02 Dec 2025

Residents of Masunga thronged the local kgotla recently to welcome home Paralympic sprint runner, Bose Mokgwathi.

Mokgwathi recently won a bronze medal in the 400 metres T13 event at the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships in New Delhi, India, clocking a time of 49.66 seconds.

Welcoming the gathering recently, Kgosi Thabo Maruje III said everyone was there to celebrate the achievement of a young man who defied the odds stacked against him.

Kgosi Maruje III said Mokgwathi was proof that one can come from a rural setting like Masunga and ultimately reach the pinnacle and draw world attention.

He commended government for its long-standing support of sport, noting that sport in Botswana was now evolving.

He highlighted that the event was an opportunity for the community to open doors for young people to excel through sport. 

He thus urged parents to raise their children properly and not deny them the opportunity to engage in sporting activities, saying that many dreams were broken by parents.

“As we celebrate you here today, we want to show you that we are the community that raises the best of the best,” he said.

Addressing the youth, Kgosi Maruje III spoke about the changing economic landscape, saying “You were born in a country where the diamonds that used to make the country take everything for granted have now run their race and lost value.”

For his part, the star, Mokgwathi recounted his journey, which included competing at the Region 5 Youth Games held in Gaborone in December 2028, where he won the gold medal in the 200m T12 and 4x100m relay events and a silver medal in the 100m T12 event.

In 2019, he made his international debut at the World Para Athletics Championships held in Dubai, where he was eliminated in the first round of the men’s 400m T13 event.

In March of this year, Mokgwathi competed at the World Para Athletics Grand Prix in New Delhi and won the gold medal in the 100m race.

Several months later, he represented his country at the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships and won a bronze medal in the 400 metres T13 event with a time of 49.66, making him the only athlete from his country to win a medal at the championships.

Aron Mokgwathi, Bose’s father, shared his son’s background, saying he was born in July 2002 and has three siblings. He said Bose’s sight problems were first realised while he was in primary school, after attending pre-school.

He said Bose was taken to the Francistown eye clinic, where the specialist regretfully informed them that nothing could be done in Botswana and recommended seeing specialists in Zimbabwe. Due to financial constraints, the family could not afford the trip.

Mokgwathi said Bose’s serious athletics journey began in 2018 when he joined the National Team and won two gold medals and a silver. 

He noted that in 2019, Bose was again selected for the National Team, marking his first international participation in France before qualifying for the World Championship in Dubai, where he did not perform well as it was his debut. 

He recalled that in 2023, after a two-year break due to injury, Bose returned to the track, qualified for the World Championship held in France, but again did not perform well as he was still recovering.

For his part, Bose said last year, he qualified for the World Championship held in Japan, where he advanced to the finals and secured seventh place out of eight athletes.

“Things started changing that day. I told my parents that I had been training in Masunga and participating internationally, but now I want to relocate to Gaborone, where there are better facilities and good coaches,” he said. He added that since his parents had continually supported him, he told himself that he needed to reward them by winning. ENDS