28 Aug 2023

 The Botswana Athletics Association (BAA) is happy with athletes’ performance at the just ended World Athletics Championships that were held in Budapest, Hungary. 

The team came number 26 out of more than 200 countries that participated. 

According to BAA vice president, Oabona Theetso, the team recorded the best performance ever at the World Championships. 

He said the last time Botswana won a medal at the World Championships was in 2013 and 10 years later, Botswana won two medals courtesy of Letsile Tebogo.

Tebogo won silver in 100m and bronze in 200m races respectively. 

That alone, Theetso said was a great achievement.

Further he said there were many international and national records, which were broken adding that Tebogo also re-wrote history, as he became the first African man to win silver in 100m at the World Championships.

Also, he said Collen Kebinatshipi qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympics at 19 years after clocking a Personal Best time of 44.80 in his heat.

He said Oratile Nowe was the first Motswana woman ever to compete in the 800m at the World Championships and claimed a National Record, although she did not proceed to the semi-finals.

Theetso said Tshepiso Masalela in his maiden appearance at the World Championships, also qualified for the Olympics with a Personal Best time of 1:44.14, which he clocked at the semi-finals. 

He managed to make it to the finals where he finished in seventh position with 1:45.57.

Meanwhile, three 400m runners, Bayapo Ndori, Leungo Scotch and Kebinatshipi made it to the semi- finals, while the men’s 4x400m relay team was disqualified in the finals for impediment.

The women’s 4x400m relay team finished in position nine in their heat with a time of 3:31.85. 

“Generally there is a lot that we will take away from these championships and we have realised that other countries were not doing well on track, but excelled on field events,” he said. 

Theetso said BAA planned to rope in one of the field coaches through the Development of a National Sport System programme for assistance. ENDs