"VAN" (Sports Desk - 02.05.2026) :: For the first time ever, the world converges on Africa for a senior global track championship - the Debswana World Athletics Relays Gaborone 26. While this is purely a team event, here is a look at some of the top-performing athletes, based on experience and current form, that are likely to light up the National Stadium in Botswana’s capital Gaborone with their individual brilliance:
Andre De Grasse (Canada):
The two-time Olympic champion will for the third time since 2023 grace the Gaborone National Stadium track, a place he says he loves. De Grasse has demonstrated prowess and leadership in relay running with a defining moment in Eugene, Oregon, where he anchored Canada to a 4x100m Gold at the World Championships.
This season alone, the Canadian poster boy has already dipped under 10 seconds in the 100m and under 20 seconds in the 200m, with both times being attained at the same stadium in Gaborone at which the relays are being held. The full Canadian Olympic-winning quartet of Jerome Blake, Aaron Brown, Brendon Rodney, and De Grasse bank on team chemistry combined with current individual form, promising a mouthwatering performance this weekend.
Collen Busanng Kebinatshipi (Botswana):
The 400m World Champion is currently world leader in 100m with a time of 9.89s, which he ran at the Botswana National Championships at the beginning of April.
At 22, Collen holds a wealth of experience and triumph in global athletics championships with a total of three gold and one silver from 2021 as a junior, through the World Relays and Olympic Games in 2024, and, recently, the World Championships where he was crowned king of the 400m.
With a potential to double both in the 4x400m as well as the 4x100m, his combination with Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo could light up the track with both athletes being in fine form for either event. Letsile managed a 44.37s performance, and the experience of fellow statesmen Bayapo Ndori and Lee Eppie could almost guarantee a victory and potentially a record.
Elaine Thompson-Herah (Jamaica):
The fastest woman alive makes a return to global athletics scene since the August, 2023, World Championships in Budapest where she represented her country in the 4x100m. She returns to compete in the same event after a fine start to her 2026 season with a sub-11 time of 10.92s that she ran barely two weeks ago. Currently ranked third in the world by time, the five-time Olympic champion looks in the shape to make a bold statement announcing her return to the global athletics championship podium while securing Jamaica's qualification for the World Championships in Beijing 27.
Listed in her team is the fastest woman alive in the 200m, Shericka Jackson. The combination of these two athletes, who have both been guided by Stephen Francis, is set to nearly guarantee Jamaica success.
Lieke Klaver (Netherlands):
The 4x400m Olympic champion and veteran in the event is representing Team Netherlands at these championships, especially in the absence of their prominent athlete, Femke Bol.
Lieke has in the most recent times attained silver in the 4x400m mixed event, an event she often doubles with the women's 4x400m.
A season’s best of 51.00 indicates that she is in the right shape to potentially lead the Dutch to yet another global podium finish, also in consideration of the depth they come with in their team composition, with individuals like Eveline Saalberg bringing in their experience in global triumph.
Rosemary Chukwuma (Nigeria):
The current continental leader is a global finalist in the 4x100m in Eugene, Oregon, 2022, as well as African Champion in the same event from the 2019 edition of the African Games in Morocco. With a season best sub-11 performance in the USA on the 25 April (10.95), she could lead her country to its fourth global relays medal after successes in 2014, 2015, and 2024, all in Nassau, Bahamas.
She is joined by Blessing Ogundiran, Miracle Uzechukwu, and Maria Omokwe, who have all run under 11.30s in the 100m this season, with Rosemary and Blessing being in the world top 10 by time. A first global medal on African soil is likely for Rosemary and the people of Nigeria.
Zharnel Hughes (Great Britain and Northern Ireland):
An experienced championship runner and global medalist, Zharnel currently leads the entire continent of Europe with a 100m time of 10.02s that he ran on the 19th of May in Kingston, Jamaica.
Under the guidance of Glen Mills, the coach of the legendary Usain Bolt and current 100m world champion, Oblique Seville, Zharnel has demonstrated consistency with sub-10 (from 2025) and sub-20 performances from 2024.
The area record holder in the 4x100m brings invaluable experience to these particular championships, together with his counterparts: Olympic bronze medalist Jeremiah Azu, who is also a sub-10 club member, and, of note, London World Champion and Paris Olympics bronze medalist Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake.
Akani Simbine (South Africa):
A prolific anchor leg runner who has brought back home two emphatic global relay medals to South Africa, including a gold at the last edition of the contest. Together with his youthful counterparts, Akani brings balance and stability to the South African 4x100m, and his World Relays experience that dates back as far 2019 and current form, where he opened the season in 9.98s at his own event, the Simbine Classic, could be an indicator of yet another podium finish in Gaborone.
Akani is no stranger to the Gaborone track and audience, as he dropped another sub-10 performance of 9.90s in April, 2025, in winning at the Botswana Golden Grand Prix Continental Tour meeting. Simbine continues with Bradley Nkoana, who often passed the baton to him as they conquered the world in Guangzhou as well scooping Olympic silver, as well as Cheswill Johnson and Mvuyo Moss, who all are under 10.10s this season.
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