About two and a half months ago Tarsis Gracious Orogot shattered his 200m record when he powered to a 19.75 seconds during the SEC Championship in Gainesville, Florida.

He now targets to make the 200m final at the Paris Olympics having qualified to the semis on Tuesday at the Stade de France. He clocked 20.32 to finish first in heat 1 of round one to qualify for the semis as he made his debut at the games.

Tarsis Orogot (centre) in action alongside Chechia's NEMEJC Tomas (left) and Nigeria's ONWUZURIKE Udodi Chudi during the first round of the men's 200m heats at the Stade de France, August 5, 2024. Photo by Michael Nsubuga

He says he has had to grow quickly and fast having participated in the World Athletics Championship in Oregon, and last year in Budapest where he made the semis in 20.35 and 20.26 respectively. He now wants to make his first final at the Olympics as he continues his progression in his career.

“You can only control what you can control by giving your best and that is my target and then we will see what happens,” Orogot said after the race.

 “I just want to execute. I have matured as an athlete so now is to develop and try to execute a great semifinal. I’m happy I did what I had to do to win the heat and now I look forward to seeing how I draw in the semifinals. Hopefully, I can do the same thing again and win the semifinal,” Orogot stated.

Tarsis Orogot (2nd right) in action during the first round of the men's 200m heats at the Stade de France, August 5, 2024. Photo by Michael Nsubuga

“The most important thing I did was to win the heat as per my coach’s instructions, he told me to win the heat and go for the semis.

“It has been a tough transition but you have to grow because this is a different level of competition compared to the world championship but I have gained some experience from the past worlds and I’m trying to be very competitive in every round,” he stated.

Since Davis Kamoga’s heroics that saw him bag a bronze in the 400m final during the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, no Ugandan sprinter has come close to matching that feat.

It is like he passed on the baton to the long-distance athletics that have pushed Uganda’s medal tally at the quadrennial games to 12 including Joshua Cheptegei’s gold in Paris on Friday.

Tarsis Orogot (center) in action alongside Chechia's NEMEJC Tomas (left) and Nigeria's ONWUZURIKE Udodi Chudi during the first round of the men's 200m heats at the Stade de France, August 5, 2024. Photo by Michael Nsubuga

There has also been no deliberate effort from the Uganda Athletics Federation to build on Kamoga’s success. It has been a whole 28 years since Uganda last won an Olympic medal from the sprints. The focus has mainly been turned to long-distance running with the Sebei region now the bedrock of long-distance runners that are hoisting the Ugandan flag at major games.

But the emergency of Orogot who made his debut on Monday night might change the trajectory and cause a mindset change.

The Alabama University student qualified for the semis in his heat alongside Bahamas’ McCoy Wanya and Brazil’s Renan Correa.

The government of Uganda through the NCS and UOC facilitated Team Uganda to the games with additional support from the UOC, Plascon and Sanlam Insurance.