He became the instant darling of a sports mad nation, replacing the Black Queen of the Oval Tracks, Amantle Montsho, who was until then the 400m champion. But while Montsho has had a distinguished career abroad, carrying the Botswana flag with aplomb both on and off the field, the same can hardly be said about Botswana's latest emerging star. Amos, despite oozing running talent from every pore on his body, has hoarded the limelight off the field for all the wrong reasons, mostly shameful shenanigans and discreditable conduct.
Even so, as Amos' custodian, the Botswana Athletics Association (BAA) cannot escape the charge that it has been negligent of the lad. But last week, during a media briefing, sharp questions were raised regarding the role of athletics mother body. BAA told journalists that Amos had gone off the rails and was proving to be a thorn in the flesh. It reported the 19-year-old athlete's sudden affinity for the bottle and that the champ had generally become a problem child since his Olympic success. In simple terms, though it did not say it was doing so, BAA confessed a dismal failure to reign in the 'runaway' athlete.
