Sports
Black Bombers on rescue mission
The Black Bombers team on arrival in Bankok
In a little over two months, the biggest global sports fiesta, the Olympic Games will kick-off in France.
Christened the 2024 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Paris 2024, the upcoming international multi-sport event is scheduled to take place from July 26 to August 11 with the motto: Ouvrons grand les Jeux.
That translated to English means‘Games wide open’.
It will indeed be widely open as approximately 10, 500 athletes converge on the city of Paris to compete in 329 events in 32 sports disciplines.
That number of contingents would definitely include that of Ghana which is expected to be comprised of athletes, boxers, cyclists, badminton, table tennis, hockey, volleyball players and many others from the over 50 sports disciplines in the country.
However, the nature of qualification to the Games has more or less become a hindrance for athletes of these disciplines.
For some of them, it has become an activity similar to qualification to the quadrennial FIFA World Cup.
Currently, the only team or group of athletes that have qualified to represent Ghana at the global sports extravaganza is the 4x100m Relay Team that secured qualification from the recently held athletics championships in the Bahamas.
Apart from the relay team, Ghana’s participation in the championship hang in the balance as athletes struggle to record qualification marks and times in their respective trials.
Hence, the national boxing team, Black Bombers’ participationin the Paris 2024 Olympics qualifiers in Bankok, Thailand from today offers a glimmer of hope.
As the most successful Ghanaian team in the history of the Olympics, it is not out of place to trust in their ability to add to Ghana’s numbers in the Games to improve the country’s standing on the all-time medal table of the Games.
Out of Ghana’s 16 appearances, she could only boast of five medals – four bronze and a silver, with four coming from the Black Bombers and one bronze from the Black Meteors team of the 1992 edition held in Barcelona.
That impressive record as Ghana’s best Olympics team is what must spur on flyweight Theophilus Kpakpo Allotey, featherweightMohammed Amadu, light welterweight Joseph Commey, light middleweight Henry Malm, light heavyweight Jonathan Tetteh, British-based super heavyweightMark Kodjovi Ahondjo and United States-based female middleweight Ornella Sathoud to snatch some of the 51 places allotted from the trials.
The situation again raises eyebrows over the state of Ghana sports and it free fall with very little or no effort to rescue it.
Like it’s always said, the time for officialdom to act to save Ghana sports is now. If Ghana is not able to qualify in football which is her biggest sports pride, struggling to qualify athletes and boxers, then it meant the door would be completely shut on those with smaller budgets.
While we wait to see attempts to improve Ghana’s 125th ranking on the Olympics medal table, we wish the Black Bombers well in this endeavour to restore the nation’s sporting pride.
By Andrew Nortey
The Black Queens will on Wednesday, April 29, learn their opponents for the African qualifying phase of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games Women’s Football Tournament.
The draw, organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), will take place at CAF headquarters in Cairo and will be streamed live on CAF TV from 15:00 local time (12:00 GMT).
Ghana is among 35 national teams participating in the qualification campaign, which will determine the two African representatives for the women’s football tournament at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, scheduled for July 11 to 29, 2028.
The qualification series will be played over five rounds, with each nation aiming to secure one of the two available slots for Africa at the global event in Los Angeles.
Having recently climbed to 59th in the latest FIFA Women’s World Rankings and currently ranked third in Africa, the draw marks the beginning of another major international mission, the quest to seek a return to Olympic football.
GFA COMMUNICATIONS
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) officially awarded the nation the rights to host the TotalEnergies CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in 2027.
CAF covered the decision in a letter addressed to the General Secretary, Lawyer Prosper Harrison Addo, Esq.
The decision underscores CAF’s strong confidence in the Ghana Football Association’s ability to organize and deliver a tournament that meets the highest standards of youth football on the continent.
Ghana last hosted the competition in 1999 – when the Black Satellites lifted the trophy on home soil amid scenes of national celebration.
Coincidentally, 2027 will mark the 70th Independence anniversary and the competition could be a great part of the celebrations.
CAF says it will work closely with the Football Association and a soon-to-be-established Local Organising Committee (LOC) to ensure the successful planning and execution of the tournament.
This collaboration is expected to focus on infrastructure readiness, logistics, security, and overall fan experience, all aimed at delivering a world-class event worthy of Africa’s growing football stature.
Beyond the excitement of hosting, the tournament represents a broader endorsement of Ghana’s reputation as one of Africa’s premier football hubs.
Over the years, the country has consistently demonstrated its capability to stage high-profile competitions, backed by passionate supporters, improving facilities and a rich football culture.
The CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations holds particular importance in the global football ecosystem. Widely regarded as a breeding ground for future stars, the competition has historically served as a launching pad for some of Africa’s most celebrated players. Many participants have gone on to achieve remarkable success at top European clubs and on the international stage, making the tournament a key showcase of emerging talent.
With history, passion and proven capability on its side, Ghana now stands poised to deliver a memorable and impactful U-20 AFCON tournament, one that could shape the future of African football once again.
