Thato Lebang

Thato Lebang (born 19 June 1996) is a Botswanan judoka, who made his world debut in 2017. Lebang weighs 73 kg with a height of 168 cm. Lebang played for his country under Botswana Judo Federation which has organized training camps for him and other athletes. History has it that Judo was founded by an Educationist in Japan not just as a sport but as a way of life.

Early life

Lebang is a native of Gaborone, the capital of Botswana. He attended Naledi Senior Secondary School, Gaborone.

Career

Lebang made his judoka debut at the senior championships alongside Gavin Bogopa and Min Young Kim. They did not win medals but were commended for their performance. In 2015, Lebang took part in the Grand Slam, in Tokyo. In the 2015 African Games, Lebang won one and lost two matches. Later that year, he won one and lost one match in the African Championship Seniors, 2015. In 2016, Lebang lost in the African Open Tunis. In 2017, Lebang lost in the four matches in which he competed at the World Senior Championship in Budapest.

In 2018, Lebang was unsuccessful at both the World Championships Seniors in Baku and the Budapest Grand Prix. In the African Senior Championships 2018, Lebang won one match and lost two. After losing in the Düsseldorf Grand Slam, Lebang then competed in the Oberwart European Open and the Tunis Grand Prix in 2018.

In 2019, Lebang lost to Dadie Guillaume in the Dakar African Open. He lost again in the World Championships Seniors, and in the African Games that same year. However, Lebang did win three out of his four matches in the Yaounde African Open, 2019. He also won the African Championship Seniors, later that year. As well as competing in the African Championships, in Cape Town, Lebang took part at the World Judo Championships where he fought against Romanian Alexandru Raicu, at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, Japan, on August 27, 2019.

Along with Edwin Sello, Tshenolo Tsheko and Leon Teama, Lebang represented his country at the African Games in 2020. The team also took part in the 2020 Judo International Federation World Senior Championships in Tokyo, Japan. Later that year, Lebang competed in the Düsseldorf Grand Slam, where he was defeated by Chibana Charles of Brazil. Lebang also lost to Riquin Theo of France in the 2020 Paris Grand Slam.

Training camps for judoka

Lebang trained at the Tunisian judoka camp with Gavin Mogopa in preparation for the African Judo championships in Tunisia on 9 April 2016. He also trained at the Tokai University in Japan, and the international training camp at Kodokan.

The Botswana Judo Federation set up three training camps in 2019 to get its members ready to participate in the championship. The training camps were divided into three with the first on May 16, June 6, and June 30, 2019, respectively. The camps were meant to develop both physical and mental domains combining the physical, motor, educational, and health development across the lifespan.

However, some African countries have mapped out training camps for judoka like the one in Kinshasa, to bring African athletes together for good training in a natural environment. Again the Judo South Africa (JSA) collaborating with The International Judo Federation, in collaboration with UNHCR created a training camp dedicated to the refugees, migrants, and host and non-refugee communities in South Africa.

Achievements

On 12 April 2018, Lebang placed 7th at the Senior championships after also placing 7th at the African Games on 13 September 2015. Lebang finished 5th in the Younde Africa Open on 9 November 2019.

Lebang won a gold medal at the Junior Commonwealth Championships.

Lebang also won gold at the Africa Youth Games in Gaborone, in May 2014, where he won the “under 20" men's group, under 73 kg weight category.

In 2016, Lebang was placed 13th in Africa, and ranked 150th in the world. As a result, the Botswana Judo Federation prepared him for qualification to represent his country in the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio, Brazil.