Black Rockets present medals to GOC President
The President of the Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC), Mr Richard Akpokavie, has charged members of the national youth boxing team, the Black Rockets, to use their recent success at the African championship as a springboard to qualify for next year’s Youth Olympics in Dakar, Senegal.
The GOC president made the remark when the leadership of the Ghana Boxing Federation (GBF), led by its president, Mr Bernard Quartey, led the victorious team to present their medals to the GOC boss.
The three young boxers – consisting of middle¬weight Desmond Pappoe, flyweight Mathias Ashitey and bantamweight George Dowouna won gold medals at the 2025 Africa Youth Boxing Championship in Conakry, Guinea.
Welcoming the team, Mr Akpokavie said: “Your achievement is very commendable, and I congratulate you for it, but do not think that you have arrived; this is the beginning of a very long journey. This is a youth competition.
“The important one is in December in Angola; that will qualify you for the Youth Olympics next year. At the Youth Olympics, you have a big platform to showcase your talent, and winning gold there would open you up to the world and the 2028 Olympic Games,” he stated.
“From now until the qualifiers in Angola start, do not rest on your oars; remain focused. The Youth Olympics is not an automatic slot for you; other boxers would like to challenge you and prove they are better than you.”
He said “We at the GOC will come in when the preparations start for the qualifiers towards the Youth Olympics, and we will see how we can support all of you to make sure success is guaranteed,” he added.
Moreover, he congratulated the GBF for their great work on the team, stating that “a sport like boxing is one we must all pay special attention to because it is one of the two sports that has brought us pride and honours together with athletics at the Olympic and Commonwealth Games, among others.”
He said it was sad that at the last Olympics, there was no representation from boxing. “This should never happen again; what the GOC can pledge is that we will do whatever is possible to make sure that you are at the Youth Olympics and at the Olympics in 2028.”
The GBF president, Mr Quartey, thanked the GOC president for his advice and urged him to come to the aid of the federation in achieving its target of not only making it to the Youth Olympics and the main Olympics but also winning the ultimate medals for the country.
BY RAYMOND ACKUMEY
