In a poignant gesture, Letsile Tebogo, the athlete from Botswana who won the gold medal in the 200 meters with a time of 19.46, the fifth fastest ever, honored his late mother. After crossing the finish line ahead of competitors Lyles, Bednarek, and Knighton, the 21-year-old Olympian removed the shoes he won with, which bore the date “23-12-1980″—the birth date of his mother, who passed away on May 19, 2024. Tebogo, deeply affected by her loss, dedicated the gold medal to her memory.

His mother passed away after a short illness, but Tebogo was not with her at the time. On that day, he was competing in the Los Angeles Grand Prix. He learned the devastating news after crossing the 100 meters finish line. Despite his grief, he found the strength to continue training for the Olympic Games and became the first African athlete to win a gold medal in the 200 meters and only the second African to medal in this category.

Videos shared on social media showed students from the University of Botswana dancing and singing late into the night, while people across the southern African country expressed their pride on X and Facebook.