He almost gave it away with that look. That’s the big talking point after Letsile Tebogo’s dramatic win in the men’s 200m at the Doha Diamond League on Friday, 16 May. The Olympic champion clocked 20.10 for the victory, but it wasn’t as straightforward as the result suggests. In fact, it was a single glance over his shoulder that nearly cost him everything. Tebogo had been leading comfortably as the race approached the finish line. Confident, maybe a little too relaxed, he allowed himself a quick look back.
But that moment, now being called the “Lindsey stare,” was when he realized someone was coming for him. That someone was the USA’s Courtney Lindsey, making a huge move from Lane 8. As Tebogo eased up, Lindsey was closing fast, surging with power right to the line. In the end, Tebogo held on by just 0.01 seconds. A narrow escape, but a win nonetheless. After the race, Tebogo was asked about that pivotal glance back and the dramatic finish it nearly cost him…
Well, Citius Mag shared a video where Letsile Tebogo was asked, “What happened, especially at the finish? You slowed down; you relaxed at the finish.” Tebogo confidently explained, “I mean, it’s all about enjoying the race. You know, that was the main concept. That’s why I came here. I told Mak that now this is our first race. I have to enjoy it because once it gets tough, uh, throughout the season, I won’t be able to enjoy it, you know. At least let me enjoy one race and then I’ll see how we do about the other ones.”
When further asked about how close the finish was and if he saw someone coming up behind him, Tebogo said, “I mean, um I know my instincts. Uh, not everybody has that, uh, that power to see, uh, that power to finish the race, you know. I have to start what I can finish. If I can’t finish, who’s going to finish for me?? Epic answer! Behind both of them, another American, Joseph Fahnbulleh, finished third in 20.26.
Canada’s Aaron Brown, a 4x100m gold medalist from Paris 2024, came in fourth with 20.35. Italy’s Filippo Tortu, who helped his team win 4x100m gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, followed in fifth with 20.41. It was a stacked field, but the focus remained on that tight finish between Tebogo and Lindsey. For Letsile Tebogo, this was his first-ever race in Doha and his second 200m of the season, after winning the Botswana Grand Prix in April (20.23).
Earlier in the Diamond League season, he competed in the 100m, finishing seventh in Xiamen on 26 April and third in Shanghai/Keqiao on 3 May. Doha’s 200m was the first of its kind for this year’s Diamond League, making Tebogo’s victory even more significant. But the near miss serves as a reminder: no matter how comfortable the lead, there’s always someone chasing, and sometimes all it takes is one glance to feel the pressure. Take Noah Lyles, for example; his infamous staredown in the semifinals cost him dearly, something he later admitted he deeply regretted.
Before Letsile Tebogo, Noah Lyles had already faced that stare-down challenge
Back in the Paris Olympics 2024, Noah Lyles delivered a performance full of lessons and triumph. In the semifinals, he made a bold move, a confident staredown against his rival Oblique Seville, trying to show mental toughness. But that moment of showboating nearly cost him, as Seville surged ahead and Lyles finished second by just 0.02 seconds. Reflecting on that, Lyles admitted, “I underestimated it. I said, never again.”
Determined to bounce back, Lyles came out in the final with laser focus. He kept his eyes locked on the finish line, running a personal best of 9.784 seconds to claim his first-ever Olympic gold in the 100m, edging Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson by a razor-thin 0.005 seconds. After the victory, Lyles shared, “I’m gonna come out here with the intention to win every round.” But he wasn’t the first athlete facing such a situation.
At the European Athletics Championships in Rome, Spanish race walker Laura García-Caro was in strong contention for a bronze medal in the 20km race. Unfortunately, she made the costly mistake of celebrating prematurely, raising her country’s flag and pumping her fist in the air before actually crossing the finish line.
This early celebration distracted her just enough for Ukrainian athlete Lyudmila Olyanovska to overtake her in the final two meters, snatching away the bronze medal. A brutal reminder that Letsile Tebogo should also remember: never count your victory before the line is crossed, because in racing, it’s not over until it’s over.
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