© Copyright – 2024 – Athletics Illustrated
Is the great African continent beginning to awaken in the sprint events after decades of dominance in middle and long-distance running? Perhaps so. Nigerian, Botswanian, and even Kenyan athletes have emerged onto the global sprint scene. In the 100-metre event, the top two ranked athletes on this date are Americans Noah Lyles and Christian Coleman. After that, the list includes a strong mix of international athletes.
Letsile Tebogo to open his first 100m of the season on May 18th at LA Grand Prix pic.twitter.com/7BHibSvArN
— Track Spice 🌶️ (@trackspice) May 14, 2024
Perhaps the most intriguing is the rise of Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo. He is young and his form is as close to perfection as can be (see videos below).
Men’s rankings
Just below the two Americans is Ferdinand Omanyala from Kenya ranked third and fourth is Tebogo. Seventh is Akani Simine of South Africa. There is mostly a mix of Jamaicans and Americans down to 17th where we find Emmanuel Eseme from Cameroon and 19th Emmanuel Matadi from Liberia. Thirty-third is Nigerian Usheorise Itsekiri and 39th is compatriot Godson Oke Oghenebrume.
In the 200m event, the first two are Americans Lyles and Erriyon Knighton. Then Tebogo is ranked third. Joseph Fahnbulleh of Liberia is 11th. Nineteenth is Luxolo Adams of South Africa and 28, 29 and 30th are from Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire and South Africa, respectively.
Women’s rankings
In the 100m event, Sha’Carri Richardson of the US is ranked globally as the number 1 athlete. After that CĂ´te d’Ivoire’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith is second, but we don’t see an African athlete again until Gina Mariam Bass Bittaye of Republic of The Gambia ranked number 22. Destiny Smith-Barnett of Liberia is ranked 29th.
In the 200m event Sherika Jackson of Jamaica, Gabrielle Thomas of the US and Daryll Neita of Great Britain are ranked 1-2-3. Fifth and sixth are Africans Alfred and Ta Lou-Smith. Maboundou Koné is ranked 18th, she hails from Côte d’Ivoire as does Jessica Gbai ranked 24th.
CĂ´te d’Ivoire with a 30-million population is a curious rising sprint nation. Little has come from the former French and Portuguese colony since the great Gabriel Tiacoh who won the country’s first Olympic medal in 1984 taking silver in Los Angeles in the 400m event. Then there was Murielle AhourĂ©-Demps who took silver in the 100m and 200m events at the 2013 Moscow World Athletics Championships. During the 2012 London Olympic Games, she finished in a respectable sixth and seventh place over the two distances.
There is more to come from the African continent, especially the sub-Saharan countries.
Meanwhile, there Letsile Tebogo
At age 20, the Botswanan athlete has emerged onto the international sprint scene turning heads, as if he was told in his native Setswana, Ke tlago betsa! (threat of a beating).
Barely age 20, last August, he ran the 100m event in a new personal best of 9.88 seconds to take the silver medal at the 2023 Budapest World Athletics Championships. Five days later, he earned a bronze medal in the 200m event clocking 19.81 seconds. At the 2024 World Athletics Relays in the Bahamas, Tebogo helped Botswana win gold in the 4 x 400m event clocking a 2:59.11 performance.
His 100m and 200m bests are national and African records, respectively.
While Omanyala of Kenya has run 9.77 seconds in the 100m, at the same age his best was 10.38 wind-aided and 10.90 hand-timed. Not even close to Tebogo’s performances. Omanyala’s 200m best in 2016 at age 20 was just 21.90 hand-timed. It was not until 2021 at age 25 that Omanyala clocked his 9.77 lifetime best, a staccato jump in performance. Until that time, he was not close to sub-10 seconds.
The 28-year-old’s 9.77 is an African record, while his 60m best of 6.51 is a national record.
Tebogo appears ready to dethrone Omanyala as the top African sprinter and soon challenge Lyles of the US.
The Paris Olympic Games start at the end of July — just two months away. At age 28, Omanyala has likely run the 100m about as fast as he ever will. However, Tebogo may just be in the starting blocks.