The 4×100 relay time of 38.43s at the just-ended 2023 African Games essentially qualifies Team Ghana to the Olympic Games this year but there are a few technicalities and still a long way to go.
That time however puts Ghana in 15th place in the world relay ranking – a very good spot.
The reason all of this may be null and void by the time the Olympics is here is that this is only the start of the Athletics outdoor season.
Ghana and Nigeria with the other African countries that ran in the race are some of the few nations worldwide to ran in a competitive relay race.
This means that, as the outdoor season progresses, the ranking could potentially change.
Other countries might come in with better times and leapfrog team Ghana to qualify.
Ghana’s relay time lies in a region many other countries have ran or could ran before the window of qualification ends a bit later this year.
However, there is the Penn Relays later this month gives Ghana the opportunity to better the time ran at the African Games to stay in respectable places on the ranking table.
The Ghana Athletics Association have already secured a place to compete at the Penn Relays which will begin on April 25.
Ghana will have to stay in the 38-second region as it will be extra competitive given that there will be many other countries looking for a chance to have a good place in the rankings.
For many other relay teams, this will be the first outdoor event this year for them. With the experience garnered from the African Games by Joseph Paul Amoah, Benjamin Azamati, Edwin Gadayi and Solomon Hammond, the team could use that to their advantage.
On May 4 however, the World Relay championships will come off in Bahamas. This competition will be the main qualifier to the Olympic Games. The eight teams that will make it to the final out there will qualify to run in Paris irrespective of the times ran.
To have a sure qualification to the Games, Ghana will have to qualify for the final in Bahamas. Bahamas will be the sure bet to qualify. If Team Ghana does not make it to the final at the World Relays, that’s when it will come down to the world rankings and times ran over the course of the outdoor season. The best times will then join the main 8 who qualified to the world relays in Bahamas.
Ghana may have a good race time now and in the top 15 on the world ranking now, but that is not cause for celebration yet. There is still a lot of work to be done to book a ticket to get on the flight to Paris.