Chibana, the daring young cyclist making waves
Lesang Maswabi | Saturday January 20, 2024 06:00
So successful has Chibana been in a short space of time that at some stage and for a whole season of 2023, she was not even n aware that she had already achieved a feat of ever getting to a podium position in South Africa’s motor-cycling competitions.
Because of the very fierce and tough competition in South Africa, this is one mission that she had been battling with for the rest of her just over five-year career. Just when she and her team thought they had ultimately accomplished that podium finish recently on November 25 2023, when she finished third, they would, to their surprise learn that she had actually performed even better earlier in the year on January 28 after finishing second.
Apparently what had happened then was because the event had finished late on that evening of January 28, Chibana’s team had actually left early before the overall awards presentation, in order to catch the South Africa-Botswana border closure time. Then 11 months later, on November 25, they learnt that they had left behind the highly prestigious second position award which had been gathering dust in the Dunlop GXCC Racing – Ladies Pro event’s organizers cabinets some 301 days earlier. And so her victorious return back home on November 26 after she had also performed well by coming third, was historic as she would arrive with two podium trophies in both hands.
At a tender age of five years, the young girl would develop a passion for motorbikes and that is when she decided to pursue motorsport after she was further inspired by her then nine year old brother Teto. Chibana says she also got encouragement from her father, Gomolemo Jones Chibana who has been giving her support from her rookie-cycling years when he bought her a Honda 50CC bike which she rode on both On-Road and Off-Road tracks. She would soon jump into the 100CCmotorbike before settling for the 85CC KTM, since she felt the 100CC was heavy and complicating her racing. Chibana vividly recalls her debut and competitive race in 2017 held at Malotwane where she finished fourth. Her second race, riding under Lobelo Club was at the Francistown Meet where she got position four. It was at this same race where the daring Chibana came third despite competing with boys. In 2018 at the Mmopane MX and flat-track race she finished third. Once she began competing in South Africa in 2017 at Welkom MX Motocross, she would start riding the 85cc which she considered lighter. She came 13th out of 24 women motorcyclists in her debut race.
In 2018, Chibana would then represent Botswana in at the Motor Cross of Africa Nations in (MXOAN) in Mukish, Zambia. She came fifth in the mixed race. His father laments that out of all the races held in the region, South Africa’s were the most expensive in terms of spending hence they have only participated there a few times.
In 2021, at the age of 11 she received mention from the Women And Sport Botswana (WASBO) for competing in numerous races, some of which took place in Zimbabwe and Zambia such as the MXOAN. It is said that she was also selected to join the National Motocross team in 2018 and 2019. It was there that she was given a participatory award by Women In Motorsport. Since 2021 was the year that Covid-19 hit the entire country and the region, there was relatively no activity for Chibana and fellow riders. Chibana would only return to the track in 2022. Of all the frightening experiences that she has had along her career encounter, Chibana sights the Khawa one as the most scariest that she not only had a brush with death, but actually ended up being air-lifted to Tsabong after the near fatal crash. Unbelievably she would survive the crash with no serious injuries and neither were any of her bones broken. Despite that scary moment she would then want to go back and continue with the race the next day, but her doctors flatly refused. Asked how she has been able to balance her school-work and sport, her team manager Lorato Matlhare says for their across country competition, the team would normally leave on Thursday prior to the Saturday events.
Her assignments would normally be prepared by her Mathiba Secondary School teachers two (2) days ahead of their departure. As for her financial support that covers most of her team’s travel, accommodation, food and refreshments, pit-crew and her racing equipment, his father says, “Not only have we invested in her through raising funds as a family, but there have also been some good Samaritans like Tumo Tumo of TMT Property Developers in Palapye.” He adds, “The Botswana National Sports Council (BNSC) came to the party by enrolling her under the 4 year Zebra Funding program”. As for her local community’s moral support, the Regional Education Officer at the Kanye Education Centre recently paraded her with her trophies together with her school’s principal Jennifer Motlhaudi / Mothandi around the village. As a rose amongst thorns, Elang has inspired other female team mates not to underestimate themselves as they are in fierce competition with their fellow male team mates. She says, “We have to push on and give it our all to show everyone that the girl child is just as capable as their brothers to participate in this dangerous but fun and adrenaline filled sport which I enjoy and love so much.” Ahead of Elang’s recent and future competitions and as part of her preparations, her team had engaged some of South Africa’s based professional coaches in the name of Jesse Wright whom she has already spent 10 days with in Capetown. Apparently Wright rides with the Yamaha Factory Team in Johannesburg. Another of her coaches is Kyla ???.Elang’s team says the girl’s performance has since improved many folds after her training at Kyla’s Raceworks in Roodeport.