IT’S been 15 years since Jamaica’s sprint legend Usain Bolt last broke the Men’s 200m world record. However, recently crowned Olympic Games champion Letsile Tebogo of Botswana believes it’s only a matter of time before he claims that record for himself.

In 2009 at the World Athletic Championships in Berlin, Germany, the then 22-year-old Bolt shattered the record of 19.30 seconds he set at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, clocking a mind-boggling 19.19 in a slightly negative head wind.

Since then, only fellow Jamaican and former training partner Yohan Blake, with 19.26 in 2011, has gone under the 19.30 mark.

Earlier this year, Bolt told Citius Magazine that American sprint star Noah Lyles, who has a personal best of 19.31, could threaten the mark but admitted that doing the double would make things harder.

“I feel like Noah feels like it’s easy running both events. It was never easy. I’ve said it and I’ve always said that it’s not easy running back-to-back events and then going out to break the world record because your body runs out of energy. I think the possibility is there because he came close at the (2022) World Championships. I think if he corrects a few things, I won’t say, he could get better. The possibility is there,” Bolt said.

However, Racers Track Club Head Coach Glen Mills, who guided Bolt through his world record exploits, says Tebogo can potentially go faster than 19.19, after witnessing his performance in Paris.

The 21-year-old Tebogo created history at the Summer Games when he became the first African to win the Men’s 200m, beating the highly touted Lyles in a personal best and African record 19.45 seconds.

“I expected him to win the 200m. As a matter of fact, I expected him to win it from last year — but you don’t run those kind of 300m world record and don’t win the 200m. As a matter of fact, he [Tebogo] represents the biggest threat to Bolt’s record because of his speed endurance capacity,” Mills said on SportsMax Zone.

“He doesn’t have the speed of Bolt but he certainly has a good speed endurance capacity. If you notice in the last part of the race he was going away — and that’s where Lyles is strong, so he’s just as strong,” he added.

Over the last week Tebogo won the 200m at the Diamond League events in Switzerland and Poland, clocking 19.64 seconds and 19.83 seconds, respectively.

Following his victory in Switzerland, Tebogo said he was optimistic that he could challenge Bolt’s record.

“I see it but I don’t want to put myself under that pressure. If it comes it will come eventually. We don’t have to push it this year or next year. Probably when [I’m] 24, that’s whe we could attempt something like that,” Tebogo told Inside Track.

“I don’t think it will take long. Looking at what I did today and what I did in the 200m final in Paris, I don’t think it will take that long because I could see it. It’s about 10 metres away from me.”

However, after the win in Poland, Tebogo clarified his comments but still believes he’s capable of achieving the mark.

“I didn’t say I would break the world record; I said it was 10 metres away from me,” Tebogo told FloTrack.

“It is going to take a lot of courage for me to do that. I need a bit of rest before we can attempt it again. It’s going to take a while; maybe when the body feels good, when the weather is perfect in Brussels, that’s when we will see when the time is going to be. But, I can’t put a date for when I’m going to break the record because the moment I put a date, I have already put myself under pressure. I don’t want that pressure on me.”

Tebogo’s next confirmed 200m will be at the Diamond League final in Brussels, Belgium, next month.