03 Apr 2025

Olympic gold medalist and World Athlete of the Year, Letsile ‘School-Boy’ Tebogo has been appointed Ambassador for World Athletics’ Kids’ Athletics Programme, which is one of the biggest grassroots development initiatives in the world of sport that uses the power of athletics to inspire children across the world to be more active. 

This was revealed yesterday by Botswana Athletics Association (BAA) regional chairperson, Tebatso Omphithetse during the Kids’ Athletics Day launch in Gaborone. Omphithetse said the collaboration would involve Letsile taking part in the Relay Around the World Challenge ahead of this year’s Kids’ Athletics Day scheduled for May 7. 

The Kids’ Athletics Day is an annual celebration of children being active and participating in athletics as the foundation of all sporting codes. 

“The Relay Around the World Challenge is the biggest, most inclusive Kids’ Athletics participation activity designed to inspire the athletes of tomorrow and get kids moving everywhere,” Omphitlhetse explained.

 She further explained that the event, jointly organised by BAA in collaboration with World Athletics, featured about 1 000 kids from across the school district, who participated in the day’s activities. 

Speaking in an interview, Letsile expressed excitement for having been afforded the opportunity to inspire children to venture into sport by being appointed Ambassador for the Kids’ Athletics Programme.  Additionally, the Olympic gold medalist emphasised the importance of children being involved in sport from a young age, as it would encourage them to maintain healthy lifestyles. He also encouraged the children to believe in themselves and never give up on achieving their dreams.

Matlhagolatsela Sport Programme sports specific athletics, Olebogeng Oitebetse also explained that the launch was meant to officially announce Tebogo as the Kids’ Athletics Programme Ambassador. Oitebetse said the Kids’ Athletics Programme uses children aged between six and 15 years, adding that the day’s activities were meant to improve speed, endurance and agility skills, through stepladder, skip hop, shuttle run and hurdles. 

“We selected nine primary schools that participated in the Matlhagolatsela Sport Programme competitions last week on March 25,” Oitebetse said. 

Seven primary schools, namely, Morula, Tlhabologo, Bophirima, Tshwaragano, Boswa, Itumeleng and Phillip Moshotle participated in the competition. In addition, she said Mophane and Marulamantsi Primary Schools also took part in the competitions. 

Matlhagolatsela Sport Programme was introduced as a temporary measure to address challenges posed by the suspension of formal school sports. The programme is meant to afford children an opportunity to realise their full potential through sport. It is also aimed at providing a structured environment for young athletes to explore and develop their potential, with a focus on inclusivity and accessibility. ENDS