Former president John Agyekum Kufuor, has expressed worry over Ghana’s inability to sustain her glowing performance in sports on the continent and across the globe mainly due to lack of scientific methods of collecting information, training and nourishment of sportsmen and women.
According to him, the development of a nation was now also counted by how well her sports men and women compete at the international level and not only in military or material worth, adding that it is not surprising that the most developed nations in the world are doing well in sports.
The former President was speaking as the Special Guest of Honour at the launch of the Africa Centre for Sports Studies (ACSS) at the Zenith University College in Accra yesterday where he paid glowing tribute to Ghana’s past and present athletes including D. K. Poison, Prof.Azumah Nelson and some Black Stars players.
“Sports today has moved from just a competition on the field to assume a face of prestige for peace building and understanding. Developing sports means ensuring cohesion among our people.
“Sports help to mould the character of the people and instill tolerance which I believe are presently needed among our youth to enable them to assume responsibility to continue the proper development of our nation in their time”.
“If sports is such a valuable tool for development, then there is the need for sports to be studied and managed like any of the academic, cultural and economic and social courses. It is for these reasons that the establishment of the ACSS is good news”, he added.
He commended Mr Fiifi Banson, President and Founder of the ACSS, for bringing his dream and passion to bear on modernising sports in the country and on the continent.
He also expressed appreciation to the management of the Zenith University College for collaborating with the founder to make the program, see the light of day and called on the government to come on board.
In his opening message, Mr Banson said the establishment of the ACSS puts Africa in a good position to contribute towards the ongoing academic discourse in the sports industry since the programme will be African-oriented but with a global perspective.
After the launch, Mr Banson led the dignitaries, including President Kufuor, Prof. Anamoah Mensah, who was the chairman for the occasion, Dr Emmanuel Owusu Ansah, director of ACSS, Mr Isaac Asiamah, a ranking member of Youth and Sports in Parliament among others, to inspect the newly-built lecture halls for the course which were named after some sports men and women in the country.
Other dignitaries who graced the occasion were Azumah Nelson, Rev. Osei Kofi, former Black Stars captain, Stephen Appiah, Coach Francis Oti Akenten, family members of the late Theodosia Okoh and Alfred Antwi Sampson.
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