BNOC names final Olympics team

BOITUMELO KHUTSAFALO
Staff Writer | Thursday June 19, 2008 00:00

 

Botswana will only take part in boxing and athletics at the event. The boxing team has only two fighters, Khumiso Ikgopoleng and Thato Batshegi. Ikgopoleng (54kg) has shown glimpses of what he can do recently in both local and the international competitions. He won a bronze medal recently in a pre-Olympic tournament. Batshegi is also a talented boxer with prospects of doing well at the Olympics.

In athletics, California Molefe and Gakologelwang Masheto will represent the country in the 400m. Molefe qualified for the Olympics in a competition in Japan while Masheto qualified in the USA. The nation will be pinning its hopes on Gable Garenamotse in the long jump and Kabelo Kgosiemang in high jump. Zechariah Kamberuka, Isaac Makwala, Obakeng Ngwigwa, Omphemetse Mokgadi and Fanuel Kenosi will do battle in the 4x4 relay. The other athletes in the Olympics team are Ndabili Bashingili (marathon), Onalenna Baloyi (800m) and Amantle Montsho (400m).

The athletics team will be under the tutelage of head coach Bobby Gaseitsiwe. The boxing team is drilled by Johannes Ditlhabang assisted by Thebe Setlalekgosi. When announcing the two squads, BNOC vice chairperson, Martin Mokgwathi said that every team selection makes some people happy and others sad. He added that people must be rest-assured that the BNOC board makes its decisions in the interest of the nation. He said that the board ensures that the country's top sportsmen and women are given an opportunity to compete with the best in the world.

Mokgwathi is confident that the assembled team will work hard to make the nation proud.

'The achievements which we anticipate will not come by chance or good fortune. It will be the result of hard work by coaches to ensure that our young athletes have the right skills and tactics to handle the pressure of big occasions such as the Olympics,' he said. 

Athletics' coach, Gaseitsiwe said that they are leaving today for Malaysia for a training camp until August 1. He revealed that Garenamotse and Baloyi will be joining the team later. He said that the athletes have been doing well. He promised that they will improve on the past results from the Sydney Olympics in 2000 as well as Athens Olympics in 2004.