27 Jun 2023

The Botswana women’s 4x400m relay team is required to maintain the top 16 position in order to remain in the qualifying bracket for the World Athletics Championships to be held in Budapest, Hungary in August.

The team, now ranked 14^th on the women’s 4x400m relay qualification order for the Budapest23 World Athletics Championships from the 41^st position, earned a spot in the top 16 of the World Athletics rankings after finishing in first position and registering a season’s best time of 3.28.74 at the Athletics Kenya National Championships, which were held at Nyayo Stadium recently.

The team, which comprised Thomphang Basele (first leg), Lydia Jele (second leg) Golekanye Chikani (third leg) and Obakeng Kameberuka as an anchor, needs to maintain the top 16 position by the qualification deadline of July 30 for a ticket to compete in Budapest.

The time of 3.28.74 they registered in Kenya is an improvement from the 3.41.14 which the team registered at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England last year.

Maintaining the spot or performing even better and ultimately qualify for Budapest would see the women’s relay team join the 4x400m mixed relay team as well as the 4x400m men’s relay team, which had already earned a spot and ranking sixth in qualification order.

On the Budapest-bound flight will also be Letsile Tebogo, who will be competing in both 100m and 200m as well as Leungo Scotch, Bayapo Ndori, and Collen Kebinatshipi to compete in the 400m race.

In an interview, Botswana Athletics Association vice president, Oabona Theetso applauded the team for the huge improvement, saying the women’s performance had given them hope.  They have been worried about it.

“This is an indication that there is light at the end of the tunnel,” Theetso said.

He added that he was confident that more athletes would qualify for individual races by the closing date.

“Even if they do not qualify individually, the relay has indicated that they had put their efforts together, hence they clocked a better time,” he said.

He said as part of efforts to aid the team to register better times and remain in the qualifying bracket, the association would send athletes to Kenya again to compete at the trials for the Budapest championships to be held at the Kasarani Stadium from July 14-15. ENDs