"Crazy that someone at 21 has become the face and inspiration of your country" - Justin Gatlin in awe of Letsile Tebogo and his humble personality

Justin Gatlin was all praise for Letsile Tebogo after he won the 200m title at the Paris Olympics 2024. But more than his sprinting ability, the 2004 Olympic champion is impressed by Tebogo’s ‘humble’ personality.

Tebogo has long been considered a threat in the 200m distance and at the Paris Olympics, he rose to the occasion, beating the overwhelming favorite Noah Lyles by a huge margin. The Botswana sprinter ran an African record of 19.46s to win the gold while USA's Kenny Bednarek and Noah Lyles settled for silver and bronze respectively.

Tebogo had earlier finished sixth with a personal best time of 9.86s in the 100m finals and later ran a blistering leg to lead Botswana to a silver medal in the 4x400m relay. Despite the busy schedule, the 21-year-old didn't look tired, and a week later, he clocked an easy 19.64s for victory at the Lausanne Diamond League, a feat that left track legend Justin Gatlin amazed.

Speaking on his podcast ‘Ready, Set, Go’, Gatlin said:

"This guy (Letsile Tebogo)... does he got a energizer battery in his back or something cuz this man had the most epic work load in Olympic history and then he is still dropping 19.64 in Lausanne and pretty much beating the field very easily” (37:54 onwards)

Gatlin also showered praise on Letsile Tebogo for his ‘humble’ personality, adding:

"It's crazy to think that someone at 21 has become the face of your country, the hope of your country, the inspiration of your country and he has the wisdom to go with his talent already. Like such a humble guy. His favorite thing to do is to herd his cattle." (40:23 onwards)

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Can Letsile Tebogo break the 200m world record?

Paris 2024 Olympic Games - Day 15 - Athletics - Source: Getty

Letsile Tebogo rose to prominence after breaking the U20 world record at the 2022 World Championships, and soon after, his Usain Bolt-like celebration started his comparisons with the Jamaican legend. Although he hasn't shown much improvement over the 100m yet, Tebogo is threatening to reach Bolt's iconic 19.19s in the 200 metres.

Tebogo started easing up and celebrating his win nearly 10 meters before the finish line during the 200m finals at the Paris Olympics, and despite that, he clocked 19.46s. Had Noah Lyles or Kenny Bednarek been able to push him faster, the 21-year-old might have run a time closer to 19.30s.

With many years ahead of him, Tebogo does seem to be among the few sprinters who could challenge Bolt's 19.19s. Along with him, Lyles, Bednarek, and Erriyon Knighton are all capable of running sub-19.50s, and it won't be long before one of these sprinters breaks the 15-year-old record.