Over 30,000 fans welcomed back Botswana sprinter Letsile Tebogo, who won gold in the 200 m meter Olympic race at the 2024 Paris Games. The country united to celebrate their first ever gold medal, as Tebogo ran a time of 19.46, followed up by U.S. sprinters Kenneth Bednarek (19.62) and Noah Lyles (19.70).
Upon touching down back in his home country, the 21-year-old Olympian was greeted at the Sir Seretse Khama International Airport by a mob of supporters.
Over 30,000 people out in Botswana's 🇧🇼 biggest stadium to welcome Letsile Tebogo!🤯
This is what the country's first Olympic GOLD means to them.
They got a second public holiday in a week as well for this.pic.twitter.com/IVkeqlSOYu
— Track & Field Gazette (@TrackGazette) August 13, 2024
Then a stadium full of supporters cheered for Tebogo and the other 10 Olympic athletes who represented the country. That is to say, in light of the celebration on Tuesday, Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi declared the day a national holiday.
To also mention, Tebogo contributed to helping lead the Botswana 4x400m relay team to a silver medal in Paris, which means the country has now earned four medals ever since their debut in the 1980 Moscow Olympics.
In view of the special moment, Tebogo shared that this win was especially sentimental for him, as he dedicated the gold medal to his mother Seratiwa, who died in May.
"It's basically me carrying her through every stride that I take inside the field," Tebogo said to reporters after his victory. "To take her [with me], it gives me a lot of motivation. She's watching up there, and she's really, really happy."
