The 32 athletes from both junior and senior categories were selected at the National Championships at the end of April. Botswana Judo Federation (BJF) president, Estony Hattingh told Mmegi Sport that they are getting ready for a busy schedule in the coming months that include the SA Championships, the Supreme Council for Sports in Africa (SCSA) and the Africa Junior Judo Championships (AJJC). Hattingh said they expect to do well, especially in the junior category that has been progressing very well due to the overwhelmingly successful schools program.
Meanwhile, Hattingh expressed disappointment that they could not contribute to the Botswana team to the London 2012 Olympics. The only Judo athlete that was in the Olympics programme, Advent Monyatsiwa missed out on qualification after falling out at the Africa Senior championship last month. Hattingh said this was a learning curve for them as a relatively new member of the Botswana National Olympic Committee (BNOC). It was the first time Judo made an attempt at the global showpiece having only sent participants to last year's All Africa Games in Mozambique.
