Sports
Who gave Shakul Samed the banned substance?
Last Friday, Ghanaians were startled by the news that Ghana’s light heavyweight boxer campaigning at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games – Shakul Samed, had been suspended from the Games and subsequently sent home for allegedly taking a banned substance – Furosemide.
The discomfiting news racked the Ghanaian camp, Shakul having been tipped to win a medal at the Games.
Nicknamed the ‘Sharp Shooter’, the boxer himself was said to have been downhearted by the Commonwealth Games Federation Anti-doping and Medical Commission’s decision to expel him from Birmingham – after his Sample A was found to contain the banned diuretic and masking agent Furosemide.
He was said to have cried all day on hearing the news.
“He’s simply inconsolable. We’re all shocked ourselves because we don’t know what really happened,” says one of his teammates who wanted to remain nameless.
Back home, the shamed boxer’s elder brother Bastir Samir, told the Times Sports at the weekend that the family was equally distraught on hearing the news.
“The entire family is still in grave shock. My dad is devastated. In fact, everybody in the family as well as friends is wrecked. We were so sure he was going to come back with a medal; not an agonizing news of his suspension,” added Samir – himself an indomitable Ghanaian light heavyweight boxer.
So, what is Furosemide, the drug Shakul was alleged to have taken? Furosemide is said to be a diuretic medication used to treat fluid build-up due to heart failure, liver scarring, or kidney disease. It may also be used for the treatment of high blood pressure. It can be taken by injection into a vein or by mouth.
Indeed, Furosemide is a common drug doctors prescribe for a wide range of medical conditions – and the young boxer probably may have taken it not to gain a competitive advantage but for something else and because of lack of appropriate information, the unexpected happened.
Research also shows that it can be used by athletes to mask the presence of performance-enhancing drugs in urine and/or excrete water for rapid weight loss. And, that is the suspicion of the authorities.
According to the Commonwealth Games Federation Anti-Doping and Medical Commission, the drug is prohibited.
Question now dangling on the lips of Ghanaians is that, who gave or recommended the drug to Shakul? Did the boxer carry it from Accra into the Games? If yes, for what purpose? Does he have any chronic ailment that his boxing technical team is not aware of? We have got to find answers to all these questions so this unfortunate incident is not repeated in future competitions.
Come to think of it, Ghana has a good National Anti-doping Committee with a good department responsible for educating sports men and women – and how come our boxing contingent did not have access to such committee?
An education, we are told, would have included taking the athletes’ medical history as well as medications the athletes are taking for any chronic medical condition.
According to Dr Prince Pambo, a member of the National Anti-Doping Organisation (NADO), they could have triggered the Therapeutic use exemption process if through education and screening, it came up that the boxer needs furosemide to survive.
He insisted that had Shakul had access to education, he would have discussed his weight issues and receive appropriate guidance as to how to drop weight fairly – without resorting to the use of the banned substance which the athlete might not have been aware of.
What happened to Shakul Samed should serve as an eye-opener for our contingent – diving into future sporting festivals. Once we have NADO, our sportsmen and women ought to take full advantage of it for their own good – and for the good of the country.
Clearly, the unfortunate incident could easily have been avoided if we had been a taken due diligence in the way we do our things. But as usual, we take things for granted – and always live to count losses that should have been gains to us and the nation.
Whilst we are it, it is important that we find it how the banned drug (Furosemide) got into the hands of the Sharp Shooter, who campaigned in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
PlainTalk With John Vigah
Ghana Premier League side, Nations FC, may have suffered the drop in the just ended Premier League and are destined for a fresh campaign in the Division One League (DOL).
But they stand a huge chance of remaining in the elite stage of the game as they face Dreams FC in an epic MTN FA Cup final at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium tomorrow at 6pm.
Dreams FC have been there before; going ahead to taste the honours in the 2022-23 season after defeating King Faisal.
Coming from a season that saw them crawl from the initial stages of the league to finish on a respectable fourth position, they come in as strong favourites to double their honours in the nation’s second top football competition.
History favours them in this regard. On their first final, they conquered and based on this, connoisseurs of the game have tipped them to make it ‘two-on-two.’
But Nations FC have been empowered by the age-old adage that “He that is down need fear no fall.”
Nothing can be worse than suffering relegation and exiting the limelight as far as exposure is concerned.
But the FA offers a decent opportunity to make them stay relevant.
Conquering Dreams FC would not just make them MTN FA Cup champions. It will grant them the prestigious slot to represent Ghana in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) second tier club competition- the Confederations Cup.
With Dreams FC harbouring the same ambitions, the stage is, therefore, set for a final that promises to be explosive and uncompromising.
The situation of Nations FC might have come to many as a surprise, considering their promising start to the season, with their defence especially, marshalled by Black Stars defender, Razak Simpson, and colleague central defender, Raymond Grippman, earning a lot of reviews.
But despite the struggles they endured at certain times of their campaign, the MTN FA Cup always provided slices of good fortunes as they managed to navigate their way to the final.
Road to the top
Nations FC began the MTN FA Cup competition on a promising note, enjoying some good runs with a win over DOL Zone Two side, Ebony FC, in the Round of 64.
That landed them in a tricky encounter with another high-flying Zone Two candidate, AshantiGold SC, a side that eventually won the title from the zone to qualify to the Premier League, but escaped.
At the round of 16 stage, they encountered and defeated Ghana Premier League side, Swedru All Blacks, 2-1 to gain progression to the quarter final stage where they edged Berekum Chelsea on penalties.
A dicey semi-final awaited them against Aduana FC in Swedru. It was a game Nations was given little chance to escape considering Aduana FC’s form but once again, they conquered to secure a final berth.
In total, the Abrankese-based club have scored eight goals and conceded only two throughout the competition, making them one of the strongest defensive sides in the tournament.
For Dreams FC, they defeated Division One League Zone Three side, Semper Fi, 2-1 to progress to the next stage of the competition where they accounted for Division Two side, Asanska FC, 2-0.
That handed them a quarterfinal berth where they faced Inter Allies and drew one all before winning 4-3 on penalties.
The happiest moment in their success story was a 3-2 semi-final win over GPL winners, Medeama SC.
With that feat, Dreams have been touted as potential winners as the match comes at a time the Nations FC side may be psychologically down over the weight of the challenge they face in the next season.
However, the competition has gain notoriety for not following any form guide and outcomes mostly coming as major surprises.
In this regard, Dreams may be tipped as favourite candidates but though Nations are wounded, the stakes could revive an insatiable desire to apply the brakes to turn the dreams of Dreams FC into a nightmare.
Support
The support from MTN Ghana has no doubt improved competition among the clubs with the attractive incentive packages for participating clubs.
MTN Ghana, which is celebrating 30 years of operations in Ghana, formally became headline sponsors of the Ghana FA Cup in the 2010/2011 football season after the competition had returned from an eight-year hiatus.
The first edition under MTN sponsorship was won by Nania FC, who defeated Asante Kotoko 1–0 in the final at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Since then, the competition has been known as the MTN FA Cup, with MTN renewing its sponsorship several times — in 2013, 2017, 2020 and again for subsequent seasons.
By Andrew Nortey
The Black Stars have opened camp in Cardiff ahead of next week’s international friendly against Wales.
The team is being taken through training drills by head coach Carlos Queiroz.
Thirteen players trained at Dragon Park on Monday, with others expected to join the squad on Tuesday.
They include Ernest Nuamah, Brandon Thomas-Asante, Jordan Ayew, Caleb Yirenkyi, Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, Elisha Owusu, Gideon Mensah, Marvin Senaya, Jerome Opoku, Benjamin Asare, Joseph Anang, Solomon Agbasi, and Alidu Seidu.
The Black Stars will train in Cardiff for one week ahead of the international friendly against Wales on Tuesday, June 2, before traveling to the United States of America.
Coach Carlos Queiroz will use the period to assess his players before naming his final squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
Twenty-six players will be submitted to FIFA on Monday, June 1, as mandated by the competition regulations.
The Black Stars are drawn in Group L with Panama, England, and Croatia. They will open their World Cup campaign against Panama on June 17 in Toronto before facing England and Croatia in their other group matches.
