11 Apr 2018

Botswana 4x 400 men and women relay teams will  be under spot light at the ongoing 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast after putting a good performance at the IAAF/BTC World Relays in Bahamas 2017 finals.

In Bahamas, the men’s team clocked 3:02.28, and won silver while the women’s relay team finished on position six with a time of 3:30.13 and qualified for the World Championship where both teams failed to do well.

The 4x400 men heat which is made up of Isaac Makwala, Baboloki Thebe, Karabo Sibanda, Onkabetse Nkobolo, Leaname Maotoanong, and Nijel Amos will start at 1605 while the women’s heat which has Amantle Montsho, Christine Botlogetswe, Galefele Moroko, Goitseone Seleka, and Loungo Matlhaku will follow at 1635 at Carrera Stadium.

The men’s team, according to athletics analyst Bapati Mmotlanyane are the tournament’s favorites for the gold in the relay.

He said having the fastest two athletes in the individual 400m final gives Botswana an edge over the rest of the podium contenders.

“But relay can be a very tactical and unforgiving race with slightest of mistakes changing the complexion of the game altogether, so there is little room for any tactical naivety from athletes. Being the chief contenders comes with pressure but I believe our team has enough experience and pedigree to shrug off that pressure. The relay now presents a new headache for the coach,” he said.

Mmotlanyane said the team still has Nkobolo and Maotoanong as well as Amos and the primary concern should now be on judging the preliminary stages to perfection in terms of team selection.

“Do we give either Makwala or Thebe a rest so he could anchor the team at the final? On the balance of contention, I think we still stand a chance to qualify for the final should the coach decide to rest Makwala or Thebe on the preliminaries,” he said.

He however said he was confident that Maotoanong and Nkobolo were also good to deliver, adding that as for Sibanda he was of the view that “he looks out of sorts at the moment”.

He said the chief rivals for the gold was England given that it looks a fairly assembled team with the likes of Martyn Rooney, and Matthew Hudson-Smith.

Jamaica also poses a threat by virtue of having three athlete’s men in that individual 400m final as well as Trinidad and Tobago and Grenada.

As for the Women’s team, another analyst Billy Tambula said the ladies stood a chance to finish at the podium even though the chance is slim.

He however said in his opinion the team would qualify for the finals looking at the performance of the top three ranked athletes in Moroko, Montsho and Botlogetswe.

“My assessment of the quality in other teams make me believe that position four is realistic. But you should always know that in relays there are no pushovers hence we might just find ourselves battling on the line for bronze,” he said.

Tambula said Montsho and Botlogetswe   form shows that if they deliver their best splits the country can deliver a medal

“I’m saying this without knowledge of teams who will participate in the relays as we are still waiting for entries. But definitely Jamaica, Nigeria, Kenya and England are amongst those who will have an easy passage to the finals and contend for medals,” he said. ENDS