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Today, all eyes will be on Molefe once again when he – together with Oganediste Moseki, Kagiso Kilego, and Johnson Kubisa – take to the track for the 4 X 400 metres relay. After the relay team, the last hope will be marathon runner Ndabile Bashingili.
Of all the southern African countries at the Olympics, it is only Botswana and Lesotho that have not acquired a medal yet.
Four years back, the performance of Glody Dube in Sydney gave rise to hope that it would be realistic to hope for a medal in Athens. That hope is now hanging on a very thin thread. It is not difficult to explain this disastrous showing. After Sydney, there was no deliberate programme to build on Dube’s success. Instead, what unfolded was an unsavoury spectacle of petty jealousies, and questionable decisions that bordered on sabotage. He was often sidelined and frustrated. Here was a natural talent that could have been developed further, but was allowed to go to waste. A country that has no respect for its athletes has no reason to expect them to die for it.
After the Olympics, the entire sport movement in Botswana must engage in frank introspection. It is unreasonable to hope for international success without adequate planning. The country needs to invest more than it is doing now to achieve international success in sport. Botswana will not produce world-beaters in sport by some unexplained miracle or stroke of luck. Countries that are successful at sporting events like the Olympics plan for that success over years. They identify talent at a very tender age, and nurture it. This is what Botswana has to do as well.
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