Ghana’s hopes for a medal in the Men’s 4×100 relay at the 2024 Olympics were dashed on Day 13, as the team failed to qualify for the finals.
The quartet—comprising Abdul-Saminu Rasheed, Benjamin Azamati, Ibrahim Fuseini, and Joseph-Paul Amoah—finished their heat in 38.62 seconds, placing sixth.
A critical misstep occurred during the baton exchange between Saminu and Azamati, which proved disastrous and led to the team’s disqualification.
This relay was seen as Ghana’s strongest chance to secure a medal at the Paris Games, especially after disappointing results in other events, including swimming, high jump, and individual sprints.
Presently, no Ghanaian remains in the ongoing games.
A messy baton changeover and stumbling runs means Ghana finishes 6th in Heat 2 of the men’s 4x100m relay Heats and WILL NOT make the final. #Paris2024pic.twitter.com/cANn1Tv8d6
Annette Echikunwoke, who was originally set to represent Nigeria at the 2020 Olympics before being disqualified due to administrative errors by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria, has now achieved Olympic success under the United States flag.
Echikunwoke won a silver medal in the women’s hammer throw at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
After her final throw, Echikunwoke confidently exited the hammer cage, waving to the enthusiastic crowd at Stade de France. She had secured her position as the Olympic silver medalist in Paris.
As she left the wait area and moved towards the stadium’s corner, she spotted Ashley Kovacs, the wife and coach of shot put silver medalist Joe Kovacs, holding an American flag. Echikunwoke took the flag and draped it over her shoulders, keeping it there for the rest of the evening.
Reflecting on her journey, Echikunwoke expressed a bittersweet sentiment about her disqualification three years ago, which had denied her the chance to compete for Nigeria. “I’m happy it’s happening now,” she said. “Everything happens for a reason, even if it’s bad or good or ugly. But this is beautiful.”
Echikunwoke’s Olympic journey took a significant turn in 2020 when she and nine other Nigerian athletes were disqualified from competing due to missed mandatory tests, a mistake attributed to the Athletics Federation of Nigeria. This unfortunate event led her to change her allegiance to the United States in her quest for Olympic glory.
Had she been able to compete in Tokyo, Echikunwoke believes she would have reached the podium donning Nigeria’s green and white. However, she now celebrates her triumph wearing the stars and stripes of the United States.
Ghanaian sprinters Benjamin Azamati and Abdul-Rasheed Saminu have both secured spots in the semifinals of the men’s 100m at the ongoing Paris Olympics.
Azamati, who holds Ghana’s national record for the 100m, clocked in at 10.08 seconds to finish second in Heat 1, just behind Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson.
The heat was not without drama, as Great Britain’s Jeremiah Azu faced disqualification for a false start.
Meanwhile, Saminu advanced from Heat 7, crossing the finish line in third place with a time of 10.06 seconds. He was bested only by Nigeria’s Kayinsola Ajayi and the reigning Olympic champion, Marcell Jacobs.
For both Azamati and Saminu, this marks their first appearance in an Olympic semifinal.
The men’s 100m semifinals are scheduled for Sunday evening.
President of the African Paralympic Committee and Ghana Paralympic Association, Samson Deen, has expressed confidence in Ghana’s paralympic team to make a statement at the upcoming 2023 All African Games and the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France.
His comments come on the back of the paralympic team’s exploits at the just ended 2022 Cairo African Open Championship where Ghana clinched 14 medals in total.
In the women’s category, Ghana’s Patricia Nyamekye set a new world record in the 67kg category. Her lift of 91kg is the new African/World Record in the Youth and New Generation category and positions her to make a qualifying mark for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
Emmanuel Nii Tettey Oku also won two silver medals and two gold in the 72kg of the men’s category.
In the other category, Tahiru Haruna, following his suspension for flouting COVID-19 rules in Manchester 2021 and hence not making it to the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, came back strongly to win a silver and bronze medal in the African/World category event of up to 107kg, with a lift of 205kg.
Prince Nyarko and Abdulai Abubakar are the para powerlifting team coaches who led the contingent to victory in Egypt.
Ghana sent four athletes to the championship; one female and three males.
Patricia Nyamekye who had two gold medals.
Isaac Obeng recorded his first ever appearance and placed fourth but qualified for Paralympic Games, Paris 2024, with a lift of 170kg.
Emmanuel Nii Tettey Oku had the best of lifts in the entire competition with a gold medal awarded to him in the African Championship with a lift of 176kg in the up to 76kg category event. He was again awarded two silver medals for placing second in the World event.
Speaking at the medals’ presentation to the Minster for Youth and Sports, Mustapha Ussif, Samson Deen expressed optimism in the para-athletes to continue to hoist the flag of Ghana high in their upcoming assignments.
“We in the paralympic family are most grateful to the minister and his ministry for this support they have given us,” he remarked.
“We will still come back and ask for more because 2023, Ghana is hosting the African Para Games and this is the first time a paralympic team has gone outside Ghana and won 14 medals. I am very hopeful that with this continuous support, we are going to make a great mark in Paris 2024,” Mr Deen projected.
Ghana is set to host the 13th edition of the African Games in 2023 commencing on August 4, and will now combine the event with the African Paralympic Games in the same year. This is the first time a continental paralympic competition has been held in Africa.
Later in 2024, the summer Olympics, officially the Games of Paris 2024, an international multi-sport event is scheduled to take place from 26 July to 11 August, with Paris as its main host city together with 16 cities spread across metropolitan France.
