22 Jun 2026

He has shattered continental records, stormed to world 400m gold in Tokyo, Japan and stunned the athletics world by clocking a mind-boggling 9.89 seconds in the 100m. 

Yet, if you ask coach Chilume ‘Chippa’ Ntshwarang about 22-year-old global superstar, Collen Kebinatshipi, he will tell you something entirely unexpected.

“The athlete is technically still in a development phase. I think more is coming,” Ntshwarang says softly, a quiet smile in his voice.

To the rest of the world, Kebinatshipi is a finished work of genius, the fastest senior male individual world champion in Botswana’s history. 

But to the veteran coach, he is still the resilient child from Mookami Junior Secondary School. Their journey is a study in human patience, showing how the worst detours in life often lead to the most unforgettable destinationsThe story began back in 2019. 

Ntshwarang was looking at a raw and quiet Form 2 learner who had just booked a ticket to the regional COSSASA school games. 

At the time, Kebinatshipi was not a sprinter but a hurdler. 

Then came the kind of heartbreak that can break a young athlete’s spirit before it even takes flight. 

Later that year, a severe injury sidelined the teenager, which forced him to sit in the stands and watch the local Botswana Games pass him by.

In sport, as in life, an injury is often viewed as a dead end. 

But for Ntshwarang and Kebinatshipi, it became a redirection. 

As the youngster slowly healed, his coach noticed a shift in his stride and a deeper pool of raw power. Instead of putting him back over the hurdles, Ntshwarang took a tactical gamble and slotted him into the men’s 4x400m relay.“That was the same day that I realised he had a lot of potential, hence, in 2020, we introduced him to the 400 metres flat,” Ntshwarang recalls.The gamble paid off in gold. 

Suddenly, the boy who could not clear hurdles was anchoring the national Under-20 team, running alongside Oreeditse Masede, Anthony Pesela and Phenyo Majama to capture a world junior relay title in Kenya.

If the injury taught Kebinatshipi physical resilience, the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships in Cali, Colombia, taught him mental fortitude. 

He had fought his way across the finish line in an incredible fourth place in the individual 400m. 

But minutes later, the joy vanished. He was disqualified for a lane infringement, stripped of his position and sent home with nothing but a bitter lesson.

For many young athletes, that level of public heartbreak on a global stage causes them to stutter. 

For Kebinatshipi, it acted as fuel. With Ntshwarang guiding him through the psychological aftermath, the quarter-miler bounced back aggressively a year later. He dominated the 2023 African Junior Championships in Zambia, using the pain of Colombia to catapult himself straight into the senior global ranks and reached the World Championship semi-finals in his very first debut.

Every tear shed in training and every moment of doubt culminated in an unforgettable, earth-shattering moment at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.When the gun went off, the years of systematic and quiet development exploded onto the track. 

Kebinatshipi did not just win the individual 400m gold but shattered the field, blazing to a historic and world-leading African record time of 43.53 seconds. 

Watching from the stands was the coach who had met him as an injured schoolboy.Today, despite the global crown and a recent local 100m sprint of 9.89 seconds that turned the international track world upside down, Kebinatshipi still returns to the same sanctuary, Ntshwarang’s training camp. 

It is a humble and world-class stable built on mutual trust and shared dreams. 

Kebinatshipi is the talisman, but he is not alone. Alongside him is Lee Bhekimpilo Eppie, who fought his own way into the Tokyo 400m final.

Ntshwarang protects his athletes fiercely from the weight of a nation’s sudden and heavy expectations. He knows what it took to get here and he knows how fragile momentum can be.

“I am confident that Eppie will also become a world-beater as time goes on. The nation should remain patient,” Ntshwarang says, offering a piece of advice that serves as the philosophy for his entire camp.

As the morning sun rises over the track, a new generation looks on. Rising talents like Lefatshe Seleka, Same Mhutsiwa and Godirwang Lobatlamang train in the shadow of giants, recently joined by Prince Selepe and international veteran, Boitumelo Masilo.

They are all hunting the same lightning. But as Coach Ntshwarang watches his world champion lace up his spikes for another routine lap, he is not thinking about the medals already won, but the future, keeping a steady eye on the horizon and praying for good health.

“I pray he remains in this game free from injuries,” the architect says of his prodigy. The foundation is built, the rest of the story is still being written. ENDS