To say that Ghana’s performance at the ongoing Commonwealth Games at Birmingham, in the United Kingdom, is a complete disaster, is putting it mildly, this is because, either the athletes were not ready to compete or that they did not have enough time to prepare..
It is pertinent to remind ourselves that, Ghana’s best performance so far in the Olympic Games, was Barcelona 1992, when the men National Team christened Black Meteors, placed third, winning bronze.
Since then, Ghana’s performance at subsequent Olympic Games, have been on a downward trend. Regrettably, Black Meteors, for instance, has failed to qualify for the Olympics since 2004, which was our last appearance.
It has been 15 years of Ghana missing out in the Olympic Games. For most football lovers in the country, this is a cardinal sin.
This newspaper is appalled that little attention in terms of investment is giving to sports in this country, other disciplines, including even national football teams, have all become orphans to the senior national team, the Black Stars.
It is, however, gratifying to note that not is not all doom and gloom, as boxer, Joseph Commey, secured a progression to the semifinals of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham after scoring a landslide win in the 54-57KG Weight class.
By making it to the semifinals, the 19-year-old Commey is guaranteed a medal in the competition; the secured medal is Ghana’s first in the ongoing competition.
In the opinion of this newspaper, Ghanaian athletes should start preparing for the Paris 2024 Olympics from now. Local talents should be discovered, nurtured, and prepared for the Olympics.
It also wrong the practice of discarding home-based athletes for their foreign-based colleagues on the eve of competitions. This practice is counterproductive.
The government, through the ministry of Youth and Sports, should find private institutions, as they do when it comes to the Black Stars to invest massively in sports.
The more athletes we take to the Olympics, the more our chances of winning medals.
