African Games
Flying Eagles’ Loss To Uganda Could Trigger Another ‘Paradise Loss’ –
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
Nigeria’s misses of the gold medal in the Men’s football event looks likely to continue as Uganda pulled off a stunning upset by defeating the Flying Eagles 2-1 in the Group B clash on Thursday in Accra.
The last time Nigeria and Uganda met at the African Games, Nigeria won 8-1.
Never before no have they lost an opening match.
The gold medal has been elusive to the Nigerian men since winning at the 2nd All Africa Games on January 18, 1973 in Lagos. That was 51 years ago. At the time, it was Nigeria’s first continental honours in football.
At the next event in 1978, they lost the gold medal match to Algeria and did not qualify for the third edition in Nairobi Kenya in 1987.
A hugely talented squad that included Emmanuel Amuneke and Tijani Babangida lost at the semi-finals to Cameroon in Cairo ‘91.
At Harare ‘95, Nigeria settled for the the third place and did not qualify for the third edition at Johannesburg 1999.
On home soil, Nigeria lost the gold medal match, 2-0 to Cameroon at Abuja 2003 and failed to qualify for Algiers 2007, Maputo 2011 and placed third at the 2015 edition in Brazzaville to be followed with a 2-0 defeat by Burkina Faso at Rabat 2019.
Dr. Emmanuel Owusu-Ansah, who superintended the 13th African Games held in Accra Ghana in February has died.
He was the Chief Operating Officer of the Accra 2023 Local Organising Committee (LOC).
According to sources in Ghana, Dr. Owusu-Ansah was a sports administrator and coach, and thus left behind, a significant legacy in the world of sports.
Dr Owusu-Ansah, a former Chief Executive of the National Sports Authority (NSA), was widely regarded as an encyclopaedia of sports knowledge.
Among his many accomplishments, Dr. Owusu-Ansah, a former national chief athletics coach, authored the best-selling book “Principles of Abundant Living.”
He played a pivotal role in establishing the Department of Sports Studies at the College of Education at the University of Ghana. Additionally, he served as the Director of the Sports Directorate at the University of Ghana, Legon.
The Africa Students Football Union (ASFU) has expressed condolences over the passing of a patron of the union, Dr Emmanuel Owusu-Ansah, who served as the COO of the just concluded 13th Africa Games held in Ghana.
Dr. Owusu-Ansah’s death was announced on Tuesday, April 23, 2024.
According to a release by the executive secretary of the union, Femi Abioye, Owusu-Ansah until his death contributed immensely to sports development on the continent and the world at large.
He left an indelible impact on the lives of students-athletes coupled with sports administration across Africa countries.
The ASFU’s President, Prof. Oluwaseun Omotayo, who was shocked at the news of the demise of Dr. Owusu-Ansah described the deceased as a pillar, saying his departure has left a great vacuum in sports management.
He relished the deceased contribution and unwavering dedication to ASFU, saying the Union would miss the deceased.
“We will miss Dr. Owusu-Ansah, whose contribution to sports, knew no bounds. He was always ready to serve. He helped build the Union and was pivotal to the Union programmes. We will surely miss him,” he said.
He extended the Union condolences to all those affected by this loss, praying God grant them the fortitude to bear the loss.
African Games
A milestone as Egypt becomes the first country to get 100 gold medals in African Games
As the curtain is drawn on the 13th African Games in Egypt, the traditional overall winners, have this time hit a milestone.
They have become the first to hit a 100 gold medal mark in the 59 year history of the games.
As at Saturday morning, they have amassed 101 gold medals, 54 more than that of the second placed Nigeria
The biggest star of the Egyptian team is swimmer Marwan Elkamash, who won five gold medals in the men’s 200m, 400m, 800m, 1,500m and 4x200m relays, all in freestyle.
But medal haul is still short that that of his compatriot, Faten Afifi who fished out seven gold medals from the pool.
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