Botswana celebrates first African 4x400m relay gold with new national holiday
Botswana has declared September 29 a public holiday to celebrate the men’s 4x400m relay victory at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.
The team made history as the first African nation to win the event.
President Duma Boko described the gold medal as a “historic African win” in an online address. He praised the athletes for their outstanding performance and said the holiday would be held a day before the country’s independence day, which falls on the 30th of September.
The team — made up of Olympic gold medallist Letsile Tebogo, Lee Bhekempilo Eppie, Bayapo Ndori and Busang Collen Kebinatshipi — beat the United States in a rain-soaked final. The US had previously won the event 10 times. South Africa came third.
“I’ll be sure to tell everyone Botswana’s natural diamonds are not just in the ground; they are our world champion athletes,” President Boko said, speaking from New York, where he is attending the UN General Assembly.
Botswana finished fifth overall on the medal table — its best performance yet — with two golds, one silver, and one bronze. Only the US, Kenya, the Netherlands and Canada ranked higher.
This follows another major milestone from the previous year, when Letsile Tebogo became the first African to win Olympic gold in the men’s 200m at the Paris 2024 Olympics. His win sparked nationwide celebrations, with huge crowds welcoming him back at the National Stadium in Gaborone.
Botswana also picked up a silver in the men’s 4x400m relay during the Paris Games, finishing behind the US.
The achievement was marred by a government appeal for public donations to reward the athletes, which sparked a protest among citizens.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
