The Executive Chairperson of the Local Organising Committee(LOC) of the upcoming 13th African Games, Accra 2023, Dr Kweku Ofosu Asare, has declared that there is no turning back on the hosting of the Africa Games.
According to him, “We have heard so many stories about the Games and whether it will come on or not; but I want to emphasise that the games will be held. There is no uncertainty about that.The Games would happen from March 8-23 without failure.
Dr Asare made the declaration yesterday when he led a three-man LOC team to visit the TimesSports office in Accra.
He was accompanied by the Media Officer of the LOC, Daniel KwekuYeboah, and a member, Ahmed Osman.
Speaking at the meeting, Dr Asare indicated thatthe Games would not be postponedbecause contractors were working within the time frame and were ready to hand over the facilities by December.
“At this stage, there is no turning back. The government, led by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has been very supportive and committed to the event. He wants us to stage a successful tournament,” he stated.
According to him, the issues that led tothe postponementof the event have been resolved with parties currently working diligently to deliver a successful event in March.
The Games was scheduled for August last year but was postponed to March following a misunderstanding between three major stakeholders for the Games – the African Union(AU),the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) and the Association of African Sports Confederations(AASC).
The resolution has led to the formation of a Technical Committee of the African Games(TCAG) who are working tirelessly to deliver a memorable event.
He praised President Nana Akufo-Addo for getting involved and ensuring that the issue was resolved as well as make resources available for facilities to be completed.
Dr Asare disclosed that the TCAG would be in Ghana from September 27 to October 4 to inspect the facilities ahead of the Games to be held next year.
According to him, arrivals will start from March 5-7 to allow interested athletes to participate in Ghana’s Independence Day celebrations.
The Games, he disclosed, would have 23 disciplines including chess as the latest addition; with eight of the events – athletics, wrestling, badminton, cycling, swimming, table tennis, tennis and triathlon, to serve as Olympic qualifiers.
He expressed gratitude to theTimesSports for its support towards the Games and urged other media outlets to publicise the Games.
The Editor of the GhanaianTimes newspaper, Mr David Agbenu, commended the LOC for the work done so far and urged them not to rest until they staged a successful Games.
A Senior Reporter on the Sports Editor, Mr Andrew Nortey, thanked the LOC for the visit and pledged the department’s commitment to promote the Games.
“We are committed to work with the LOC as far as publicity for the Games is concerned. We’ll do our best to promote the event but it’s also important for the LOC to open its doors and let the information flow.”
Mr Agbenu (middle) and Dr Asare (third left) with members of the LOC and Reporters of the Times Sports.
BY MICHAEL D. ABAYATEYE
