Sometimes, smaller nations celebrate their athletes in ways that even global powerhouses struggle to fathom. At major athletics events, medals often become so routine for countries like the U.S. that standout performances risk going unnoticed. Take the recent World Championships: Team USA shattered records with 26 medals, including 16 golds. Yet, despite this star-studded haul, their achievements didn’t garner the same level of recognition as Letsile Tebogo and his teammates enjoyed back home.

At the Tokyo World Championships, Botswana rewrote history as their 4x400m relay team, including Lee Bhekempilo Eppie, Letsile Tebogo, Bayapo Ndori, and Busang Collen Kebinatshipi, pulled off an impressive victory, edging out the goliath Team USA to claim gold. Well, through their historic run, they

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