Botswana on the rise: how passion drives its athletes to podium success

At the Paris Olympic Games in 2024, Letsile Tebogo shocked a strong field of fellow sprinters, including American superstars Kenny Bednarek and Noah Lyles, to clinch the 200m gold. It was Botswana’s first gold in Olympic history and it put the world on notice with regard to the African country’s promise.

After that historic moment, the Botswana runners maintained the momentum in 2025. At the World Championships in Tokyo, Collen Kebinatshipi clinched gold in the 400m. It was the country’s first World Championship gold.

His compatriot Bayapo Ndori was also on the podium for that event, just to emphasise that Kebinatshipi’s historic success was not coincidental. Botswana then clinched another sweet victory on the last day of the Championships when a team consisting of Ndori, Kebinatshipi, Tebogo and Lee Eppie beat the US and South Africa to claim gold in the 4x400m relay.

It was the first time an African team had claimed gold in the event traditionally dominated by the US.

“These breakthroughs aren’t just medals,” Botswana Minister of Sport and Arts Jacob Kelebeng told Daily Maverick. “They have lifted the nation’s spirit, sparked grassroots interest and put Botswana on the global track‑and‑field map.

“We are proud of every athlete, coach and support staff who turned years of hard work into historic moments. The pride is sky‑high. Our athletes have made Botswana a name to watch in sprinting, and we cannot wait to see what the next generation brings.”

Not only is there a buzz from budding Batswana athletes in the wake of the recent successes, but these victories have also spilled over into the economy. “Botswana’s track and field success has elevated global branding, sparked major athletics events and opened new tourism pathways, turning sport into a tangible catalyst for broader tourism growth,” Kelebeng said.

“Increased visitor arrivals translate into higher occupancy rates, more local jobs for guides and in hospitality and transport, and greater tax revenue. Analysts already note that the post‑victory surge in interest could offset some diamond sector slowdown, reinforcing tourism’s role as a key non‑mining economic driver.”

Driven by passion

But what’s the secret? According to Oabona Theetso, acting president of the Botswana Athletics Association (BAA), numerous factors have influenced the athletics scene growing to the heights it has in recent years.

“For one, our athletes are mostly passion driven. They love the sport,” Theetso told Daily Maverick. “Where there’s passion, there’s always a will to go further.

“So, people are driven by passion. It makes it easier for everyone involved to keep up the standards because no one would want to drop the ball.”

Theetso also acknowledged that as much as athletes such as Tebogo and Kebinatshipi have really elevated Botswana’s standing in the sport in the past year or so, they are not painting on a blank canvas. “Those who came before them also inspired them to do better,” he said.

Runners such as Nijel Amos, Amantle Montsho and Isaac Makwala also played their part in planting the seeds of success.

Amos holds the distinction of becoming Botswana’s first Olympic medallist when he won silver in the 800m at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Montsho is also a pioneer. Now 42 years old, the former sprinter was the first woman to represent Botswana at the Olympics, making her historic debut at the 2004 event in Athens. She went on to win gold in the 400m at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

Sadly, Amos and Montsho both failed doping tests later in their careers. Perhaps they felt pressure to maintain the positivity their medal-collecting milestones had brought to their country. Only they know the truth. But Theetso is out to ensure that none of the current crop find themselves falling into similar traps, especially because they are role models for the next generation of athletes.

“The more you win, the more the pressure. The less you win, the less the pressure as well. The question becomes why are you not winning when others are winning, when we have got used to you winning? So, there is always pressure out of that.

“But in terms of how we maintain [a clean record in our athletics], it is a matter of the willingness to do better than we’ve done in the past,” Theetso said.

Theetso is acting as BAA president because the incumbent, Moses Bantsi, was appointed as the local CEO of the World Athletics Relays event in Gaborone in May 2026. His tenure began in June and will end in August next year.

Lack of resources

Botswana’s success has come despite the country lacking the world-class infrastructure of some of the countries its athletes have toppled on the global athletics stage. It has just two World Athletics-accredited stadiums, which are shared with soccer. One is in Francistown and the other in Gaborone.

As someone whose upbringing was as tough as that of any regular citizen, Tebogo’s rise is one that his native country is particularly proud of. His story is typical of not only Botswana, but large parts of Africa.

Growing up in a challenging environment in the village of Kanye in southern Botswana, the 22-year-old gravitated towards sports as an escape from his environment of poverty and despair.

“Letsile is motivating a whole lot of athletes because they now can see that it’s possible,” Theetso said. “It’s not like in the past whereby, as black people, we would doubt ourselves. We normally thought that, as Africans, it’s impossible for us to make it, but we have proven to the world that we really can do well.

“We also only use local coaches. They know the dynamics of athletics in Botswana. They know the background of these athletes.

“When we talk about Letsile, we know where he grew up. We know the setup under which he grew up.

“Localising the technical department is key because the dynamics are well known to all the stakeholders,” he added.

The BAA still largely depends on government grants and a number of state-sponsored programmes to ensure its athletes have the best chance to successfully compete internationally. Theetso is hopeful that this recent success for the nation on the track will be a catalyst for more corporate investment. DM

This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper, which is available countrywide for R35.