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Michael Tarala
Dr. Barlas
Eyes of Faith – Ghana
Pre-Trip Resource Paper
30 April, 2013
Sports in Ghana
There have been many countries all over the world who have made themselves known
through the sports industry. One country that has not been as well known to the sports world
until as of late has been the country of Ghana, Africa. Although they have been around for a
while and have still had different sports, the media has not paid much attention to them. They
are a relatively new country compared to the many countries that have been around for hundreds,
even thousands of years.
A way that Ghana has also participated in sports is through the Olympics, which have
been around since the early days of Greece and Rome. Ghana’s first Olympic participation was
as the “Gold Coast” at the 1952 Summer Games in Helsinki. That was also the year the
country’s Olympic committee was formed and first recognized. Ghanaian boxer, Clement
Quartey, became the first black African to win an Olympic medal when he took a silver in the
lightweight division at the 1960 Games in Rome. This shows some of the feats that Ghana has
accomplished athletically as well as globally. Ghana has not been around officially for that long
but it has made a name for itself in many different ways and these ways will be talked about in
this paper.
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I have a couple questions going into Ghana about the sports that they have. My plan is to
learn more about these questions as our trip unfolds but I wanted to go ahead and research some
key points and events before-hand. My first question would be: What role has sports played in
the growth of this great country. I ask this question because I know how we revere sports in this
country. Most people in the United States have a favorite player or a favorite team and if you
asked any person about a sport, they could probably give you a pretty intelligent answer. This is
because in many aspects, our lives revolve around sports. This is obviously not the way that it
should be and the Ghanaians have figured that out. They know that there are many more
important things in life than to play sports. They do know, however, that sports is a great way to
grow socially as well as being a team player and learning respect.
After Ghana became independent in 1957, President Kwame Nkrumah encouraged the
development of sports to make a national identity for themselves and to generate international
recognition for the emerging country. This was a good idea because he saw that the countries
around him were participating in different sports and because of this, they were beginning to
grow more and more. My second question would be: What can the Ghanaians do with their
sports industry in the future in order to keep growing and developing as a country? I ask this
question because I see how much Ghana has grown as a whole and I know that they can only go
up from here. The country of Ghana is growing rapidly with their sports industry and it is only a
matter of time before they catch up to the rest of the world and start to give them a “run for their
money.”
Political support in the 1960s led to huge strides, especially in track and field, boxing,
and soccer. This was the break that the Ghanaians were looking for. They finally had a reason
to be proud of their sports teams. Superb performances at the Commonwealth Games and the
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All-Africa Games brought such track stars as Leonard Myles-Mills to the sporting world’s
attention. Ghanaians have also performed well internationally in cricket, basketball, and
volleyball. Even through all of this, however, the country’s passion is soccer, and Ghana is
recognized as one of Africa’s powerhouses. The national obsession for the sport originated in the
colonial times. Throughout this time, the Ghanaian soccer team has grown immensely and the
world has started to turn their heads towards Ghana. The men’s national team, the Black Stars,
has won several African championships. Although the Ghanaian culture has not been on the
sports scene for long, they have truly shown that they are becoming a force to be reckoned with
in years to come.
I have many goals that I am looking forward to while in Ghana pertaining to sports as
well as many other things. One of my goals while in Ghana is to learn about the Globalization of
sports in Ghana and how much of an impact American sports has on them, if any. My senses tell
me that American culture has had an effect on the people of Ghana as well as the sports they play
seeing as how the children know a lot about America and they want to be like the Americans. I
am excited to see if I am, in fact right and Ghana is influenced by our culture.
It is also true that Ghana has a strong sense of nationalism for their own country. You
can see this not only with the elders as is expected, but many of the youth also have a sense of
pride for their country. This is very important to a growing country because if the youth have a
love for their country, they will continue to help the country grow and prosper until they are
older. This is why John Paul II called out to the youth so diligently because he knew how
important it was to get the support and understanding of the young people of the world because it
is them who will lead us later on in the future.
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My second goal that I am looking to accomplish in Ghana is that I want to see how much
Ghanaian families have in the children’s choices; not only in sports but in the rest of the aspects
of their lives. I think that many people in our culture want to live their own lives. The thing is,
many of us do not live our own lives. We are influenced by one thing or another during our time
on this earth. This influence can be through our parents, spiritual leaders, political leaders, and
even our faith. I also think that the family is important in the Ghanaian culture on an athletic
level but also on a personal level. The family and the community that the people live in are
important to the whole so that they can grow and further themselves in life. It ends up being
everyone’s responsibility to look after the well-being of each and every person.
Throughout this paper, I have talked a little about the history of the sports in Ghana, some
questions that I have that I look to answer in Ghana, and also some goals that I want to
accomplish while I am in Ghana. I think that sports are a big part of a country’s culture and that
Ghana has a lot of culture already but they are growing and will continue to grow in all aspects
as well as in sports. I also believe that different countries influence other countries and I think
that is what we have done to the Ghanaian culture as Americans with our sports industry. I think
that Ghana does have a strong sense of pride in their country, which is good, and that they will
continue to make their mark on the world; on and off the field.
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Bibliography
Hilson, Gavin; Amankwah, Richard; Ofori-Sarpong, Grace. Going For Gold: Transitional
Livelihoods in Northern Ghana, Journal of Modern African Studies. Mar2013, Vol. 51
Issue 1, p109-137.
"History of Ghana Football." Ghana HomePage, Resource for News, Sports, Facts, Opinions,
Business and Entertainment. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Apr. 2013
Jnr, Stephen Gyasi. Ghana Is Ready for the Nations Cup, New African. Jan2008, Issue 469, p7476.
Law, Peter. Ghana 2008 The Best Ever?, New African. Jan2008, Issue 469, p78-81.