Ndori stamps his authority
Calistus Kolantsho | Monday March 6, 2023 16:36
The World Athletics Championships are slated for Budapest on August 19. The African Games have been postponed to next year after the host country, Ghana failed to meet the deadline.
Ndori pulled a surprise during the World Athletics Championships that were held at the Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon when he reached the men’s 400m final.
Speaking to Sport Monitor, Ndori said early qualification has taken the weight off his shoulders. “I have qualified early so I stand a chance for a podium finish at the World Athletics Championships.
It was my third race this year. My coach told me to make an attempt to qualify and I delivered as promised,” he said. Meanwhile, Anthony Pesela finished second after Ndori in a time of 45.78 followed by Ditiro Nzamani who registered 46.16. Christine Botlogetswe made a strong comeback claiming the 400m women race, stopping the clock at 54.51.
Obakeng Kamberuka finished second clocking 55.43 and Golekanye Chikani was third with a time of 56.36. On another front, Boitshepo Moloi blasted off the blocks to beat veteran sprinter, Loungo Matlhaku to the finish line in the women’s 100m heat. She recorded a personal best (PB) of 11.87s from her previous 12.19s. Matlhaku brought home 12.00s followed by Kutlwano Mooketsi in 13.58. Boitshepiso Kelapile closely marked Tsaone Sebele in women’s 100m heat two, winning with 11.94 against 11.98 of Kelapile.
Abofelo Leitseng was unstoppable in the Under-20 men’s 100m dash clinching a PB of 10.59s. He brought down his time from 10.83s from the previous race. The 19-year-old Leitseng said it was his third race of the season. “This is massive improvement because I have been working hard for a PB. My coach, Meleko Ndolo has drafted my training programme,” he said.
For her part, Botlogetswe said she is learning to run fast. “I want to run sub 50; I am training hard. The race was fine. I started slow as part of the plan. I was also cautious not to strain my quad. I think moving forward I can ran faster,” she said. Reflecting back to 2022, Botlogetswe said she had a bad season due to injuries,” she said.
Kamberuka said it is always a motivation to run against Botlogetswe. She said in the last series in Francistown she won her race in 55.90. Meanwhile, the BAA vice president Oabona Theetso said they had registered 500 athletes, an increase from the 400 that was registered in the previous event. “Having the event spread over two days gave athletes a chance to rest. There are some athletes who registered for two events. When the events are piled up into one day, we do not have a proper programme.
They also have time to introspect on their performance,” he said. Zooming in on the packed season, Theetso explained that they do not do athletics for fun but to qualify. “This is a competitive sport.
We prepare for all competitions both locally and internationally. We do not give other competitions a priority over others. You will find that a local competition is a qualifier for an international competition,” Theetso said. He said so far they have registered fastest times, with 10.36, 10.40 and 10.59 coming this early in the season.