'Give Me Something Much Better' – Letsile Tebogo on Lane Struggles at World Championships

Letsile Tebogo has opened up about the disadvantages of running in the outside lane as he reflected on the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan.

The reigning Olympic 200m champion left without a medal in the 100m and 200m, but managed to win a gold medal with the men’s 4x400m relay.

In the men’s 100m, he was disqualified due to a false start, and in the 200m, Letsile Tebogo narrowly missed the podium after finishing fourth.

Oblique Seville reigned supreme in the 100m, clocking a personal best time of 9.77 seconds as Kishane Thompson and Noah Lyles came in second and third.

In the 200m, Noah Lyles equalled Usain Bolt’s record, winning his fourth consecutive 200m title with Kenny Bednarek and Bryan Level finishing second and third respectively.

Speaking after the heats of the men’s 200m, Letsile Tebogo opened up about how lane assignments matter to him and help him execute races perfectly.

He noted that being in lane nine in the heats was a huge disadvantage for him despite winning the race. Letsile Tebogo explained that he is tall, and being on the outside lane affects him negatively, as he feels like he has to be more cautious, hence being unable to clock a faster time.

However, Letsile Tebogo noted that it was a learning curve for him, and perhaps with time, it might get better.

“Yeah, man. I'm happy about how I executed this race. Even though it wasn't the great curve that people always see from me. First time running in lane nine. I don't know who does the start list. Please, next time, just give me something much better. Either on the inside, not the outside, please,” Letsile Tebogo said in an interview on the Inside Lane.

“But everything is a learning curve. Without these kinds of races, we won't learn how to run or execute the race from the outer lanes. I mean, for me, it matters because I'm much taller. So, using the outer lanes, mentally, it feels like I'm just throwing myself into the stands.

“So, I have to kind of balance it and just not run that perfect race that I always want to run. But if you look into London when we did the African record, you'll see almost towards where the curve goes in. I tried to slow down a little bit, which is not ideal for me. We have to just execute the whole thing perfectly.”

Letsile Tebogo now goes back to the drawing board, looking to make amends and hopefully bounce back better next season.