Wanyonyi, Moraa impressive in Rabat as Omanyala is beaten to 3rd

Former World U-20 800m champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi is not letting anything stop him this season and his performances are pointing to a man on a mission.

The teenage sensation who has in recent competitions elicited discussions of a world record holder David Rudisha replacement lit up the field at the Rabat Diamond League leg held at the Mohammed V Stadium in Morocco on Sunday, 28 May, night.

Wanyonyi picked from where he had left in Nairobi during the continental tour as he piped Commonwealth Games champion Wycliffe Kinyamal (1:44.73)  in a 1:44.36 victory.

Olympic champion Emmanuel Korir, who missed the Kip Keino Classic despite being included in the initial line ups for what could have been a slight injury in training, placed eighth, clocking 1:48.42.

Compatriot Mary Moraa ensured the 800m double was safely in Kenya when she raced to a season best 1:58.72 victory, adding to her marvelous performance in Nairobi during the Kip Keino Classic.

Meanwhile, Commonwealth Games 100m champion Ferdinand Omanyala, up against a world class field including world champion Fred Kerley, lost the race managing a third-place finish.

In his second appearance in the Diamond League, Omanyala clocked 10.05 seconds to finish behind Kerley and former African record holder, South Africa’s Akani Simbine.

Unlike previous races, Omanyala had a good start off the blocks but seemed to have lost power for his highly charged finishes and saw Kerley and Simbine zoom past him with about 20m to go for 9.94 and 9.99 seconds respectively.