Noah Lyles Edges Ferdinand Omanyala As Both Qualify for World Championships Semis

• Ferdinand Omanyala posted the third-quickest time to sail through to the semifinals of the 100m of the World Championships
• Omanyala finished second in the second heat behind Noah Lyles with a sub-10 time
• The Africa Champion is hoping for better tidings after visa issues hampered his progress at last year's championships

Ferdinand Omanyala sailed through to the semifinals of the World Athletics Championships after he finished second in his heat on Saturday, August 19, in Budapest, Hungary.

The Commonwealth champion got out nicely from the blocks before slowing down towards the end. Noah Lyles, who is the world 200m champion and seeking a double this year, won the heat.

Omanyala clocked 9.97 seconds, while Lyles used 9.95 seconds.

The first three of each heat qualify automatically for the semifinals, plus the next three with the best times. World Leader and British record holder Zharnel Hughes won heat one with a time of 10.00 seconds despite a slow start.

Carmona's late stunner takes Spain into maiden Women's World Cup final

Football

Who else qualified?

In heat five, defending champion Fred Kerley finished second behind Jamaica's Oblique Seville after a series of false starts and delays. Kerley clocked 9.99 seconds, only bettered by Seville's 9.86 - a new personal best.

Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs made a comeback to finish third in heat 6 and qualify for the next round as well. The Italian, who has been dodged by injuries this year, posted 10.15 seconds.

Other big names who qualified include world U20 champion Letsile Tebogo, 2019 champion Christian Coleman and former African champion Akani Simbine.

The semifinals are slated for Sunday, 5:35 PM Kenyan time, with the finals following later at night at 8:10 PM.

Omanyala's wife writes open letter to husband

Sports Brief caught up with a pensive and excited Laventa Amutavi - the wife of Omanyala. She will be in Budapest in person this weekend to cheer on the Commonwealth Champion.

Fastest Men in the World in 2023: Ferdinand Omanyala 2nd ahead of Kerley, Noah Lyles

Athletics

The mother-of-one sent out a message to her husband as she highlighted the significance of these championships to them, the rollercoaster of emotions and what she hopes will happen at the end of it all.

She wrote an open letter to her husband ahead of the championships.