18 Dec 2025

Against the backdrop of a small population, the country did not just compete on the global stage, but conquered.

From the thunderous roar of the World Athletics Championships, where a quartet of sprinters stunned the world to claim a historic gold medal, to the steady rise of junior tennis aces and the continental breakthrough of women’s football, this was a year of profound achievement.

The country reaffirmed its status as an emerging sporting powerhouse, demonstrating that talent, sheer grit and strategic hosting can transform a small nation into a giant of African sport.

ATHLETICS

Although the code faced challenges like doping cases, the athletes delivered the most spectacular and historic results, placing Botswana firmly on the world map.

Botswana won its first-ever 4x400m men’s relay gold medal, dethroning long-time track nemesis the USA at the World Athletics Championships held in Tokyo, Japan. The victorious team comprised Lee Eppie, Letsile Tebogo, Bayapo Ndori and Collen Kebinatshipi. The President of Botswana, Advocate Gideon Boko, even declared a public holiday to celebrate the historic victory.

In the men’s 400m individual medals, Botswana made history by fielding three athletes in a major competition final. Kebinatshipi won the first-ever 400m men’s gold medal, setting a new National Record and World Lead of 43.53 seconds, while Ndori secured a bronze medal with a time of 44.20 seconds.

Still in athletics, Botswana was awarded the right to host the 2026 World Athletics Relays to be held in Gaborone next year from May 2-3, marking the first time in history the event will be hosted in Africa.
In the Paralympics, Botswana won a bronze medal at the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships held in New Delhi, India, courtesy of Bose Mokgwathi in the Men’s T13 400m, while Gloria Majaga and Edwin Masuge made it to the finals.

FOOTBALL

Gaborone United achieved unprecedented success, marking a historic breakthrough into Africa’s elite club competition.
The club’s men’s team was crowned Premier League champions while the women’s team won both the Women’s League and the DTCB Championship.
By virtue of winning the DTCB, GU women qualified for and won the COSAFA Women’s Champions League Cup Qualifiers, making history for Botswana.
They subsequently qualified for the CAF Women’s Champions League where they were eliminated in the group stages.
On one hand, the senior women’s national team, The Mares, competed at the WAFCON finals in Morocco.
Although eliminated in the group stages, they showed competitive fire, holding Africapowerhouse Nigeria until the 90th minute for a solitary goal loss, winning 1-0 against Algeria and losing 2-0 against Tunisia.

TENNIS

Botswana continued to leverage hosting international events to afford local players critical exposure, yielding remarkable success from its junior circuit players.
Botswana successfully hosted the Davis Cup Africa Group V event for the second consecutive year and won the event, gaining promotion to Africa Group IV.

Fresh from winning the J100 Nairobi held in Kenya, Ntungamili Raguin became the first Motswana player to win titles back-to-back at the locally hosted International Tennis Federation (ITF) World Tennis Tour Juniors tournaments.
He won a total of five ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors singles titles in 2025, including the J100 and J60 Gaborone, J100 Nairobi, J100 Algiers, and J60 Nairobi and reached a career-high junior world ranking of 167.
Hosting Confederation of African Tennis (CAT) Under 14 Circuit tournaments contributed to eight Botswana players qualifying for the African Junior Championships.

Malak Macheng qualified for the Under 14 African Masters, which had attracted only eight top players in the continent in both the boys’ and girls’ sections. Three top players, Raguin, Malak and Denzel Seetso, were awarded the Zebra athletes fund sponsorships.

At the AUSC Region 5 Youth Games, Botswana won a silver for the team event, one gold for boys’ singles and two silver medals for boys’ and girls’ doubles.
Mark Nawa and Chelsea Chakanyuka received the Elite Scholarship funding to attend Universities in the US. Malak also received the CAT scholarship to attend the African Regional Training Centre based in Sousse, Tunisia, for the 2026 season.
Gaone Poane became the first Motswana Bronze Badge chair umpire, officiating at the French Open and Wimbledon. Two wheelchair tennis players, Omphile Bothasitse and Mosa Mogaladi, achieved world rankings, ranked 16th and 65th under girls’ and boys’ categories respectively. Keseketswe ‘Kessie’ Ketletseng attained a white badge level chair umpire recognition under ITF officiating.

SWIMMING

The country’s aquatic athletes delivered a strong showing at the regional level, highlighted by multiple individual records. Swimmers brought home six gold medals from the Africa Aquatics Zone IV Championships held in eSwatini, Swaziland, in September.
Debutante Jade Chilisa won three gold medals and broke two Championship Records (CRs): 50m backstroke (28.62 CR) and 100m breaststroke (1:10.05 CR). She also won gold with a time of 32.34 in the 50 metres fly. Yun-Suh Chang won two gold medals, including a gold in the 50 metres backstroke with a time of 33.90 and a Championship Record in the 100m breaststroke (1:14.33 CR).

KARATE

The Botswana Karate Association (BOKA) successfully hosted the Gabs Open Karate Tournament, attracting hundreds of entries from across Southern Africa, reinforcing the country as a regional hub for the sport.

BOXING

Three elite male boxers, Kobamelo Molatlhegi, Ribbin Modise and Katlego Keorapetse, were selected to compete at the lucrative 2025 IBA Men’s Elite World Championships in Dubai. Katlego Keorapetse was crowned the Best Male Boxer at the 2025 BoBA Best of Best Tournament in March, securing the Bantamweight Gold Medal.

CRICKET

The Botswana National Cricket Team was actively engaged in the 2025 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Africa Regional Final Qualifier in Zimbabwe, gaining valuable experience against strong regional sides.

NETBALL

The Botswana Netball Association (BONA) elected a new leadership, which appointed a highly experienced South African coach, Martha Mosoahle-Samm, signalling a strong intent to return the code to competitive prominence.
The triumphs of 2025, the Athletics gold rush, the Davis Cup promotion, the historic CAF Women’s Champions League qualification, as well as the emergence of youth stars across multiple codes, have created an irreversible momentum. As Botswana prepares to host the 2026 World Athletics Relays, the country is ready to leverage its recent success, build on this national pride and continue its inspiring journey from a rising star to a true global sporting force. ENDS