Sports
Gianni Infantino, Kurt Simeon-Okraku hold historic meeting in Paris
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In a massive boost for Ghana Football, FIFA President Gianni Infantino held a historic meeting with President Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku at the FIFA Offices in Paris, France.
This meeting was at the behest of the FIFA President who had invited President Simeon-Okraku to meet with him to discuss matters related to the development of the game both in Ghana and on the African continent.
The FIFA President gave President Simeon-Okraku a very warm welcome to the FIFA Offices in Paris, indicating how pleased he was to meet with the Ghana FA boss to share thoughts on how the game in Ghana was developing.
The meeting was held in a very positive spirit and the remarks shared by President Simeon-Okraku to reporters after the meeting pointed to the usefulness and progressive nature of the conversation he had with President Infantino.
President Simeon-Okraku, first thanked the FIFA President for the warm reception he had accorded him, going on to share a few key points on the synchronization of the vision of the FIFA President with that of the Ghana Football Association.
“First of all, I would want to say ‘thank you’ to the President [Gianni Infantino] for the invitation. We were here to speak about football on the global stage and, obviously, on the African continent, zooming in to Ghana. FIFA, led by the President, has been at the forefront of support for the development of football, especially in Africa,” he said.
He further added that, “And it was always important for us to engage and to know how far we are going, how well we are doing, and what we have to do to make it much, much, much better. I think that the President is very clear in what needs to be done. And as the President of a Federation, I’m also very clear on the vision of FIFA and, together, we are both sharing the same vision.”
President Kurt Edwin-Simeon Okraku then proceeded to paint a picture of the gains made by Ghana since he took over as President of the Ghana Football Association in 2019.
“I think that the Ghanaian game was at a low before 2019. Fast forward 2019, 2020 and now, and I think that we’ve made big inroads. Bringing all our competitions back. Bringing the desire and the passion of the people back. All our national teams are now competitive. We’ve gone ahead to also introduce more youth competitions, more youth national teams. Back to the (FIFA) World Cup in Qatar, after we lost out in 2018; our Black Queens, the female national team, are back in AFCON, after being away for a while. Our youth national teams are also on the rise again,” he noted.
According to him, “All our domestic competitions are back on track and are held in a timely manner. And so I think the outlook looks very good (for Ghana Football). What we have to do now, going forward, is to harness the potential and the positives that have come out of what we have done, and to make sure that we continue to improve on the work we are doing. But, at the moment, I would say we are on the rise again.”
President Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku in concluding his remarks, showered copious praise on FIFA for the awesome support that the world governing body for Football has given Ghana over the years, specifically acknowledging some key FIFA officials working out of the organization’s Senegal office.
He concluded, “First of all, I would say ‘thank you’ to FIFA the support via various schemes; through the FIFA Forward programme and the many other interventions that FIFA has introduced. Working with the office in Senegal with Gelson [Fernandes] and Solomon [Mudege] and the team, we are very clear on the support and necessary areas. I think that my Association has been very proactive in making sure that we continuously engage. I think that these levels of engagement, when they’re pushed a notch higher, will bring in more results. And this is what we are working on.”
This historic meeting is a shot in the arm for the President of the Ghana Football Association and for the entire Association as it provides fresh impetus for the work of President Simeon-Okraku and his Executive Council in their quest to lift Ghana Football to unprecedented heights.
If there is a club Kumasi Asante Kotoko would want to avoid, definitely it would be Kpando Heart of Lions, and not Hearts of Oak.
Kotoko and Hearts have sold to soccer fans some of the electrifying football atmosphere to underline their age-long rivalry.
Despite their stature in Ghana football, however, the lions from Kpando have been the most difficult and toughest opponents for the Porcupine Warriors.
Clashes between Kotoko and Hearts have produced mixed outcomes. It remains one of the few games which outcomes can be very challenging to predict.
But the story with Heart of Lions is straightforward. It hands them the dominance card over Kotoko; making them favourites most of the time when they are paired together.
Tomorrow at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium, the Porcupine Warriors would slug it out in their Matchday 2 encounter of the Ghana Premier League (GPL) with Heart of Lions.
Asante Kotoko and Heart of Lions have faced each other in 12 recorded official head-to-head matches, with Heart of Lions holding the upper hand.
They boast six wins, and two for Asante Kotoko, with the rest of the four ending in draws.
As recent as the last three years, Kotoko has been winless in their last six games, registering three draws with the Lions winning three.
This clearly suggests that the Porcupine Warriors would be engaged in another battle of their lives when they welcome Heart of Lions to the Baba Yara Stadium, a venue that has proven to be a comfortable hunting ground for the visitors.
Coming from a 1-1 draw against Debibi United on Matchday 1 and a Democracy Cup victory over Hearts of Oak, Kotoko must be ready to clip the claws of the deadly Lions if they hope to tame them to halt that trend.
The Bibiani Dun’s Park is also expected to be full of fireworks as GoldStars welcome Hearts of Oak.
It will be one that will draw the fans in the area as both sides prepare the game with different agenda. While Hearts emerged 4-0 conquerors of Berekum Chelsea in Accra, GoldStars suffered a 1-0 loss to Bechem United.
The quest to consolidate the week one gains or to bounce back from defeat would conspire to make the game a mouthwatering one.
Swedru All Blacks would also engage Debibi United at the Swedru Stadium while Berekum Chelsea lock horns with Dreams FC at the Golden City Park and Karela against Bechem United.
At the Aliu Mahama Stadium, Karela United will face Bechem United; Young Apostles versus Basake Holy Stars at the Wenchi Stadium while Aduana FC take on Sarmatex.
The round will commence today with a fierce tie between FC Ashantigold versus Vision FC.
By Andrew Nortey
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When the Greater Accra Region emerged winners of the 35th Inter-Regional Basic Schools Netball Competition at the University of Ghana, Legon, one name stood out above the celebrations: Miss Lilly Akutu Zotorvie, a young shooter from the rural community of Mangoase in the Ada West District.
The Junior High School student of Englishie-Kenya D/A Basic School was the tournament’s standout scorer, netting an astonishing 132 goals in five matches for Team Greater Accra.
That translates into an average of 26.4 goals per match, a remarkable scoring record that has attracted attention from spectators and netball enthusiasts at the competition.
For Miss Zotorvie, however, the impressive statistics tell only part of the story; behind the goals is the journey of a young girl from Mangoase, a community outside Ghana’s major sporting centres, whose talent was discovered at a local netball clinic and gradually nurtured into the regional school competition.
She was reportedly spotted by Mr Ebenezer Kisseh, a journalist and coach, who recognised her potential during a netball clinic.
What could have remained an ordinary community sporting activity instead became the beginning of a promising journey for the young player.
Her performance subsequently earned her an opportunity to compete in the Greater Accra Super Zonal Games, where she impressed enough to progress to the regional level.
At the 35th Inter-Regional Basic Schools Netball Competition, she converted that opportunity into an outstanding individual performance, combining precision, consistency and confidence in front of the post.
Her exploits have also brought renewed attention to the pool of sporting talent that exists in communities far from Ghana’s traditional sporting centres.
For a young player from Mangoase, the progression from a local netball clinic to representing Greater Accra at an inter-regional competition demonstrates the importance of early talent identification and sustained opportunities for development.
Miss Zutorvie’s emergence also presents a reminder that some of Ghana’s promising sporting talents might be found in schools and communities where access to structured training and competitive opportunities remains limited.
Now, after scoring 132 goals in five matches and helping Greater Accra claim the inter-regional title, the young shooter has given coaches, sports administrators and talent scouts another reason to look beyond the country’s major sporting centres.
As Greater Accra celebrates its victory, her performance is likely to remain one of the most memorable individual highlights of the competition – and perhaps the beginning of a much bigger sporting journey for the Ada youngster. -GNA
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