25 May 2026

Thabiso Mokalake successfully defended his Elite Men’s Road National Championship title over the weekend following a dominant performance by his Team Swift side, which effectively neutralised several breakaway attacks during the race.

Mokalake retained the title after clocking 3:39:59, finishing ahead of teammates Mark van Zyl and Thebeyame Ruele, who came second and third in times of 3:40:00 and 3:40:42 respectively.

With some of Botswana’s top elite riders competing over the 140km distance, Team Swift controlled the race from the onset, executing their strategy by maintaining command at the front of the peloton.

The course route also suited Mokalake’s strengths, and with strong team support behind him, Team Swift’s hopes of retaining the national title were well justified.

Ruele led the peloton for much of the race, while riders from clubs such as Tsela Riders, Morupule and Jwaneng made attempts to chase down the leaders. However, Team Swift riders remained focused and maintained control of the race.

As the race progressed, the gap between the leaders and the chasing peloton widened further. Team Swift continued to dictate the pace at the front, ensuring the breakaway remained intact. Their efforts eventually paid off as van Zyl and Mokalake crossed the finish line together in an impressive team display. Although van Zyl had an opportunity to sprint for victory, he allowed Mokalake to take the win in a remarkable show of teamwork and sportsmanship.

“For a couple of kilometres, we were going slow, but I had to control the bunch and when we knew that they had enough gap to stay away, I decided to put the pace back up. And with 40km to go to the finish, I managed to drop them off and I rode to the front to Thabiso and we managed to finish together, and I was happy to have assisted him retain his national championship title,” van Zyl explained.

Earlier this month, van Zyl represented Botswana at the City Mountain Bike Eliminator Pro League 2026 held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he secured a top-10 finish, placing eighth among Africa’s elite riders.

“It is a fun event, and we need to get them to host such events here in Botswana. It gets so much recognition, with over 200 000 viewing the event; so, this is a great exposure for cycling sport,” van Zyl said.

He added that cycling was steadily growing in Botswana, with new talent emerging regularly.

“It should not only be the bigger African countries hosting major events. Countries like Botswana can also host such competitions. We recently proved our capability with the successful hosting of the 2026 World Relays, which took place during the same weekend as the MTB Eliminator Pro League,” he said.

Meanwhile, Tsela Riders continued their dominance in the youth and junior categories for both males and females.

Ontlametse Maswabi was crowned Youth National Champion after completing the 90km race in 2:31:06. His teammates Kaone Maswabi and Ted Makgetho finished second and third in times of 2:35:50 and 2:37:18 respectively.

In the Female Youth Category, Hope Mathiba narrowly defeated reigning champion Loapi Mmokele in a closely contested race, finishing in 1:58:38, just one second ahead of Mmokele’s 1:58:39. Kyara Kenaope secured third position with a time of 2:03:48. Mathiba also won the Individual Time Trial national title.

In the male Youth category, Tsela Riders’ Zain Botlele claimed the national title after finishing in 1:46:00 ahead of Kgosi Ditlogolo of Botrail Cycling Club, who clocked 1:46:00.955, while Fikane Gwakuba of Karowe Cycling Club came third in 1:51:08.

Botswana Cycling Association president Kagiso Potongwane expressed gratitude to the riders and clubs for their continued contribution to the growth of cycling in Botswana.

He encouraged clubs to regularly host competitions to keep cyclists competitive and active.

Potongwane said the BCA was targeting an African medal and planned to organise more cycling events in addition to the National Championships to further develop the sport. ENDS