President of the Ghana Armwrestling Federation (GAF) Charles Osei Asibey, has been elected as the new president of the Armwrestling Federation of Africa (AFA) at an elective congress held at the National Sports Stadium in Surulere Lagos, Nigeria on Wednesday.
The elections, which took place on the sidelines of the 11th Africa Armwrestling Championship, saw Mr Osei Asibey, also known in media circles as ‘Barrister’, beating off a stiff challenge from acting president of the AFA, Eng. Samuel Jackson, who is also the President of Nigeria, Armwrestling by eight votes to three votes, earning him the right to lead the affairs on the continent for the next four years.
By virtue of his elevation to the presidency on the continent, he thus becomes the Vice President for World Armwrestling Federation (WAF).
Secretary General of World Armwrestling Federation (WAF), MrMirceaSimionescu-Simicel, who oversaw the elective congress and the elections congratulated MrOseiAsibey and the delegates for a peaceful election, and urged all parties to come together and work for the development and growth of the sport on the continent.
The President-elect in his acceptance speech, thanked the delegates for the confidence reposed in him and assured them of a forthright and committed leadership which will inure to the growth of the sport on the continent during his tenure.
“I pledge to serve the Federation in a dedicated and selflessness manner, while helping bridge the gap among countries on the continent and enhancing the quality of the sport in terms of branding.”
I further pledged to promote, encourage participation, seek funding to make Armwrestling the sport of choice in Africa, he told Times Sports after the elections.
He revealed plans of embarking on the promotional and developmental drive for the sport by engaging the media, holding training of the trainers, encouraging participation at all levels, and building the capacity of athletes across Africa.
Mr Osei Asibey, who is currently the General Secretary of the Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAG), took the opportunity to invite all present to be part of the Africa Championship to be hosted in Ghana next year as well as the Africa Games also to be staged in the country.
BY RAYMOND ACKUMEY