Botswana bags podium finishes at MXoAN

A seven-member squad flew the flag high, battling against over 200 riders in what was a record entry for the continental showpiece. Botswana wrapped up the weekend fifth overall out of the eight participating nations, tallying 159 points. South Africa were crowned African champions with a commanding 717 points, while hosts Zimbabwe settled for silver on 468 points. Uganda closed the podium finishes with 284 points, just ahead of Namibia, which narrowly missed out with 281.

Despite challenges, Botswana walked away with two podium finishes. Ross Branch, making a long-awaited return to the national side after seven years, stormed to victory in the MX Veteran class, delivering the country’s first gold of the weekend. In the MX Lites, the trio of Lourens Erasmus (ninth), Tommy Jayden Wotherspoon (10th), and Adam Meyer (11th) accumulated enough points to seal an impressive silver medal for Botswana. Further, captain Kosmas Mamaloukos, after facing suspension, finished fifth in the MX1 class, whilst Anton Henriksen crossed the line sixth in the same category.