Fingers crossed as Tebogo’s record awaits ratification
Mqondisi Dube | Tuesday May 10, 2022 06:00
Last week was his fastest recorded 100m race, when he powered past the finish line in a time of 9.96 during the Gaborone International Meet. This is the fastest time ever recorded by an Under-20 athlete and should have been enough to have his name engraved in the annals of history.
But not as fast as Tebogo ran the race, so say the World Athletics rules. For now, Tebogo’s joy has been put on hold pending a decision to ratify the world record by World Athletics, formerly IAAF.
The World Athletics' special conditions for validity of performances listed below are the reason why Tebogo’s record is not yet official.
• Performances achieved in mixed competitions in track events will not be accepted. Exceptionally, in accordance with IAAF Rule 147, performances achieved in events of 5000m and 10,000m may be accepted in circumstances where there were insufficient athletes of one or both genders competing to justify the conduct of separate races and there was no pacing or assistance given by an athlete(s) of one gender to an athlete(s) of the other gender. If applicable, Member Federations must submit a specific request to the IAAF Competitions Department (events@iaaf.org) providing the documentation as required.
• Performances which are wind assisted or for which a wind reading is not available will be considered illegal. They shall be eligible for world rankings subject to a correction mechanism.
• Hand timing performances in 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, 110m/100m Hurdles, 400m Hurdles and 4x100m Relay will be considered illegal.
• For the running events of 200m and over (including combined events), performances achieved on oversized tracks shall not be accepted.
• For the Combined Events at least one of these conditions must be met:
• The wind velocity in any individual event shall not exceed plus 4 metres per second.
• The average wind velocity (based on the algebraic sum of the wind velocities, as measured for each individual event, divided by the number of such events) shall not exceed plus 2 metres per second.
It will be an anxious few days for Tebogo as he awaits ratification from World Athletics. But with or without the record, Tebogo has made a bold statement of intent and those tasked with ensuring his success must handle him with care.
So often we have seen seen a promising start fizzle along the way, but Tebogo is a special talent, a once in a generation that needs all the protection.
There should be less pressure on the lad who is already tipped to have a go at Usain Bolt’s 100m record.
It will be some feat if the boy goes on to win not just an Olympic Games medal, but a gold. It's still a long way though and the nation should remain patient and appreciative. There was too much expectation placed on Nijel Amos’ shoulders when at 18, the same age as Tebogo, he won the first Olympic medal for the country. Since then, it has been disappointment after disappointment for Amos at the Olympics, with only the silver to show for his undoubted talent. Amos was tipped to replace David Rudisha as the next big thing in the 800m, that has not happened. With Amos 30 at the next Olympics, his chances to further impress are diminishing. It should serve as a timely reminder for Tebogo that potential can remain just that. Otherwise what we have seen thus far is very, very promising.