Letsile Tebogo: How Bostwana's fastest man made Olympics history

Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo is now celebrity material. This week, he became the first African man to win an Olympic medal in 200 metres.

Then he led his country’s team to a silver medal in the  men’s 4x400 metres relay race. The gold was the first ever for Botswana, even though the country had come close in the past. But everyone in Africa was celebrating the man for “arriving on the scene,” according to one social media post on X.

The 21-year-old is a native of Kanye, some 80km south-west of Gaborone, the capital of Botswana. Folks there say they noticed his track ventures when he was still at school, where he swept competitors by the wayside in school track events. He still retains the nickname ‘School boy’.

In the final of men’s 200 metres race held on Thursday night at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, he finished ahead of US sprinters Kenny Bednarek and Noah Lyles. The latter had been presumed the favourite to win the race. Tebogo is now the fifth-fastest man in history over the distance.

As a result of the fate President Eric Mokgweetsi Masisi declared a half-day public holiday to allow his country to celebrate the stunt.

In a statement posted on X, President Masisi wrote: “The decision has been duly made to recognise and honour Letsile Tebogo as the first Motswana (Botswana national) and first African to win a Gold Medal for 200m in the history of the Olympics.”

President Masisi also wrote that he recognises and acknowledges Tebogo’s performance and achievement as markedly outstanding… that will be etched in the annals of the history of the Republic.

Tebogo was running for both his country, and his mum who had passed away in May. He showed up on track in spikes bearing his mother’s date of birth, saying he carried her with him.

“It means a lot to me, Africa and everyone who has been rallying behind me when I lost my mother. I’m grateful to them because personally I thought my career was over, but the team made sure we came here with a healthier mind,” Letsile Tebogo told journalists on the trackside in Paris.

He revealed he had a tough journey to success as he was raised by his single mother, who also brought up his younger brother. The family admits it has had no history of running, until Tebogo’s ventures.

Accordingly, President Masisi, also wrote that on behalf of all of the citizenry, he applauds Letsile and gave tribute to his late mother for the inspiration.

Videos posted on social media show fans across the country and abroad celebrating Letsile’s historic Olympics 200-meter win. 

“Congratulations, Letsile School-boy Tebogo, our golden boy! We are all immensely proud of you!” Former President Seretse Khama wrote on his official Facebook page.

“Letsile has not only won a gold medal; he has won the hearts of millions across the world,”the country’s minister of youth, gender, sport and culture Mr Tumiso Rakgare said.

According to the government official Letsile’s legacy will be remembered for generations to come, and the impact will be felt far beyond the world of athletics.

Mr Rakgare, who made a statement on a historic achievement by Botswana at the ongoing Paris 2024 Olympic Games, added that Letsile has set a new standard of excellence, and they were confident that his success will inspire many other young people to follow in his footsteps. 

“You have put #Botswana on the world map and raised the #TeamAfrica flag high in the most spectacular way.

Let’s continue to invest in our young athletes and watch Africa dominate the world of sports!” AU wrote on its Facebook page.

The Paris 2024 Olympic Games marked a historic milestone for him as it was his debut appearance on the Olympic stage.

It is not the first time that Tebogo, a footballer, who swapped the pitch for the running track, has topped the podium.

Last year, at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary he became the first African athlete to win a 100m medal, finishing second after Noah Lyles.

It is clear that this gold came about after years of effort.

Tebogo was already a well-rounded footballer and sprinter when he was six years old.

At the age of 13, he won the 100m, 200m, and the 4x100m relay, earning his first call-up to the national team.

At the World Athletics Under-20 Championships in both 2021 and 2022, he won the 100 meters and finishing second in the 200.

By the age of 18, he made history by becoming the first athlete from Botswana to win the 100-meter title at any World Championships. He is the 2022 200-meter athlete.

He participated in his first international event at the 2021 World Athletics Relays in Chorzów, Poland, in May.

He was second in the 200 meters and won the 100 meters in the World Under-20 Championships in Nairobi, Kenya, in August.

Previously, Botswana had won just two Olympic medals on the track since its first Games in Moscow in 1980.

It was with Nijel Amos winning silver in the 800 meters in 2012 and the men’s 4x400 relay team taking bronze at the last Olympics in Tokyo.

In the neighbourhood, Namibia is the only country that has come close before to Botswana’s achievement when Frankie Fredericks won silver medals in the 100 and 200 meters at both the 1992 and 1996 Olympics.

Tebogo, who always disclosed that Fredericks was his idol met last year in Namibia and it looks like the blessing worked.

Soon after the meeting, Tebogo described himself as just an African boy on a mission to take Africa to the world and shared on his social media platforms that it took a Legend to boldly and unreservedly hand over the beacon of light to a youngster like him.