On the 8th of August, Letsile Tebogo made history when he secured a first place victory in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games 200-metre sprint. Not only was his win a massive personal achievement, but he also broke national and continental records, including bringing home Botswana’s first-ever Olympic medal in any sport. He also became the first African athlete to win the 200-metre Olympic sprint in the history of the Olympic Games.
Tebogo’s victory was, without a doubt, one of the most incredible moments of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, representing a monumental achievement for African athletes who often come from far less privileged backgrounds than competitors from wealthy western countries like the United States of America and the United Kingdom.
Letsile Tebogo’s Winning Race
Tebogo won the 200-metre sprint in an incredible 19.46 seconds, beating a hoard of well-known and experienced athletes. Second and third place went to Kenny Bednarek and Noah Lyles respectively, both from the United States of America.
Indeed, Tebogo’s win over Lyles was particularly surprising and impressive as he has dominated the 200 metres in the past few years.
In addition to Letsile Tebogo’s incredible athletic ability, he’s also become known for his humility which stands in stark contrast to Lyles’ outgoing, bombastic personality and arrogance.
At the end of the day, all Tebogo needed to succeed was his immense skill and hard work, and that was enough to make him the champion of the world.
What Else Did Tebogo Win?
It’s no secret that winning an Olympic medal, never mind an Olympic gold medal, comes with a whole lot more privilege than a literal medal. Many athletes are lucky enough to be awarded with prizes of different sorts as a way to congratulate them.
However, these awards and prizes don’t come from the Olympic commission. In fact, they come from the countries the athletes come from.
Unfortunately, this means that the value and size of the prizes received by athletes is all dependent on the relative wealth of the country in question. That is, wealthy countries with large sports budgets like the USA and first-world European countries can afford to award athletes with huge financial prizes as well as a variety of other valuable things.
Unfortunately, countries with smaller sport budgets that are less wealthy in general tend to be less able to provide athletes with big prizes.
Luckily, however, Letsile Tebogo still received generous compensation from Botswana’s government, including a four-bedroom house, $75,000 in prize money and more. For the athlete, this is like hitting the jackpot playing the pokies online NZ offers.
In addition, Botswana even went as far as declaring a national holiday in Tebogo’s honour as a result of his incredible victory over his competitors and the nation’s first-ever Olympic medal.
There’s no doubt about the fact that Letsile Tebogo made history for both Botswana and Africa Thursday, ensuring that his name will forever be etched among the greatest of all time