Botswana’s Nijel Amos, the 800m World Junior Record holder and his nation’s first Olympic medalist, is on the verge of a dramatic return to athletics after a three-year doping ban. Now 31, Amos has set his sights on the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, determined to reclaim his place among the sport’s elite.
Nijel Amos, who won silver at the 2012 London Olympics in a historic race behind Kenya’s David Rudisha, faced a career setback after testing positive for the banned substance GW1516 in 2022. Initially, his suspension was reduced to three years for cooperating with authorities. The ban ends in July 2025, just in time for him to compete at the World Championships in September.
Throughout his suspension, Nijel Amos has maintained a fierce sense of purpose.
“During my hardest days, I repeated the same phrase to myself: ‘I cannot lose if I do not quit,’” he reflected, signalling his determination to return stronger. He has openly declared his ambition to run sub-1:41 in the 800m again and even dreams of challenging the world record, stating,
“My current training indicates that I can, and breaking into the sub-1:41 club would be an incredible dream come true”.
Nijel Amos’s comeback is not just about personal redemption. He aims to inspire a new generation of Botswana athletes, following in the footsteps of compatriot Letsile Tebogo, who recently made history at the Paris Olympics. Amos’s journey from Olympic glory, through adversity, and now toward a possible redemption arc, embodies the spirit of resilience and hope that defines elite sport.
As the countdown to his return shortens, Nijel Amos stands ready to prove that perseverance and belief can turn even the toughest setbacks into roaring comebacks.
