Botswana has declared a public holiday to celebrate its team’s gold medal in the men’s 4x400m relay at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. The government announced its decision on Sunday to celebrate the historic landmark where Botswana became the first African winners of the event.
Botswana President Duma Gideon Boko announced the public holiday will be observed on September 29th, the day before the country’s Independence Day, to honour the relay team of Collen Kebinatshipi, Bhekempilo Eppie, Letsile Tebogo and Bayapo Ndori.
This will create a five-day break in the country from Monday September 29th until Wednesday October 1st.
“I’ll be sure to tell everyone, Botswana’s natural diamonds are not just in the ground. They are our world champion athletes,” Boko was quoted as saying by local media on Sunday.
After Tebogo won Botswana’s first Olympic gold medal in the 200 metres in Paris Olympics last year, his country celebrated the victory with a half-day holiday.
The Botswanan team outpaced traditional powerhouses, the United States and South Africa in a dramatic finish. The U.S., who had narrowly qualified for the final after winning a run-off against Kenya earlier in the day, led at the final changeover. But Botswana’s anchor, 21-year-old Collen Kebinatshipi—fresh off his individual gold in the 400m—produced a powerful final leg to secure victory in a time of 2:57.76.
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