Botswana has only two Olympics medals following the successes of Nijel Amos at the 2012 London Olympics and the incredible exploits of the 4x4 relay team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

The country’s projections through the Botswana National Sport Commission ( BNSC) and Botswana National Olympic Committee ( BNOC) envisaged a total of five ( 5) medals at the Tokyo Olympics but the country could only manage one medal ( 1) as the medal hopefuls, Nijel Amos and Isaac Makwala hit blanks.

With the Paris 2024 Olympics left with only 497 days, preparation by various countries across the world are already underway and Botswana is no exception. According to BNOC Chief Executive Officer, Botho Bayendi, it will cost the country at least P47 million to send team Botswana to the world multi- sporting games and challenge for the podium finish. “After the 2020 Olympics, we submitted our budget to relevant stakeholders and it was roughly around P47 million,” Bayendi told BG Sport this week.

“If you look into it, it is a fraction of what is required to prepare an athlete, which includes development and other commitments that can be quantified at national federations. We are talking huge amounts and where we sit, we tend to be at a disadvantage; we can’t just stay and wait to see which athletes will qualify. We are concerned because preparations time for the Paris 2024 has already been affected by the 2020 Olympics which were delayed ( the outbreak of COVID- 19 saw the games played in 2021) so we are already working on a tight schedule,” the BNOC Chief shared. Bayendi added that she was hopeful that the support from government and the business community will come through following adjustment made to the funding model of national federations which is aligned to the financial year budget plans. “I’ll be more confident to discuss financial preparation plans after the 1st of April because I believe BNSC and government are cooking something good, I had assurances from BNSC chairperson Marumo Morule that preparations will get the necessary support needed,” she added. Bayendi further added that it is not only about funding but also proper strategic plans to ensure that they are best placed to enable success of athletes. Bayendi could not be drawn to discuss the number of medals targeted at the upcoming games, adding that there are lot of forces at play when it comes to setting targets. “As a strategist and a statistician, I believe that numbers aren’t abstract but they are informed, be it by permutations or assumptions. I have learned the hard- way from Birmingham Commonwealth Games, we went to the games certain of a portion of the targets we had set, but it was taken away from us by some challenges; last minute doping allegations against those that we eyed for medals. I believe in responsive strategy and responsive targets,” she opined. The government of Botswana has also released a reward model and the 4x4 relay team has already benefitted from the structure after being awarded houses in the wake of their impressive showing in Tokyo. Emergence of Letsile Tebogo, gradual impressive growth of female boxer, Keamogetse Kenosi and other local athletes will see Batswana once again wait with hope to witness their stars shine at world stage.