Ghana’s medal hopeful weightlifter Winnifred Ntumi has secured the nation’s first medals at the ongoing African Games in Accra, claiming a gold and two silvers in the women’s 49-kilogramme category.
21-year-old Ntumi, emerged victorious with a pair of silver medals in the 49-kilogramme Snatch and the 49-kilogramme Clean and Jerk categories, along with a gold in the overall 49kg category for the host nation in the event held at the GCB Hall at the University of Ghana, Legon.
In the Snatch category, Ntumi’s performance of 63 secured her second place behind Mauritius’ Sheridane Pasnin (64), who clinched gold. She outperformed Madagascar’s Ny Hasina Lalainarinirina (60) and Tunisia’s Tasnim Ben Wada (59), who claimed third and fourth place, respectively.
Tunisia’s Wada claimed gold in the Clean & Jerk with a lift of 81, ahead of Ntumi (81), while Zo Lalain (80) and Pasnin (75) secured third and fourth place, respectively.
Ghanaian swimmer Abeiku Gyekye Jackson also clinched a silver medal at the African Games – Accra 2023, becoming the second Ghanaian athlete to achieve a podium finish in the tournament. Jackson’s feat was accomplished in the Men’s 50m butterfly race held at the Aquatic Center of the Borteyman Sports Complex.
The 24-year-old Jackson completed the race with a time of 24.23 seconds, trailing behind Egyptian contender Ali Khalafalla, who secured the gold with a swift time of 23.93 seconds. South Africa’s Jarden Eaten claimed the bronze medal with a time of 24.42 seconds.
In a closely contested race, the two-time Olympian is in lane five alongside Khalafalla in lane four. The two athletes remained neck and neck until midway through the race, where the Egyptian surged ahead, leaving Jackson in pursuit.
Upon confirmation of the results, Jackson erupted into jubilation, celebrating his well-deserved silver medal in the pool
Ghana’s representations in other disciplines such as Table Tennis, Badminton, Karate-do and Wrestling have so far failed to reach the medal zones. The medal haul of 4 currently puts Ghana in 10th place in the medal league in the ongoing continental games.
The medal table is currently dominated by Egypt who have bagged 66 medals so far with 36 gold, 14 silver and 16 bronze medals. Algeria is second on the medal table with 39 medals, 8 gold, 15 silver and 16 bronze with South Africa in third place with 28 medals, 8 gold, 7 silver and 13 bronze, closely followed by Nigeria in fourth place with 26 medals, 7 gold, 7 silver and 12 bronze.