Lefika International Relays call for support
Calistus Kolantsho | Monday March 23, 2026 06:00
The relays are set for March 28 at the National Stadium in Gaborone and form part of build-up activities to the World Relays, which Botswana will host in May. The Lefika International Relays serve as an African qualifier for the World Athletics Relays that will be held at the National Stadium between May 2 and 3.
Lefika International Relays chairperson, Thari Mooketsi, said the event's initial budget stood at P4 million, and they had to cut it down to P500,000 due to a lack of funding.
He appealed to sponsors to come forward or at least purchase tickets in order to increase the number of spectators at the National Stadium.
He said the idea to host Lefika International Relays was to bring Africa and the rest of the world together. “We want to turn Botswana into an athletics hub. We can market our country through hosting major events like the Lefika International Relays. We have a lot of talent in athletics,” said Mooketsi. Lesotho, South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Poland, Zambia and Zimbabwe have confirmed participation at the relays. Mooketsi said Lefika Athletics Club becomes the first club to host national teams.
Meanwhile, Lefika International Relays signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the organisers of World Athletics Relays Gaborone 26.
Gaborone 26 CEO, Moses Bantsi, said they have signed contracts with the two major events leading to the World Athletics Relays.
“The first contract was signed with Golden Door Sport Agency, which is the organiser of the Botswana International Golden Grand Prix (BGGP),” he said.
“The reasons being that the two events are built up to the World Relays. We should not do things individually. BAA must make sure that every event that is held, reputation must be protected.”
Bantsi added that they want Lefika International Relays and BGGP to be world-class events. Bantsi said World Athletics Relays Gaborone 26 would take care of technical officials and transport at both events.
He noted that they want more African countries to qualify for the Lefika International Relays, because at the moment, only Botswana has slots, as they are the hosts. According to the CEO, Ghana and South Africa each have one team that has qualified. “We wanted more countries to qualify, but unfortunately, we only have those who have made confirmations. Hopefully, more countries will come through,” he added. Regarding the National Stadium accreditation by World Athletics, Bantsi said the facility would be ready for the Lefika International Relays. “National Stadium accreditation could have long been done because the refurbishment was long completed. The requirement for World Athletics Relays was to have a warm-up track, which delayed the process. The warm-up track is almost complete. We have been assured that accreditation will be done,” he said.
Additionally, Bantsi explained that they are renovating the entire National Stadium, with works on ablution blocks, floodlights at UB Stadium, and construction of an ablution block for anti-doping tests at National Stadium.
He said they would also renew seats, which are now numbered and have internet cable installations. Bantsi said such works require a lot of money, hence the need for sponsorship.