Take a bow for captain Omondi, life is about second chances

Kenya Sevens' Anthony Omondi (left) at World Rugby Challenger Series.[World Rugby]

When Antony Omondi was dropped from the Kenya Rugby 7s squad Shujaa a few days before the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, he felt his world had come to an end.

He was dejected and frustrated because playing at the Olympics was his ultimate dream, but he did not give up. He rose, dusted himself and hit the ground running!

Fast forward, the scintillating half-back is now not only causing ripples in the same team, but has risen to the position of co-captain alongside Vincent Onyala.

The excited duo will skipper Shujaa at the Paris 2024 Olympics to be held in France next month. To Omondi, being in the squad that will ply trade at the Olympics is a dream come true.

“It’s like getting a second chance from God. I’m out to make every moment count in Paris,” Omondi told Standard Sports.

"I was there when we were preparing for the Tokyo Olympics, unfortunately things did not go my way. It hurt when I was dropped," he recalls.

"Sometimes, you work very hard as a player, give your best in training, but things just do not go your way."

“My advice to players is that getting dropped does not mean you are a bad athlete or that you do not qualify, it just gives you the time and space to prepare more and be a better player."

"Just take the whole process as a lesson, work your way up, it's frustrating but as a sportsman, you have to be resilient," he added.

Ahead of his Olympics debut in Paris, Omondi is meticulously approaching every training detail at their Kasarani camp base in Nairobi like a final.

"This Olympics is very special to me and my family. I'm focused to make the best of it, and my ultimate goal is to make history with Shujaa,” he said.

"So far, the training here has been perfect. We have aligned all the rugby basics. Even though we have been preparing ever since we qualified for Paris, the workouts have been much more intense since we hit the camp.”

One area Omondi thinks the team is supposed to work on before they depart to France is the defence.

"We do not want a leaky back; this will help us not to lose points. So, actually, this is our major concentration in the entire period that we will be at Kasarani," he said.

"Our aim is to win a medal, so we are targeting a podium finish. For us to achieve this, we have planned to take one game at a time. We believe this strategy will assist us towards attaining the goal."

Kenya will be making a third consecutive appearance at the Olympics.