Why Letsile Tebogo wanted Simbine and Omanyala to win a 100m medal before him

ATHLETICS Why Letsile Tebogo wanted Simbine and Omanyala to win a 100m medal before him

Abigael Wafula 08:09 - 21.08.2023

During the final of the 100m on Sunday night, Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala faded to finish seventh.

Annals of history were written on Sunday night and Motswana youngster Letsile Tebogo was not left behind after becoming the first African to win a medal in the 100m at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

During the final of the 100m, Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala faded to finish seventh as World 200m champion Noah Lyles reigned supreme one more time. Tebogo finished second in a national record time of 9.88 as Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes settled for third. 

South Africa’s Akani Simbine was disqualified during the semi final due to a false start.

Now, Tebogo, just 20 years old, has such a coveted title that he preferred Omanyala or Simbine to have before he did.

“I really wanted them (Omanyala and Simbine) to have this medal before me but by the grace of God, I got it first. I wanted to come up knowing that I have two African brothers who got this medal and they really motivate me going forward

"For Akani I really wanted him to be in the final…I would have let him run on my behalf. They have been doing this for a long time and they deserve the medals,” Tebogo said during a post-race interview.

He added that the win shows that Africa has the potential of winning and doing better in the sprints going forward.

“It really shows that the continent has a lot of potential looking at the likes of Ferdinand and Akani,” he said.

Tebogo noted that his future is bright and he wants to continue the hot streak. He still has the 200m to compete in and he disclosed that the victory in the 100m is a huge motivation for him.