As Letsile Tebogo, Botswana’s golden child, returned victorious from the Olympics in Paris, the country celebrated and threw a hero’s welcome fit for a king.

With an incredible performance in the men’s 200-meter sprint, the 21-year-old sprint phenom stunned the world and won Botswana’s first-ever gold medal in any sport as well as Africa’s first-ever Olympic gold in that event.

Now the new sprinting poster child of the continent, he overcame pre-race favorite Noah Lyles to win in an African record of 19.46 seconds in front of a boisterous Stade de France crowd. Tebogo demonstrated that his skill was not limited to one event by leading his team to a spectacular silver in the men’s 4×400-meter relay.

Tebogo’s ascent to the top of the sprinting world is quite extraordinary. When he won the 100-meter world record in 9.91 seconds at the World Athletics U-20 Championships in Cali, Colombia, two years ago, the roots of his eventual Olympic success were planted.

The world took note, and he demonstrated his abilities a year later in Budapest, where he won silver in the 100 meters at the World Championships, becoming the first African to do so.

PERSONAL INFORMATION

Name: Letsile Tebogo
Date of birth: June 7, 2003 (age 21)
Place of birth: Kanye, Botswana
Height: 1.84 metres
Sport: Athletics (100m, 200m, 4x400m)

Letsile Tebogo ACHIEVEMENTS

Personal bests: 
100m: 9.86 seconds (Paris 2024)
200m: 19.46 seconds (Paris 2024)

HONOURS
Olympic Games:
Gold       200m  2024 Paris             
Silver 4x400m   2024 Paris

World Champs:
2023 Budapest Silver 100m

2023 Budapest   
Bronze 200m   

World Relays:
2024 Nassau         
Gold 4x400m  

African Champs:
2022 Saint Pierre
Gold  200m  

World U-20 Champs:
2021 Nairobi
Gold 100m  

2022 Cali 
Gold 100m