some of them spoke about how the United States “deliberately” slowed down the processing of the athlete’s visas due to fear of the Americans losing. The near disaster has led to students complaining about how long their visas take to be approved.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1658069023865x991502925473258400/Ferdinand%20Omanyala%20visa%20delay_%20Outcry%20after%20top%20Kenyan%20sprinter%20nearly%20misses%20championships%20-%20The%20Washington%20Post.pdf
