Letsile Tebogo shows his Paris Olympics 2024 gold© AFP
Botswana gave a rapturous welcome to Letsile Tebogo on Tuesday as the sprinter returned home with the southern African country's first ever Olympic gold medal. Families with children, elderly people and young supporters waved Botswana's sky blue, white and black national flag as the Olympic team landed back in the capital Gaborone. Hundreds of supporters had gathered at the small airport, benefiting from an impromptu half-day holiday declared by President Mokgweetsi Masisi to celebrate Tebogo's success. Before greeting the athletes, Masisi danced on the tarmac as an aide held an umbrella to shelter him from the sun.
Outside, traditional dancers wearing animal skins and beads kicked off a welcoming ceremony.
"Tebogo has made history not only for Botswana but in Africa," he later told a crowd of more than 20,000 people that packed the city's national stadium as part of the celebrations.
BREAKING: Botswana filled their biggest stadium to welcome back sprinter Letsile Tebogo and their #Olympics team pic.twitter.com/wQSbSI7reZ
— Larry Madowo (@LarryMadowo) August 13, 2024
The 21-year-old became the first African to win the men's 200m, in an African record time of 19.46sec, when he powered past Americans Kenny Bednarek and Noah Lyles in Paris on August 8.
His gold, as well as silver in the men's 4x400m relay, boosted the country's total Olympic medal tally to four.
"I implore you to shower him and other participants with any kind of gifts that you may have," Masisi told the crowd.
Earlier the sports minister said the sprinter would receive two houses from the government as a reward. The other members of the relay team would receive one house each.
"This is a happy moment," the athlete told the stadium.
"I would like to thank the nation for rallying behind me. I went through a lot," said Tebogo, who lost his mother in May.
After crossing the 200m finishing line in Paris last week, he had held up to the cameras his running shoes stamped with the date of birth his mother, whom he has described as his inspiration.
Masisi already granted the country of 2.3 million people a first half a day off to party on August 9.
Tebogo is only the second African athlete to win an Olympic medal in the men's 200m, after Namibian Frankie Fredericks took silver in Atlanta in 1996.
Botswana won their first Olympic medal at the 2012 London Games when Nijel Amos took silver in the 800m. Its men's 4x400m relay team took bronze in Tokyo three years ago.
Botswana's success at the Paris Olympics helped to raise Africa's medal haul to 39, two more than at the Tokyo Games, with Kenya scooping 11 in the French capital.
Half of the line-up at the men's 200m where Tebogo excelled were athletes from Africa, with the continent rising as a contender in shorter events beyond its dominance at longer distances.