Ben Nunoo Mensah, President of the Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC) has revealed that Ghana faces the prospect of losing out on sending qualified athletes to the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris 2024 due to a shortage of funds.
Mensah expressed concern that despite having athletes like Abeiku Jackson and a female swimmer who have qualified through universality, Ghana may be unable to send them to the Olympics without sufficient funding.
Speaking to Akoma FM, Mensah highlighted the urgency of raising funds to support Ghanaian boxers’ participation in the qualifying tournament in Thailand in mid-May.
“Our boxers can still qualify if we as a country raise funds to support their trip to Thailand in mid-May, where they will fight and most likely qualify.”
He stressed that without financial support, the country could miss crucial qualification opportunities.
“However, we will not send any qualified athletes to the Olympics unless funds are made available. In our competition, the GOC paid for the boxers to travel to Senegal and Italy, but our resources are now limited, and it is not our primary responsibility to look after the national teams.”
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While acknowledging the Sports Ministry’s promise to sponsor the boxers, Mensah emphasized the need for media advocacy to push for the release of funds.
“The Sports Ministry has promised to sponsor the boxers, but we would appreciate it if the media could push them so that we can have them, as they did with the Queens.”
“If we are able to secure funding for our boxers’ trip, I have every confidence that their story will be told differently this time.”
With 100 days left to #Paris2024, athletes are preparing for glory.@joelbortey reveals the prize pot allocated to gold medalists in Paris #3SportsGH pic.twitter.com/yPFdDO2CLN
— #3Sports (@3SportsGh) April 17, 2024
With the Paris 2024 Olympic Games scheduled from 26 July to 11 August, time is of the essence for securing the necessary resources.
Mensah remains optimistic that with adequate funding, Ghana’s athletes can make a significant impact at the Olympics, underscoring the importance of financial backing in realising their potential.
Emmanuel Owusu| Akoma Sports| Ghana