Omanyala, Fraser-Pryce headline acts for inaugural Botswana Continental Tour Gold

Kenya's Commonwealth 100m champion Ferdinand Omanyala and multiple Olympic and world champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce will be the headlining acts at this year’s second World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting in Gaborone on 29 April.

While the Jamaican sprinting ace will be seeking a strong start to her season when she lines up at the Botswana Golden Grand Prix, Omanyala will be keen to build on what has been a super start to the season where he has already qualified for the 2023 Budapest World Championships after running 9.82s at the second Athletics Kenya (AK) meet held at Nyayo Stadium.

The Kenyan sprinting sensation also pulled off a stunning upset at the Meeting Lievin Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais in France after defeating world indoor 60m champion Marcell Lamont Jacobs in the 60m final.

In that race, the African champion set a new Kenyan record with a time of 6.54 seconds, beating his previous national record by 0.1secs.

“I am excited because I am told that it is a fast track and you know what happens in fast tracks; we run fast times. I am promising you a big show and I am coming to bring down the National Stadium in Gaborone down,” vowed Omanyala.

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On the other hand, Fraser-Pryce will be seeking a carbon copy start to her 2022 season where she ran 10.67 in her first 100m race of that year at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi - also a Continental Tour Gold event - to achieve the fastest ever women’s 100m season opener.

She went on to win a fifth world 100m title in Oregon and this year will aim to add another gold medal to her highly decorated CV at the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23.

“I will be returning to Africa at the Botswana Continental Tour Gold track meet,” said Fraser-Pryce in a message to fans. “I am excited to be opening my season so you guys get to see me run fast and have fun," she said.

Joining the duo will be Kirani James from Grenada who completed a set of world 400m medals in Oregon last year, claiming silver to go with his 2011 gold and 2015 bronze.

This year's World Athletics Continental Tour offers the biggest calendar yet and includes 14 Gold level events spread across five of the six continental areas.

Africa now has two events on the Tour with the inclusion of Botswana after Kenya’s Kip Keino Classic that comes on May 13 at the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani.

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The action kicked off in Melbourne, Australia, on 23 February and runs through to September, when the Memorial Borisa Hanzekovica in Zagreb, Croatia, welcomes athletes on 8-10 September.