Sports Buzz

Tag: Southern Africa

  • Botswana: World Relays Set for Botswana

    Botswana: World Relays Set for Botswana

    The World Athletics Council confirmed the hosts for three World Athletics Series events and made a series of other decisions during the 237th World Athletics Council Meeting in Nanjing, China, on March 24-25.

    The World Athletics Council has awarded the 2026 World Athletics Relays to Gaborone in Botswana ( May 2-3, 2026) and the 2028 World Athletics Relays to Nassau in the Bahamas (April 22-23, 2028).

    The 2026 World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships will be staged in Brasília in Brazil (April 12, 2026).

    “I am delighted that Botswana’s commitment to athletics, both through their elite athletes and their event hosting capabilities, has led them to hosting the World Athletics Relays next year,” said World Athletics President Sebastian Coe.

    “This is the fourth World Championship event Africa has staged over the last decade, in addition to the Diamond League and Continental Tour Gold events, and we are seeing a real increase in experience, expertise and skills. We are determined to support Member Federations in their ambitions to grow through hosting our events. Both the Bahamas and Brazil have hosted events in the past and their talented athletes will, I know, generate local and international excitement.”

    The World Athletics Relays in Gaborone will see Botswana host a World Athletics Series event for the first time.

    The country’s capital city held a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting for the first time in 2023 and this year’s Botswana Golden Grand Prix, taking place in Gaborone on April 12, will also be a Gold-level meeting.

    Jacob Kelebeng, Minister of Sport and Arts, said: “This is a moment of immense pride for Botswana. The World Athletics Relays Gaborone 26 will ignite a national passion, drawing the world to our shores and showcasing our unique spirit. We humbly welcome athletes and fans alike, knowing that this event will inspire generations and leave a lasting legacy of triumph and unity.”

    The World Athletics Relays will return to Nassau for the fifth time in 2028, following the city’s hosting of the event in 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2024. – worldathletics.com/Sports Reporter.

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  • Botswana Becomes First African Country to Host World Athletics Relays

    Botswana Becomes First African Country to Host World Athletics Relays

    Addis Ababa, — Botswanan Minister of Sport and Arts Jacob Kelebeng expressed his delight over Botswana’s having been awarded the hosting rights for the 2026 World Athletics Relays.

    Global athletics body – World Athletics- has confirmed that the African nation–Botswana will host the 2026 World Athletics Relays, scheduled to take place on 2-3 May 2026.

    “We have done it,” Kelebeng wrote on his social media account, congratulating the Botswana Athletics Association (BAA) for the milestone.

    This will be the first time for Botswana to host a senior world event in any sport and the first time the World Athletics relays to be hosted in Africa.

    The good news was announced by World Athletics president Sebastian Coe earlier Tuesday at the end of the two-day council meeting in Nanjing, China.

    The event is scheduled to be hosted in Gaborone, capital of Botswana, on May 2 to May 3, according to the World Athletics press release.

    The hosting of the world event marks a big milestone in Botswana’s ascendance to the top in athletics and coincides with the country’s 60th Independence celebrations in 2026.

    Botswana’s men 4x400m relay team is a force to reckon in the event. They are the reigning world relays champions having won gold at the 2024 event held in the Bahamas before wrapping up their season with an Olympic silver medal. The team has three world relay medals including a bronze, a silver and gold.

    Moreover, the Botswana team has already started preparations to defend their gold at the upcoming 2025 World Athletics Relays to be held in Guangzhou, China in May this year. Reigning Olympic 200m champion Letsile Tebogo is expected to be remain part of the team.

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  • Zimbabwe: Athletes Savour Kirsty’s Historic Feat

    Zimbabwe: Athletes Savour Kirsty’s Historic Feat

    As Zimbabwe celebrates Minister of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture Kirsty Coventry’s historic election as president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), both current and former athletes have hailed the milestone with pride and admiration – saluting one of their own for etching her name into global sporting history.

    Coventry, who touched down at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport on Sunday, was greeted with jubilation from a passionate crowd that included high-ranking Government officials, sports dignitaries, and a host of Olympians – all united in recognition of a momentous national achievement.

    Among those present were Olympians Abel Chimukoko, Tendai Chimusasa, Gaily Dube and Alexander Kwangwari, who each paid glowing tribute to the swimming icon.

    Chimukoko, who is president of the Zimbabwe Olympians Association, said Coventry’s rise to the top of world sport was a proud moment for all Olympians.

    “We are all excited. Our Honourable Minister Kirsty Coventry is an Olympian,” said Chimukoko.

    “As Olympians, we are thrilled to have one of us elected as the IOC president, which is the highest office in global sport.

    “She is the second-youngest IOC president ever, the first female, the first African, and the first Zimbabwean to hold this position. It’s a remarkable achievement.”

    In a world where athletes often face obscurity after retirement, former long-distance runner Chimusasa said Coventry’s success was a beacon of hope.

    “We are so proud of her as one of the Olympians. I once travelled with her to the Sydney Olympics,” said Chimusasa.

    “It is so important for Africa and for Zimbabwe that we now have an African chosen to be the IOC president. She has made us incredibly proud.

    “We are especially happy for women. I believe fellow women will feel inspired knowing that the first female IOC president is from Zimbabwe. What a historic moment.”

    Former sprinter Gaily Dube echoed that sentiment, saying Coventry had raised the bar for what is possible through discipline and perseverance.

    “I am privileged to witness this,” she said.

    “I’m elated that one of our own has been elected as the first woman, first African, and first Zimbabwean to lead the IOC in our lifetime.