“But this is my year as a junior. We have to leave (the record) here for the next generation to come and break it.” 19-year-old Letsile Tebogo said this minutes after he had lowered the U20 world record thrice in the same year. Well, he surely wanted this one to stay for long. However, as unfortunate as it was, he only got to sit on that junior world record holder throne for 11 months. After which, a teen from Suriname snatched it. But it’s never over until it actually is right? Looks like Tebogo isn’t truly destined to be #2. Yes, in a sudden twist of fate, the record holder has now been sentenced to a 4-year ban. So it might just be Tebogo’s lucky day today!

Let’s put things in perspective. Currently, the men’s World U20 100m list is topped by 20-year-old Issamade Asinga, thanks to his 9.89s run from the 2023 South American Athletics Championships. Whereas Letsile Tebogo ranks second below him, courtesy of his 9.91s run from the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships. However, things changed when Asinga got tangled in an ugly controversy back in 2024. He sued Gatorade in July, alleging that they gave him ‘recovery gummies’ that had cardarine in them, leading him to test positive and get handed a four-year ban. But after a long legal battle, it looks like things haven’t gone in his favor.

As per sources, Gatorade has defeated Asinga over the allegedly tainted gummies as the judge dismissed Issamade’s suit. Well, now, because of this, the situation is that Issamade’s four-year ban is likely to stand. And under these circumstances, his two South American titles, in the 100m (9.89s) and the 200m (20.19s), are likely to be taken back. Also, since the former one stands as the existing U20 world record, his title shall be removed and handed over to Letsile Tebogo, who is second on the list.

While this is unexpectedly favorable for the Batswana Olympic gold medalist Letsile Tebogo, it would naturally be quite unsatisfying for the banned sprinter. But what happened? Well, his lawsuit was mainly dismissed as the district judge upheld that Issamade could not sue Gatorade for liability because he sustained no physical injury, or for consumer protection because he did not purchase the gummies. The district judge upheld, “he will be deprived of his athletic career for four years through no fault of his own. Unfortunately, the causes of action he has asserted are not the right fit for the circumstances.” 

While Issamade Asinga can still appeal the dismissal, one should understand that the repercussions of this ban has been heavy on his career. When he was handed the ban originally, he was also deprived of his two under-20 world records, his Paris Olympics chance, and his athletics scholarship to the Texas A&M university. But for Letsile Tebogo, this has worked out unanticipatedly. Once ratified, he shall once again be the U20 World Record, 0.02s ahead of American athlete Christian Miller and other fast teens.

Well, with the addition of this record, Letsile Tebogo’s resume should look more stacked than ever. After all, this time had made him the fastest teen. Yes, not even Usain Bolt has run this fast as a U20 athlete. And for those who don’t know, Tebogo had to really push to achieve this 9.91s time. How? We’ll tell you.

Letsile Tebogo’s U20 World Record was a testament to his skill

2022 started with a bang for Letsile Tebogo as on April 30, he broke American Trayvon Bromell’s U20 world record at the Gaborone International Meet at the National Stadium. It was after eight years that someone had touched this rank. But for Tebogo, who ran it in just 9.96 seconds, making history seemed like a cakewalk.

But this wasn’t where he stopped. Three months later, in July, the Paris Olympics 200m Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo did it again, going 0.02 of a second faster. Yes, he lowered it to 9.94s in heat 5 of the Eugene World Athletics Championships.

And then finally, on August 2, the teenager broke his own world record once again, running that 9.91-second performance during the final of the U20 World Athletics Championships in Pascual Guerrero Stadium, Cali, Colombia. Now that’s the power of Letsile Tebogo. But clearly, he really strived to reach that mark, and thus retaining it would probably feel a worthy addition to his storied career. What do you think? Let us know below!