Editing Thomas Sankara (section)

==Military career==
After his basic military training in secondary school in 1966, Sankara began his military career at the age of 19. A year later he was sent to Madagascar for officer training at [[Antsirabe]], where he witnessed popular uprisings in 1971 and 1972 against the government of [[Philibert Tsiranana]]. During this period he first read the works of [[Karl Marx]] and [[Vladimir Lenin]], which profoundly influenced his political views for the rest of his life.{{sfn|Sankara|2007|p=20–21}}

Returning to Upper Volta in 1972, he fought in a border war between Upper Volta and Mali by 1974. He earned fame for his performance in the conflict, but years later would renounce the fighting as 'useless and unjust', a reflection of his growing [[political consciousness]].<ref name="Visionary">{{cite web|url=http://www.thomassankara.net/spip.php?page=imprimir_articulo&id_article=527|title=The True Visionary Thomas Sankara|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100612085355/http://thomassankara.net/spip.php?page=imprimir_articulo&id_article=527|archive-date=12 June 2010|first=Antonio de|last=Figueiredo|date=27 February 2008}}</ref> He also became a popular figure in the capital of [[Ouagadougou]]. Sankara was a decent guitarist. He played in a band named [[Tout-à-Coup Jazz]] and rode a bicycle.<ref>{{cite news|date=30 April 2014|title='Africa's Che Guevara': Thomas Sankara's legacy|language=en-GB|work=[[BBC News]]|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27219307|access-date=6 January 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Molano|first=Eduardo Molano|location=Ouagadougou|date=27 September 2015|title=Jazz, rivalry and revolution: Burkina Faso recalls spirit of Sankara|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/27/jazz-and-revolution-burkina-faso-recalls-the-spirit-of-sankara|access-date=6 January 2021|work=[[The Guardian]]|language=en}}</ref>

In 1976 he became commander of the Commando Training Centre in [[Pô]]. During the presidency of Colonel [[Saye Zerbo]], a group of young officers formed a secret organization called ''[[Revolutionary Military Organization|ROC]]'', the best-known members being [[Henri Zongo]], [[Jean-Baptiste Boukary Lingani]], [[Blaise Compaoré]] and Sankara.{{sfn|Kasuka|2012|p=296}}<ref>{{cite web|date=28 June 2009|title=REFLECTIONS: Captain Thomas Sankara, we still mourn you!|url=https://www.newtimes.co.rw/section/read/78993|access-date=6 January 2021|website=The New Times {{!}} Rwanda|language=en}}</ref>