11 Aug 2024

The excitement surrounding Botswana’s athletes at the Paris Olympic Games reached new heights with the remarkable achievement of Tebogo Letsile, who clinched a gold medal in the 200m final.

While there was never doubt about the talent of Botswana’s athletes, the prospect of bringing home a gold medal was often met with caution due to the Olympics fierce competition.

Minister of Youth, Gender,  Sport and Culture, Honourable Tumiso Rakgare, expressed the nation’s joy over Tebogo’s extraordinary performance. “What happened, where an otherwise small nation with a population of just two million people conquered the world and carved its name into the annals of Olympic and sport history is just mammoth,” he stated, emphasising that the victory was for every Motswana and for all of Africa.

Rakgare commended Tebogo for demonstrating determination, resilience, and self-belief. “His performance on the global stage has inspired not only upcoming athletes, but many young people in our nation and indeed the continent to dream big and to work hard to turn those dreams into reality,” he said.

Reflecting on Tebogo’s journey, the minister highlighted his consistency and dedication, which were evident during key milestones such as the World U20 Athletics Championships in Kenya and Colombia in 2021 and 2022, as well as at the World Athletics Championships.

The minister also pointed out that  government has recognised sport and the creative sector as one of the eight priority areas for economic transformation in the twelfth National Development Plan (NDP 12). “The exploits by Tebogo at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games is therefore a sure sign that it is possible,” he concluded.

Therefore, he said,  in recognising such exceptional performance, Tebogo was entitled to amongst other things from government, P250 000 for winning a gold medal, P25 000 for the top 8 finish in 100m and P50 000 for setting an African record in 200m.

“He will also get a housing unit in a place of his choice in Botswana for the podium finish and he has also won P1 million and P2 500 worth of groceries for 12 months from Choppies.

All these are in addition to the P30 000 qualification bonus, P8 300 monthly upkeep stipend since his qualification and the P5 000 appearance fee that he has already been paid,” he said.

Rakgare also said the whole of Team Botswana deserved applause on the historic achievement. ENDS