The Ghanaian Queens paid the penalty for not burying their chances in a dominant performance against the team they beat 1-0 in the competition’s opening game a week earlier. After taking the lead through the evergreen captain Elizabeth Opoku in the first quarter, the Ghanaians continued to dominate proceedings but couldnt add to the tally until the Kenyans stormed back to equalise in the third quarter. Try as the Ghanaians did, the resilient Lakers held firm at the back.

Such was GRA’s wastefulness in front of goal that the Ghanaian and record 5-times African champions failed to utilise even one of over 15 penalty corners earned during the match. Eventually, the destination of the trophy was settled via a penalty shootout, which was edged 2-0 by the Kenyans, shattering the Royal Ladies’ record extension dreams.

The GRA men however finished on a high after edging Hippo of Zimbabwe in a shootout to seal the bronze medal in the curtain raiser to the men’s final. Having lost the chase for the ultimate courtesy a 1-2 defeat to eventual champions, Portfouad of Egypt in the semi finals last Friday, GRA recovered to edge a tight match for 3rd place 2-1 in a shootout after a 2-2 draw. Ernest Obeng Opoku and Ignatius Blankson scored during regulation, with Peter Adjetey and Louis Kugbey taking responsibility during the shootout, whilst Luke Damalie earned man-of-the-match honours for the second time in Zimbabwe.

Meanhile, the Ghanaians were consoled by three individual accolades as skipper Elizabeth Opoku claimed the top scorer award with seven goals, whiles shot-stoppers Eugene Acheampong and Matilda Addison were named men’s and women’s best goalkeeper of the tournament respectively.

Addison earns the same award for the second year in a row, following her heroics in Ismailia, Egypt last February. Achemapong, who was named MVP in the opening group win over Hotspurs of Zambia, was also decisive in the shootout victory that sealed 3rd place.

Last year’s tournament MVP and top scorer, Vivian Narkuor and Mavis Berko (twice) also won MVP of the match awards during the 2026 event.

A very livid Ebenezer Frimpong, Head of Sports, GRA and leader of delegation, could hide his disillusionment, pointing out that Individual awards is irrelevant because of the opportunity missed to make history.

“We gave away the trophy, I am going to reflect over the games and see what really hit us. Where we got it wrong as players, technical staff and administrator,” he told the Graphic Sports from Harare.

“As the head of sports, I take full responsibility for not being able to bring the trophy home. I feel disappointed and sorry for disappointing the entire staff of GRA and Ghanaians. We have no excuse,” he said.

The entire team has already returned home in two batches on Sunday and Monday dawn respectively.

The highly competitive 3-day tournament for Ghana’s top hockey playing second cycle schools cut across several regions began on Friday with preliminary round ties which continued early Saturday.

The top 8 in each of boys and girls divisions then advanced into the knockout rounds, with both quarter and semi final fixtures honoured later same day, deep into the night under the beaming floodlights of the Theodosia Okoh Stadium. It set the stage perfectly for the finals on Sunday, preceded by a curtain raiser for 3rd place featuring the losing semi finalists.

Adisco began with a dull goalless stalemate against Presec Legon before outclassing Ebenezer SHS 3-0 in their second match to qualify for the quarter finals. A slim 1-0 victory over regional rivals, St. Augustine’s College booked their spot in the semi where again they needed just one goal to overcome Opoku Ware School, Kumasi and seal a place in the coveted final.

Yaa Asantewaa, like Adisco, also played both preliminary round ties on Friday, beating Holy Child SHS of Central Region 1-0 before putting 6 unanswered strikes past Arch-Bishop Porter Girls to book their quarter final spot. 1-0 they saw off Edinaman in the last 8 to make the semis where they defeated regional rivals Kumasi Girls SHS 2-0 to earn a spot in the decisive game of the girls competition.

Third place went to Opoku Ware who beat St Francis 2-0 (Boys) and Kumasi Girls after edging GHANASS 3-2 on penalties.

The champions collective triumphs were reflected in the individual awards which saw Curtis Oppong of Adisco and Suzzy Brago Asomani of Yaa Asantewaa named Boys and Girls’ MVP respectively. Asomani made it a double by winning the top scorer award for girls with 3 goals whilst Kingsford Arhin Asante topped the boys division with 6 goals.

Meanwhile, Best Goalkeeper awards went to Nicholas Adjei-Obeng of Prempeh College (Boys) and St Francis SHS’ Alberta Boateng (Girls). Christopher Quarcoo of St. Francis (Boys) and Akorfa Ofori of Hope College (Girls) were awarded Most Promising Player whilst St Peters SHS and GHANASS, Koforidua were named recipients of Development School Award for boys and girls respectively, sponsored by Mr Frank Oti-Mensah.

With the multitude of talents which were showcased during the 3-day hockey festival powered by the Ghana Hockey Association in partnership with the Ghana Education Service, it’s safe to say the country’s future in the sport is secured as the best performers were singled out for potential selection into the national youth teams and recruitment into clubs.

Exchequers, defending Sapholda Greater Accra Hockey League champions and runaway leaders heading into the final stretch this season, secured another trophy in Cape Coast following a penalty shootout victory over Police after a goalless final of the 2-day tournament held to commemorate the annual Fetu Afahye festival of the people of Cape Coast.

Both the bankers and the peace keepers topped the two preliminary groups, Police edged GRA, Ashanti and Reformers in Group A, whereas Exchequers topped Group B over Cape Coast, KNUST, Legon Knights and Ghana Gas.

Barely a week after completing a 100% winning campaign to retain the national title, GRA Royal Ladies affirmed their superiority in the women’s game by storming to a 2-0 victory over Police Ladies in the decisive game last Saturday.

Having defeated Fire Ladies 2-0 and KNUST 3-0 on group play, Royal Ladies shut out Police who needed a penalty shootout to beat Ghana Gas in their only group game after Reformers failed to show up.

With another trophy in the bag, the Royal Ladies shift immediate focus to the African Cup for Club Champions (ACCC) title defence early next year, goalkeeper Matilda Addison was beside with joy after keeping clean sheets again thoughout the Fetu Afahye Cup campaign.

“No, we are not tired of winning trophies. Winning is our pride so we go in for all trophies,” Addison said.

After some worrying moments, Burg is able to stand up and is taken away with bloody towels covering her face. An ambulance will be waiting for her to perform the first scan.

Even Gorzelany is comforted by some team-mates, still in shock over what she has seen. Assistants will be sent to wipe the blood off the turf. It was that bad.

GOLDEN TEAM

While the 27-year-old Burg is one of the best Dutch hockey stars, the Netherlands can survive without her. It is, after all, the world’s best hockey team, with nine world champions and three gold medals in the last 4 Olympics.

Their movements are precious and gracious, the ball goes from right to left with snooker precision. It’s fun to watch them. They can score from close and long range, both beautiful and ugly goals. Their defending is tight, the goalkeeper is fantastic. They play every game as on home turf, an orange brigade that follow them whenever they go.

The last time the Netherlands lost an Olympic game was in Athens 2004, the final against Germany. The second place in Rio 2016 was only decided on penalty shootouts, after a draw. The Dutch girls are almost unbeatable.

WARRIOR IS BACK

While the semi-final against Argentina goes on comfortably, the Dutch leading 2-0, there will be surprising comeback. In the second half, Burg will be back on the game. She has a bandage on her nose, a swollen forehead, a black eye. She has no jersey to wear, though. Her original is now more red than orange. The assistants then make a 1 and a 6 with tape and post it on a new, numberless jersey.

The game has no setbacks and the Netherlands will add an extra goal for the final 3-0.

Of course, despite the initial diagnosis from the doctors, Burg was not in a good shape to keep on. She couldn’t breathe well with the cotton plugged in her nose and she started to feel unwell.

EXAMPLE 

The Clockwise Orange could have easily performed without Burg, but her presence back on the field reaffirms that message of invincibility, the commitment that goes beyond the ‘just business’ tag.

Burg will not be present in the final against China for the gold medal, replaced by Pien Dicke, who will have her Olympic debut on Friday.

“This is of course a huge downer for Joosje and all of us,” said coach Paul van Ass.

“We don’t want to take the risk that her nose will get a tap again tomorrow during the game or will bleed. Medically, she could play, but we also want to protect Joosje. We have to perform to the maximum tomorrow and take no risk in an Olympic final”.

While Burg was the one that convinced the doctors that she could continue against Argentina, in this case, the risk was too big. However, that doesn’t change the equation. Her willingness to be back with a smashed face and a broken nose also explains why the Dutch have something extra.

And why women’s hockey is a sport that gives few chances to anyone that is not wearing an orange jersey.

Credit: AIPS Media 

And as he began to hoist hockey’s chalice for the first time, he had one thought.

“It’s heavy,” he said.

A 37-pound trophy wasn’t too much for him. A three-game slide wasn’t too much for the Panthers. There was no stumble with the Cup, no collapse with the Cup on the line. The Panthers are champions for the first time, after taking about the hardest path possible to the title.

Sam Reinhart and Carter Verhaeghe scored goals, Sergei Bobrovsky made 23 saves and the Panthers beat the Edmonton Oilers 2-1 on Monday night in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.

It was the third title-round appearance in Florida’s 30-year history; it was swept in 1996 by Colorado and routed 4-1 by Vegas last season. And that loss last year was what this team needed.

“You have to go through it first,” forward Matthew Tkachuk said, “to know what it takes to get it done.”

This time, they were on the right side of history — after avoiding what would have been a historic collapse. The Panthers won the first three games of the series, then lost the next three and needed a win on Monday to avoid joining the 1942 Detroit Red Wings as the only teams to lose the final after taking a 3-0 lead in the title round.

“It’s not what I thought it would be,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “It’s so much better.”

It wasn’t easy. Not even close. But it’s done.

Barkov handed the Cup to Bobrovsky and the celebration was on. It took until the very end for the Panthers to deny Connor McDavid his first title, and Edmonton what would have been its first Cup since 1990.

“You want to become a true champion and you want to win,” said Bobrovsky, a champion for the first time at 35.

“But at the end of the day, you don’t do it for the Cups. You do it for the love of the game.”

McDavid won the Conn Smythe as MVP of the Stanley Cup playoffs. He didn’t come out for the trophy. It’s not the one he wanted, anyway. The Cup is what they play for, and it was Florida that hoisted it.

“No player in the world wants to win the Stanley Cup more than him,” Oilers teammate Leon Draisaitl said of McDavid, who had one of the greatest individual postseasons in NHL history with 42 points. “He does everything right, every single day.”

But the Panthers did a little more right on Monday. And that’s the difference.

“It’s not a dream anymore. It’s not a dream. It’s reality,” said Tkachuk, who got traded to Florida two summers ago with this as his goal. “I can’t believe it. I can’t believe it. … I can’t believe how good these two years have been. So thankful for this group of guys. It’s the best place, best guys. It’s something really special here with what we have.”

Mattias Janmark had the goal for Edmonton and Stuart Skinner stopped 19 shots for the Oilers. The Oilers also couldn’t snap Canada’s title drought; it’s been 1993 and counting since a team based in Canada won the Cup.

Montreal was the last to do so, 30 seasons ago. Since then, there have been seven attempts by teams from Canadian-based cities — Vancouver in 1994 and 2011, Calgary in 2004, the Oilers in 2006, Ottawa in 2007 and the Canadiens in 2021 — to win titles, and all were in vain.

South Florida now has one of everything when it comes to titles from the four major pro sports leagues in the U.S. The Miami Dolphins were champions twice, the then-Florida Marlins were champions twice, the Miami Heat have three titles and now the Panthers have joined the party.

Welcome, Stanley. The Panthers have been waiting. Maurice hoisted the Cup by the bench, closed his eyes tight to control the emotion and let out a yell. General manager Bill Zito didn’t bother even trying to not let the yell out. And in the stands, Tkachuk’s family — his father, Keith, never won a Cup — reveled in the moment, knowing their surname will soon be on Lord Stanley.

“This is for them,” Tkachuk said.

Bobrovsky was as cool as could be, even in the biggest moments. Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard had a good look from the right circle with about 14 seconds left in the second period; Bobrovsky blocked the shot, and the puck bounced off him and into the air.

No problem. Bobrovsky took his stick and batted the puck away again, more like he was playing morning pickleball at a park than in the biggest game of his life — literally, the last line of defense against the Oilers, and against a piece of history that the Panthers desperately fought to avoid.

Florida led this title series 3-0, then got outscored 18-5 in Games 4, 5 and 6 to waste three chances at winning the Cup. Edmonton was one win away from becoming the second team in NHL history to win the Cup after dropping the first three games; Toronto did it to Detroit in 1942, and no team has pulled off such a comeback since.

Edmonton almost did it. Almost.

“They should have their heads up high,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “There’s lots to be proud of.”

The Panthers brought in seven-time Grammy winner Alanis Morissette — she was born in Canada and became a dual U.S. citizen in 2005 — to sing the national anthems. Hardly anybody could hear her; the Oilers fans drowned her out for “O Canada,” the Panthers fans did the same for “The Star-Spangled Banner.” They had Panthers legend Roberto Luongo bang the ceremonial bass drum after that; he urged fans to “let’s go” with an extra word in there that needed to be bleeped a few times.

“We have a great team on our side,” said Luongo, whose number was retired by the Panthers and is now part of the team’s front office. “And the boys really dug deep.”

The pregame was raucous. The stage was set.

And the teams came out absolutely ablaze.

The Panthers got the first goal just 4:27 into the game when Verhaeghe waved his stick at the puck that was fired in from the left side by Evan Rodrigues and got just enough to redirect it past Skinner for a 1-0 lead — the first Florida lead since the end of Game 3.

They waited more than a week to be back on top. They stayed there for just over two minutes.

Janmark got behind the Florida defense and beat Bobrovsky over the right shoulder at 6:44, knotting things right back up and ensuring that this Game 7 of the final — like all 17 of the previous such games — wouldn’t end 1-0.

It stayed that way through wild ebbs and flows — the Oilers controlled long stretches, the Panthers would counter, back and forth — until Reinhart scored late in the second to put Florida up 2-1. It capped a crazy sequence, one where Florida defenseman Dmitry Kulikov wound up in the net to help prevent an Edmonton goal seconds before Reinhart beat Skinner. The goal was Reinhart’s 67th of the season, extending his Florida single-season record, and it was up to the Panthers to make it hold up.

“The determination,” Maurice said, “was clear.”

Florida was an NHL-best 44-0-3 entering Monday when leading after two periods this season. An NHL-best 85-2-6 in that situation in the two seasons under coach Maurice, too.

They slammed the door, one last time. And the Cup was their reward.

“This is the best moment of my life so far,” veteran Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad said. “Nothing tops it.”

Credit: AP

McDavid, who was held without a point the final two games of the final, still led all playoff scorers with 42 points, five shy of the record of 47 set by Wayne Gretzky in 1985. He did not return from the locker room to accept the trophy from Commissioner Gary Bettman, leaving it sitting on its stand while the Panthers celebrated nearby.

“It’s an honor with the names on that trophy, but yeah,” McDavid said.

McDavid was first on 16 of 17 ballots. Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov was second.

“I don’t think he cares,” longtime running mate Leon Draisaitl said.

“I mean, it speaks to how amazing of a hockey player he is. There’s no player in the world that wants to win a Stanley Cup more than him. He does everything right, every single day, just to win it one day. It’s really hard with him being sad and being disappointed at the end.”

After not scoring (but still leading the team with three assists) through the first three games against Florida, McDavid changed the course of the series by doing something no other player in history has done, including Gretzky. He had four points in consecutive games in the final to keep the Oilers from being eliminated.

“You think about the year that Connor had: 100 assists, leading our team, the performance he had in this playoffs, especially in this final round when we’re down three games to zero and then he comes out with eight points in two games,” coach Kris Knoblauch said. “Yeah, he’s our leader, he’s our best player.”

McDavid is just the second skater after the Flyers’ Reggie Leach in 1976 to win the Conn Smythe on a team that lost in the final. Goaltenders Jean-Sebastien Giguere of Anaheim in 2003, Ron Hextall of Philadelphia in 1987, Glenn Hall of St. Louis in 1968 and Roger Crozier with Detroit in 1966 were also playoff MVPs after backstopping teams that fell just short of hoisting the Cup.

Asked how he was feeling nearly a half-hour after the loss, McDavid could only muster the words, “It sucks.”

McDavid, the reigning and three time Hart Trophy winner long considered the best hockey player in the world, put on a show in his first trip to the final. His goal and three assists in an 8-1 rout in Game 4 avoided a sweep, and his four points including an empty netter in Game 5 three nights later dragged the series back to Alberta.

Those who know McDavid believe it’s the year-round work he has put in throughout his career allowed him to thrive when the spotlight was at its brightest.

“He’s unique in his dedication to his craft,” said Hall of Famer Ken Hitchcock, who coached McDavid in 2018-19. “He’s very unique. He’s learned to be relentless, and he enjoys it and he’s very, very serious about his craft, and that becomes contagious when you’re on the team with him.”

Oilers players lauded McDavid not just for leading by example with his play but also off the ice.

“He’s the greatest player to ever play, in my book,” Draisaitl said. “So many things that a lot of people don’t see that he does, his work ethic. He singlehandedly turned our franchise around, pretty much. Just love sharing the ice with him. He’s just a really, really special person.”

That talk is justified for a player who led the league in scoring five times during the regular season and accomplished just about everything on an individual basis. What is still missing in the Stanley Cup, which will have to wait at least another year.

“Connor McDavid, he’s going to win the Stanley Cup some day,” said Patric Hornqvist, a two-time champion with Pittsburgh who is now a Panthers scouting and development consultant. “That’s how good he is.”

Credit: AP

Accra 2023 marked the first time Ghana was hosting the Games, hauling 68 medals- 19 gold, 29 silver and 20 bronze- the largest in the nation’s history.

This marks the nation’s most successful participation since the Games’ inception in 1965, surpassing its previous best of 27 medals attained during the 1973 Games in Lagos, Nigeria.

With the nation waiting for success to begin the celebrations, Winnifred Ntumi delivered the first medal in weightlifting to kick off Ghana’s historic haul.

Ghana’s most popular sport, football made history with both male and female teams winning gold at stake in their respective categories over three weeks.

In other team sports, the female hockey team also took home gold. In an unprecedented performance, arm-wrestling took the Games by storm with eight gold medals.

Boxing also stepped up to take its place in the history of the Games with four gold medals, where Samuel Takyi, Ghana’s sole Olympic medalist in Tokyo, and Joseph Commey, a recent Commonwealth Games medalist delivered yet again.

One area that pulled the most crowd and attention and got rewarded for its resilience was athletics. With fans filling every space at every event, the athletes put on a show, claiming three gold medals spectacularly.

Ghana, hosting the highest number of disciplines since the Games’ inception finished sixth out of 53 participating nations, marking a significant improvement from her 15th position in the 2019 Rabat edition, where the team returned with 13 medals.

Similarly, the Accra 2023 Games hosted three disciplines more than the Rabat event of 26 disciplines. Until the Rabat event, host countries had been averaging 20 disciplines.

Over three weeks, the just-ended edition brought together 5000 elite athletes and coaches from 54 African countries in 29 multi-sports disciplines.

The event held over two cities; Accra and Cape Coast was used as an official qualifier for the XXXIII Olympic Games to be held in Paris this year.

The Olympic qualifying events comprised athletes, swimming, cycling, badminton, wrestling, tennis, table tennis and triathlon.

Credit: Joy Online 

EA Sports revealed the safeguard in its announcement that it has begun reaching out to athletes to pay them to be featured in the video game that’s set to launch this summer.

EA Sports said players who opt in to the game will receive a minimum of $600 and a copy of EA Sports College Football 25. There will also be opportunities for them to earn money by promoting the game.

Players who opt out will be left off the game entirely.

EA Sports didn’t say in its email to The Associated Press how it plans to prevent people playing the game from adding — or creating — the opt-outs. But gamers will still be able to create their own players, a staple of past college sports video games that allowed people to depict themselves alongside their favorite athletes.

The developers’ yearly college football games stopped being made in 2013 amid lawsuits over using players’ likeness without compensation. The games featured players that might not have had real-life names, but resembled that season’s stars in almost every other way.

That major hurdle was alleviated with the approval of NIL deals for college athletes.

EA Sports has been working on its new game since at least 2021, when it announced it would pay players to be featured in it.

Ramogi Huma, executive director of the National College Players Association, said his focus for years has been on getting athletes opportunities like this. From that standpoint, he sees the opt-in offer as a major milestone.

“Players like being in the game,” Huma said. “There was a question of, ‘Hey, should we be paid for this?’ … We’re going to see pretty soon here the degree to which players think it’s fair or not.”

Huma’s association was involved in what could be considered the precursor lawsuit to a litany of NIL litigation — a 2009 class-action suit filed by former UCLA basketball player Ed O’Bannon.

“I remember what the origin of this fight was,” Huma said. “And that was O’Bannon questioning why he was in EA Sports and not getting money for it.”

John Reseburg, vice president of marketing, communications and partnerships at EA Sports, said Thursday on social media that the game is a “scale of NIL that has never been done before.”

“More than 11,000 individual NIL deals all at once. Guaranteed income for athletes that opt-in. It’s in the game,” Reseburg tweeted.

A generic player created “based on the traditional strength or weakness of a position over the past decade for that school” will be used in place of players who opt out, Daryl Holt, EA Sports senior vice president, told ESPN.

On the topic of blocking opt-out players from being added, Holt told the network, “I won’t reveal how we’re dealing with that.”

“But yeah, you won’t be able to edit that,” Holt told ESPN.

Huma said he believes that aspect of the game will protect players who decide to opt out.

“I would be surprised if there are a large percentage of players that wouldn’t join,” he said. “I think that’s a good thing because it protects the players that don’t want to be in there from having their NIL used without their permission.

“If it’s not enough for some players … it has to make sense for players to want to be in there.”

The game will feature all 134 FBS teams. Notre Dame’s inclusion had been a big question mark since the school said in 2021 it would not participate “until such time as rules have been finalized governing the participation of our student-athletes.” But the Fighting Irish’s athletic director, Jack Swarbrick, said earlier in the week they’re in.

“The work that EA SPORTS is doing to provide over 11,000 college student-athletes opportunities to benefit directly from their name, image and likeness is a first-of-its-kind undertaking and we’re proud to have been involved in the process,” Swarbrick said in a statement on social media.

ESPN ‘College GameDay’ analyst Kirk Herbstreit and network broadcaster Chris Fowler announced Thursday on social media they will be voices in the game. “College GameDay” host Rece Davis and analysts David Pollack and Jesse Palmer made similar announcements.

Credit: AP

Ghana will compete in events including football, athletics, boxing, badminton, cycling, swimming, tennis, table tennis, and triathlon, among others.

Last week the Minister of Youth and Sports, Mustapha Ussif, paid a visit to Team Ghana’s training base in Cape Coast, where athletes across various sports disciplines were preparing for the March 8–23 event.

The minister encouraged the athletes to train harder and deliver laurels for Ghana at the upcoming continental games.

Addressing the media during the visit, Mr Ussif stated that the government had invested so much to make sure the Games were held, including supporting the preparations of athletes.

“I am here to visit the athletes on behalf of the President and all Ghanaians to encourage them to train harder so that when the time comes, they will deliver for Ghana,” he said.

The minister also urged Ghanaians to be part of the historic games by registering as volunteers and was overwhelmed by the numbers they received after opening the portal.

The Sports Minister also urged Corporate Ghana to come on board and support the Games by reaching out to the Local Organising Committee.

Athletes who started camping in Cape Coast on January 9, would be conveyed back to the University of Ghana, the Games Village, on February 8 to continue their training and also test the new sporting facilities.

An estimated 3500 elite athletes from 54 countries are expected to compete at the games which will be held in Ghana for the first time in the competition’s history.

Credit: GNA

Sprinter, Joseph Paul Amoah won bronze in the men’s 200-metre final at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham – becoming the first African to win a medal in the 200m event since 2006 and the first Ghanaian to win a medal in 200m since George Daniels in 1974.

Ajax Star Kudus had a breakthrough campaign with his club and national team in the period after review – winning the Eredivisie with his club side but perhaps his most significant moment came in the 2022 FIFA World Cup match against South Korea, where he scored 2 goals, cementing a 3–2 win over the opposing team.

Also in with a chance is teenage amateur boxer Mensah who won a silver medal in the Bantamweight division at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. The 19-year-old was the second Ghanaian to win a silver medal at the Birmingham games.

SWAG General Secretary Charles Osei Asibey, in a statement, said, “the shortlisted nominees went through a sturdy ritual of a careful but rigorous process in the determination of top performers for honours”.

About 40 sportsmen and women together with Sports Administrators and institutions in 29 categories will be rewarded for excellence in the year under review.

SWAG will also announce and decorate the Sports Journalist of the Year winner and SWAG President’s Awards respectively on the night.

The 47th MTN SWAG Awards will be held at the Accra International Conference Centre on January 28.

See the full list of nominees of the 2022 SWAG Awards nominees below:

Personality of the Year

• Joseph Paul Amoah – Athletics
• Mohammed Kudus – Football
• Abraham Mensah – Amateur Boxing

Armwrestler of the Year

• Grace Mintah – Female

Athlete of the Year, Female

• Abigail Kwarteng, Triple Jumper
• Deborah Acquah, Long Jumper
• Rose Yeboah Amoanimaah, High Jumper

Athlete of the Year, Male

• Joseph Paul Amoah – 200M
• Benjamin Kwaku Azamati – 100M

Badminton Player of the Year

• Alphous Kelvin

Boxer of the Year, Amateur

• Abraham Mensah
• Joseph Commey

Chess Player of the Year

• Kwabena Adu Poku

Club of the Year

• Ampem Darkoa Ladies FC

Coach of the Year

• Ofori Asare – Amateur Boxing
• Husseini Akueteh Addy – Armwrestling
• Prosper Nartey Ogun – Asante Kotoko
• Nana Darkwa, Ampem Darkoa

Cricketer of the Year

• Samson Awiah Aweh

Cyclist of the Year

• Anthony Boafo Boakye Dankwa

Discovery of the Year

• Joseph Commey
• Raphael Nii Ankrah

Dedication and Valour

1. Lepowura Mohammed Nurudeen Jawula

Footballer of the Year (Male)

• Andre Dede Ayew
• Mohammed Kudus
• Thomas Partey

Footballer of the Year (Female)

• Blessing Shine Agomashie (ASFAR, Morocco)
• Ophelia Serwaa Amponsah (Ampem Darkoa)
• Doris Boaduwaa (Hasaacas Ladies, Ghana)

Footballer of the Player (Home Based)

• Daniel Afriyie Barnieh – Hearts of Oak
• Yaw Annor – Ashantigold
• Ibrahim Danlad – Asante Kotoko

Hockey Player of the Year (Female)

• Adizatu Sulemana (GRA Ladies)

Lifetime Achievement Award

• Awuley Quaye
• Nii Dodoo Ankrah

Para-Athlete of the Year

• Patricia Nyamekye

Professional Golfer of the Year

• Kojo Barnii (Damang Golf Club)

Table Tennis Most Exciting Player

• Israel Akili

Tennis Player of the Year

• Samuel Osei Agbesi Antwi

Volleyball Player of the Year

• Rashaka Katadat (Ghana Army)

SWAG TOP 5 Federations

• Ghana Athletics
• Ghana Armwrestling
• Amateur Boxing
• Pro Boxing
• Ghana Football Association
• Ghana Cycling
• Ghana Tennis

Swimmer of the Year

• Abeiku Gyekye Jackson

Special and Meritorious Awards

• Kingsley Owusu Achiaw, Bechem United
• Reks Brobbey (Ghana’s Fatest Human)
• Christine Ashley, Chess
• Ashford Tettey Oku, Football Administrator
• Danny List, Professional Golfer
• Tom Vernon, Right to Dream
• Rustum Gameli Senorgbe

Corporate Awards

• Max TV
• SES HD+
• OneonOne Foundation
• Captain One Golf Society
• Tennis Foundation

SWAG President’s Award

To be determined

SWAG Journalist of the Year

To be determined

Credit: Sports Writers Association of Ghana