Botswana's Tebogo Triumphs in 200m, Lyles in COVID Scare; Chopra Claims Javelin Silver

Letsile Tebogo from Botswana wins the 200m Olympic gold in Paris 2024, setting an African record, and dedicates his victory to his late mother. Noah Lyles battles COVID and finishes third, while India's Neeraj Chopra clinches silver in men's javelin throw with a throw of 89.45 meters.

Botswana's Letsile Tebogo became the new Olympic champion in the 200m at the Paris 2024 games on Thursday, setting a new African record with a time of 19.46 seconds. Tebogo's victory came in front of a jubilant Stade de France crowd, denying pre-race favorite Noah Lyles the coveted sprint double, reported Olympics.com.

Lyles, who had earlier clinched the 100m Olympic title in a dramatic fashion on Sunday, finished third in the 200m race. American Kenneth Bednarek grabbed silver with a time of 19.62 seconds, while Lyles secured bronze in 19.70 seconds. In a concerning turn of events, Lyles revealed post-race that he had tested positive for COVID-19 and had to be assisted off the track in a wheelchair.

In an emotional gesture, Tebogo dedicated his historic win, Botswana's first-ever Olympic gold, to his late mother, Elizabeth Seratiwa, who passed away last May. Displaying her initials on his fingernails and her birth date on his spikes, Tebogo expressed, 'I believe she could be one of the happiest people on the planet. Because she believed in me and I had so much doubt for myself,' according to Olympics.com.

Later in the day, India's Neeraj Chopra fell just short of defending his Olympic title in men's javelin, earning a silver medal with a top throw of 89.45 meters. Despite a strong qualification performance and throwing 89.34 meters, Chopra had four foul throws in the final, which hampered his gold medal ambitions.

Neeraj Chopra's achievement makes him the second Indian male athlete to win two Olympic medals in an individual event post-independence. His invalid first and third attempts, along with three consecutive fouls, curtailed his efforts to improve on his season-best throw. Nevertheless, his 89.45-meter throw marked his second-best career performance.

(With inputs from agencies.)