Holds that relays can increase their podium finish chances at the Games
GAZETTE REPORTER
Botswana Athletics Associations will do all in their power to qualify at least two relays teams for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics in their bid to widen their qualification list and increase chances of getting more medals, (BAA) Vice President Administration Oabona Theetso has told Gazette Sport.
According to Theetso, BBA currently has 18 athletes on training camp preparing for the Olympics. “Out of that 18 four have already qualified,” he said. “Our plan is for the remaining 14 athletes to qualify before the qualification period is closed. We really want to qualify more athletes especially through the men and women 4x400m relays. We will be analyzing the COVID-19 situation and if things go according to our plans we will send a team to the World Relays.”
Theetso said in BAA’s view, qualifying the two relay teams will increase their chances of getting more medals at the Tokyo Olympics now set to open July 23 this year, the Tokyo Games were postponed 10 months ago after outbreak of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic which is persisting to claim many lives worldwide.
“We still consider that the relays can increase our medal chances at the games,” he said. “Sadly we have learnt (through the media) that the Botswana National Olympic Committee has decreased their medal expectation at the Olympics, it is sad because we only learnt that through media and we were never consulted as affiliates that have already qualified. Nevertheless, we still believe that with our relay teams we can bring more medals from the Olympics.”
Athletics is undoubtedly one of the best performing sporting codes locally as it the only to have won the country a medal at the Olympics through Nigel Amos’s 800m silver during the 2012 London Olympics. Meanwhile, BAA has qualified four athletes for the summer games, those are Nigel Amos (men’s 800), Galefele Moroko (women’s 400m), Christine Botlogetswe (women’s 400m) and Amantle Montsho (women’s 400m).