NAIROBI, Kenya, June 28, 2026 – Despite initial reservations concerning the prevailing heat wave in Europe, the eighth leg of this year’s Diamond League in Paris is a go.
A number of Kenyans will be in action on Sunday evening, seeking to take another step towards the Diamond League trophy in their respective events.
In the men’s 100m, Commonwealth Games champion Ferdinand Omanyala will be hoping to warm up for next month’s title defence in Glasgow when he lines up against an elite competition.
With a season’s best of 9.94, Omanyala steps onto the tartan as the fastest man this year but that will matter little to other competitors who will be chasing for glory.
The likes of Olympic champion Noah Lyles of America, Olympic 4x100m relay champion Andre de Grasse, Olympic 4x100m relay bronze medalist Jeremiah Azu as well as 2020 Olympic champion Lamont Jacobs are giants in their own right, who pose a threat to Omanyala’s ambition of second Diamond League win this season.
The African 100m record holder has his work cut out, to wipe out the bitter memory of his last race, at the FBK Games in Hengelo where he finished a disappointing fifth — after clocking 10.13.
Moreover, his last Diamond League race — in Rome — was a disappointment in which he finished eighth.
Victory for him, or even a podium place, will be great encouragement for the 2022 African champion as he looks to defend his Commonwealth Games crown in Scotland.
Men’s 1500m
Fresh from securing his ticket to the Commonwealth Games, world 1500m bronze medalist Reynold Cheruiyot will be out to build the momentum in the three-and-a-quarter-lap race.
The 22-year-old’s best performance in the prestigious competition this year is a second-place finish in the men’s 3000m at the opening leg in Shanghai in May when he clocked 7:26.11.
Another son of the soil who will be competing in the same event is the 2022 World Indoor bronze medalist Abel Kipsang who will be hoping to bounce back from a woeful performance at the national trials for the Commonwealth Games, a fortnight ago.
On that occasion, the 30-year-old finished in 15th after timing 3:42.89.
Elsewhere, in the men’s 3000m steeplechase, Commonwealth Games champion Abraham Kibiwot will be joined by fellow countrymen, world bronze medalist Edmund Serem and Wilberforce Kones, in a chase for glory.
The 30-year-old’s previous result was a fourth place finish at the seventh leg of the Diamond League in Doha, where he clocked 8:15.49 in the water-jump-and-barrier race.
Meanwhile, the younger Serem will be out to build upon an impressive season thus far, in which he has secured the chance to compete at next year’s Commonwealth Games.
The World Under 20 champion’s last Diamond League appearance, at the fifth leg in Stockholm, yielded a second-place finish in 8:12.27.
Considering the two will be competing at the Club Games, Sunday evening’s race could offer a glimpse of what to expect in Glasgow.
A positive result for either or both will provide the psychological edge needed to bag a medal at next month’s competition.
Closing the curtains for the evening will be the men’s 5000m where the Kenyan quartet of Matthew Kipsang, Jacob Krop, Cornelius Kemboi and Frankline Kibet will battle 19 other athletes for three podium places.
Names to note in the 12-and-a-half lap race include world champion Jimmy Gressier of France, double Olympic bronze medalist Grant Fisher of the United States, three-time world silver medalist Lamecha Girma and 2019 Diamond League Trophy winner Getnet Wale — both of Ethiopia.
