(Reuters) – Letsile Tebogo became the first African to win the men’s Olympic 200 metres title yesterday when he powered clear of American duo Kenny Bednarek and a COVID-hit Noah Lyles to claim Botswana’s first Olympic gold medal.
Tebogo, who set a national record of 9.86 when finishing sixth in 100m final, produced a dominant last 50 metres and crossed the line in 19.46 seconds, beating his chest as he become the fifth-fastest man in history over 200m.
Bednarek chased him all the way to take a second successive silver in 19.62 seconds, with Lyles, who had been hoping to become the first American to complete the sprint double since Carl Lewis 40 years ago, repeating his Tokyo bronze in 19.67.
It was the triple world champion’s first defeat in a 200m final for three years. He received medical treatment after crossing the line and after the race U.S. officials said he had tested positive for COVID on Tuesday, two days after he won the 100 metres gold.
“In response (to the test, the USOPC and USATF swiftly enacted all necessary protocols to prioritise his health, the wellbeing of our team, and the safety of fellow competitors,” USATF said in a statement.
“Our primary commitment is to ensure the safety of Team USA athletes while upholding their right to compete. After a thorough medical evaluation, Noah chose to compete tonight. We respect his decision and will continue to monitor his condition closely.”
Adding to the chaos, a yellow card appeared against Lyle’s name in the official results to mark a misconduct violation for damaging his lane box before the race start.
AFRICA’S NIGHT
The Lyles show might still hog much of the limelight, but on the track it was Tebogo and Africa’s night. It is common to see a clutch of Africans in major middle and long-distance races, but this was the first time in Olympic history that four appeared in a sprint final.
Although three filled the last three positions, Tebogo’s place on top of the podium in an African record was a huge leap forward.
“I’m the Olympic champion, it’s something I have never seen in my life or dreamt of – it is an amazing moment,” the 21-year-old told reporters.
“I just came here with the little that I had in me to push through because yesterday we made it to the final, my coach told me ‘now it’s your race’.
“I knew Kenny was going to run away so made sure just to close him down, I have that top-end speed that will allow me to finish the race without getting tired, so that’s what I did, and when I saw Kenny fade I knew Noah was far, far away behind us so that means I’m the Olympic champion.
“It means a lot for everybody, the country, the continent and my family.”
Bednarek, the man in the middle again, ran a fantastic bend in lane eight and finished strongly, but not just quite fast enough.
“I don’t think I put my best race down, it was really tight at the end,” he said.
“This year I’m finally healthy. I can build off this. There’s also the world championships next year. I’m going to be dangerous. I expect big things in the next four years.”