Kenya’s President William Ruto has sent engineers to the home of the late marathon world record holder Kelvin Kiptum, with instructions to build a three-bedroom house.
Kiptum had planned to build a home for his family before he was killed in a road accident last Sunday.
The president’s office has denied local media reports that the house has to be ready by Kiptum’s funeral next week.
Excavations have already started, the family spokesman said.
The house is being built on a four-acre farm which Kiptum had bought about 16km (10 miles) from the family home in the Rift Valley, where he was planning to construct his home later this year.
“There are three engineers here who are being supervised by senior government officials,” family spokesperson Philip Kiplagat told the BBC.
It is hoped that the house will be ready by the end of the 40-day mourning period.
Kiptum’s funeral is due to take place on 24 February.
Police said Kiptum, a 24-year-old father of two, was killed after the car he was driving veered into a ditch.
His Rwandan coach Gervais Hakizimana also died in the accident while a woman passenger was injured.
Kiptum’s father has called for an investigation, saying that four unidentified men had visited his son days before his accident.
The suspects are currently in police custody for questioning after being arrested, according to local media.
Kiptum’s death, just four months after he broke the marathon world record, shocked Kenya and the world of athletics.
He had been planning to attempt to become the first person to run a marathon in under two hours at the Rotterdam marathon in April.
Cash, houses and honours are being bestowed on footballers from Ivory Coast and Nigeria, after Sunday’s riveting Africa Cup of Nations final.
Every player in Ivory Coast’s winning squad will pocket $82,000 (£65,000) and get a villa worth a similar amount, the presidency announced.
“You have brought happiness to all Ivorians, bravo, bravo,” said President Alassane Ouattara of Ivory Coast, which hosted the pan-African tournament.
Nigeria also got a heroes’ welcome.
Although their 2-1 loss in the final spelled heartbreak for the Super Eagles’ millions of fans at home and in the diaspora, their efforts are being handsomely rewarded by President Bola Tinubu.
Each member of the Nigerian squad has received one of the country’s highest honours – the Member of the Order of the Niger. The president is also giving them each an apartment and a piece of land near the capital, Abuja.
Third-placed South Africa are also set to receive about $52,000 per player, according to local media.
It is not clear what cash payment Nigeria’s players are to receive from the state purse.
But all of the perks listed above are in addition to the usual prize money doled out by the Africa Cup of Nations, which they say they have boosted by 40% since the last tournament.
This means that winners Ivory Coast get $7m, runners-up Nigeria get $4m, semi-finalist South Africa and DR Congo each get $2.5m, while the four teams who made the quarter-finals take home $1.3m each.
This year’s Africa Cup of Nations enjoyed the highest viewing numbers in its 67-year history – thanks to bigger broadcasting and commercial deals, and social media buzz. Almost two billion people are said to have watched worldwide.
Analysts hope the global appreciation for Africa’s footballing flair will translate into more starting slots for African teams at future World Cups.
As it stands, Africa has only nine World Cup spots to Europe’s 13, despite the fact these two continents have a near-identical number of Fifa-affiliated countries.
African national teams have in the past complained their salaries and bonuses have not been paid.
The Cameroon side who won global admiration for their quarter-final performance against England in the 1990 World Cup waited over 30 years to get houses they were promised, by which time their captain had died.
At last year’s Fifa Women’s World Cup, South African footballers won a pay dispute after sitting out a match in protest. Their hastily assembled substitutes had included a 13-year-old girl.
The conveners of ‘SaveGhanaFootball’ demonstration has presented a 15-point petition to the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, on Wednesday after the protest in Accra.
The petition was presented after a march that was held earlier in the day starting from the Obra Spot at Kwame Nkrumah Circle and ended at the Black Star Square.
The protesters were among others seeking significant reforms in the governance of Ghana football. They believe Ghana’s football industry is collapsing because of poor leadership and structures.
The Black Stars exiting the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations at the group stage is the final piece that necessitated the demonstration.
Among the demands in the petition, the conveners asked for the disbandment of national team management committees, that many see as not doing any work and taking outrageous per diems.
Read the full fifteen points in the petition below:
DEVELOP A NATIONAL FOOTBALL POLICY:
This policy if properly developed, with proper consultation and inputs will serve as a direct guiding principle or the fulcrum around which our football will revolve.
INSTITUTE A COMMISSION OF ENQUIRY:
A Commission of enquiries and investigations, akin to the Dzamefe Commission, must be established to probe the factors contributing to the poor performances of the National Teams, including administrative, coaching, and player-related issues. Specific terms of reference must be provided, and a Government white paper issued accordingly.
ACCOUNTABILITY:
There is a pressing need for accountability for individuals and entities responsible for the disbursement and utilization of the $10.5m prize money received from our World Cup participation in Qatar 2022, the $8.5 million budget in Ivory Coast. This we believe will guide us in future tournaments and our participation.
DISSOLUTION OF SEARCH COMMITTEE’S REPORT ON THE APPOINTMENT OF A NEW BLACK STAR COACH:
After three successive failed major tournament campaigns in three years, it is evident that Ghana’s football problems go beyond the appointment of coaches. The search committee tasked to look for a new coach for the Black Stars report must be discarded immediately, pending the review of the technical report, investigation into the issues that calumniated the horror show, management of the team, personnel, medical reports and challenges that bedeviled the team.
DISBANDMENT OF MANAGEMENT COMMITTEES:
The National Teams Management Committees have become an avenue for rewarding members of the GFA and their assigns with promises of travel and allowance. Thus, there are no criteria for selection members for these management committees. Besides, the competencies of some of the members are highly questionable. We recommend that, due to the palpable ineffectiveness of the management committees, the practice must be scrubbed. In its place, we propose the establishment of a ‘National Teams Board’ that will be responsible for the management of all national teams. This board must be a three-member board with a National Teams Coordinator as member. This would reduce the number of committees and build a robust system of governance for all the national teams. The National Teams Board would directly work hand in hand with the various back-room staff to uphold the highest standards required of the Ghanaian football.
LACK OF PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:
The development of Juvenile Football is the bedrock of success for all football nations. Over the years, Ghana has chalked remarkable success at juvenile and youth competitions at the continental and global level. The transition of these successes to significant achievements at the senior level however remains nonexistent. Talents unearthed at juvenile level unfortunately falloff without a deliberate succession plan to integrate them into the various age groups.
Since 2017, no National Male Team at the youth level or developmental stage of football has qualified for the World Cup. This has greatly hindered Ghana’s football developmental process. There is evidence of conflict-of-interest situations in the call of youth players with members of the current GFA administrations favoring players playing for clubs owned by these administrators and or clubs associated with the leadership. The resultant effect in the long run is the various teams no show at the global stage and depleted Black Stars.
STRUCTURAL REFORMS:
Structural reforms must be introduced at the GFA to ensure transparency, accountability, and good corporate governance, thereby improving financial management and enhancing professionalism in football administration. We recommend that, effective immediately, the Government order the agency responsible for sports in Ghana, the Ministry or National Sports Authority (NSA) to sign the FIFA Standard Corporation Agreement to ensure that government can get involved in the organization, technical direction, administration and the financing of football without the usual FIFA interference rhetoric.
NATIONAL TEAM FUNDING:
It is public knowledge, the level of financial investment the Government of Ghana makes into the National Teams. We are however of the view that, the mode of investment is wrong.
Substantial sums of tax payers’ monies only go into the Black Stars’ friendly games, tournaments at the expense of other National teams and sectors of the sport. It is quite astonishing the manner in which several Sports Ministers continue to approve unconscionable budgets prepared by the GFA for the Black Stars campaigns without proper scrutiny.
We suggest that, the GFA Collaborates with the National Sports Authority in the preparation of tournament or game budgets, as the NSA is the body mandated by Law, to undertake such exercise.
INVEST IN GRASS-ROOT DEVELOPMENT:
Government must invest massively in school sports, technical development, and infrastructure and grass-root football.
DOMESTIC COMPETITION:
The success of every Football Federation is measured by the strength of its domestic competitions. The Ghana Premier League and other competitions are in a very deplorable state. When organized well, it has the propensity of boosting the local economy with activities each week while offering employment opportunities to thousands of Ghanaians. As a matter of urgency, the government must endeavor to invest in the local league, through infrastructure development and also engage state and parasternal agencies to sponsor the leagues. An agreement should be reached between organizers of the league, club owners and such state agencies to have an oversight role in the use of these monies to ensure transparency at all levels. Adequate provision of infrastructure is crucial for football development in Ghana. The government should invest in the construction and maintenance of modern football infrastructure to support national teams and domestic leagues.
ESTABLISHMENT OF A NATIONAL TRAINING COMPLEX
ACCOUNTABILITY:
The GFA manages the national team in trust of Ghanaians. For accountability and transparency purposes we are calling for an extensive investigation into all the monies (FIFA & CAF and sponsorships) that have come to the GFA in the last five years. We are aware that MTN sponsored the Black Stars $2 million for two years when we qualified for the 2022 World Cup. Mara, Tecno Mobile, Puma, Flora Tissue, Zeepay, Chery Cars is part of Tanink Ghana Limited etc are some sponsors that came on board to sponsor the Black Stars during the World Cup in Qatar.
NATIONAL TEAM COACHES SALARY CHALLENGE:
All national team coaches must be provided with contract and be paid just as the Black Stars’ coach to cure the issues of bribery heavily associated with the management of the other national teams.
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT:
Government to lead stakeholder engagements involving football clubs, fans, players, journalists, and civil society institutions to chart the way forward
REDUCTION OF TAX ON FOOTBALL-RELATED EVENTS:
Parliament to as a matter of urgency, consider reducing the 17 percent tax on football events to 3 percent as done for the creative arts.
sante Kotoko were eliminated from this season’s MTN FA Cup after losing 2-0 against Karela United in the Round 16 of the local competition.
The match took place on Monday, February 12, at the Aliu Mahama Sports Stadium, between both Ghana Premier League sides saw the Porcupine Warriors succumb to defeat.
Solomon Aboagye scored barely two minutes after the return from recess to break the deadlock for Karela.
Despite Asante Kotoko’s efforts to create scoring opportunities after conceding, they could not square the score.
In the 65th minute, Giyas doubled the lead for Karela United with a spectacular shot, clinching a 2-0 victory.
The win sees Karela advance to the quarterfinal with Kotoko sent packing.
On Tuesday, 13th February 2024, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo commissioned the beautiful edifice constructed for the organisation organization of the 13th African Games, to be held in the country, as well as to marked mark the 25th day countdown to the holding of the Games, arguably Africa ’ ‘ s biggest sporting event. In its fifty-seven (57) years of existence, this is the first time that Ghana is hosting the games, despite Ghana being, under the leadership of our first leader, Kwame Nkrumah, a founding member of the African Games.
Despite loud calls by some pessimists for our nation to withdraw from hosting the tournament, we remained resolute, and, today, our country can be proud of the massive sporting infrastructure we have put in place for the Games, which will be a huge legacy for the country.
The nation is expecting some five thousand (5,000) elite athletes, three thousand (3,000) experienced officials and thousands of fans in the country, together with an estimated global audience of 2.2 billion people watching through traditional and social media. The question is,” why has Ghana not hosted the African Games until now? The answer is simple: there is a time for everything; and this is our time. We are now ready and capable of organising and hosting the rest of the continent, here in Ghana. The people and Government Ghana are honoured and grateful to the Africa Union for the opportunity to host the rest of Africa for the first time in our history”
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has announced that government will construct one hundred new artificial pitches across the country, before the end of the year.
Akufo-Addo disclosed this during the official commissioning of the newly constructed Borteyman Sports Complex.
”Our government has show its commitment to sports development by investing significantly in the area of infrastructure. When came into office, there were only three astro-turfs or artificial pitches in the country.”
”We have constructed over 150 artificial pitches to change the status quo. I am happy to announce that this will not be the end. We will construct 100 more of such pitches to enhance the existing infrastructure” President Akufo-Addo said.
President Akufo-Addo also charged the Sports Ministry to ensure Ghana raises the bar as far as hosting the continent’s biggest multi-sports event is concerned.
”I admonish the Sports Minister and the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the LOC to go all out and organize the best African Games in history” he said.
The men’s marathon world record holder, Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum, 24, has died in a road accident in his home country.
He was killed alongside his coach, Rwanda’s Gervais Hakizimana, in a car on a road in western Kenya on Sunday.
Kiptum made a breakthrough in 2023 as a rival to compatriot Eliud Kipchoge – one of the greatest marathon runners.
Kiptum bettered Kipchoge’s record, clocking the 26.2 miles (42km) in two hours and 35 seconds in Chicago last October.
The two athletes had been named in Kenya’s provisional marathon team for the Paris Olympics later this year.
Kipchoge said on X that the man who broke his record was a rising star who had “a whole life” ahead of him to achieve “incredible greatness”, offering condolences to his family.
Also paying tribute, Kenya’s President William Ruto described Kiptum as an extraordinary sportsman who had left a mark on the world.
“Kiptum was my only child, now he’s left me,” he told Kenya’s Citizen TV. “I don’t know what to say, I see his children will be looking to me and my child is gone… Now, who will help us raise his kids?”
The road accident happened at about 23:00 local time (20:00 GMT) on Sunday.
Giving details of the crash, police said Kiptum was driving and had “lost control [of the vehicle] and veered off-road entering into a ditch on his left side”.
“He drove in the ditch for about 60 metres before hitting a big tree,” a police statement said.
Kiptum and Hakizimana died at the site of a collision. A third person – a young woman – was seriously injured and taken to hospital for treatment.
The car that Kiptum was driving has been towed to a local police station for inspection
Just last week, Kiptum’s team announced that he would attempt to run the marathon in under two hours in Rotterdam in April – a feat that has never been achieved in open competition.
The rise to fame for the father-of-two had been rapid – he only competed in his first full marathon in 2022.
He made an instant impact as he ran the then fourth fastest time on record (2:01:53) to win the Valencia Marathon before setting a course record of 2:01:25 at the London Marathon in April 2023.
Six months later, in just his third marathon, Kiptum took 34 seconds off the world record time in Chicago in his final race.
He had already honed a distinct tactical approach that saw him run with the pack for 30km before upping the pace and going out on his own for the remainder of the race.
Kiptum entered his first major competition in 2018, running in borrowed shoes because he could not afford a pair of his own.
He was among a new crop of Kenyan athletes who began their careers on the road, breaking away from the past tradition of athletes starting on the track before switching to longer distances.
Kiptum told the BBC last year that his unusual choice was simply determined by a lack of resources.
“I had no money to travel to track sessions,” he explained.
People have gathered outside the hospital in the Rift Valley town of Eldoret where his body has been taken.
“I don’t know what to say but God, if we have done wrong, God forgive us because Kiptum was headed for great heights,” one man said.
“We want to say very sorry to the Kenyans and much more to the family of the departed hero. Very sorry,” another told a local TV channel.
Kenya’s opposition leader and former prime minister, Raila Odinga, said the country had lost “a true hero” and was mourning “a remarkable individual… and Kenyan athletics icon”.
Kiptum’s coach, Hakizimana, 36, was a retired Rwandan runner. Last year, he spent months helping Kiptum target the world record.
Their relationship as coach and athlete began in 2018, but the pair first met when the world record holder was much younger.
“I knew him when he was a little boy, herding livestock barefooted,” Hakizimana recalled last year. “It was in 2009, I was training near his father’s farm, he’d come kicking at my heels and I would chase him away.
Ghana is set to host the rest of the continent in the 2023 African Games from March 8 to March 24, 2024.
A total of 49 countries have confirmed their participation in the 13th edition of the Olympic-style event which will take place in Accra.
Five countries, namely Cape Verde, Senegal, Sao Tome and Principe, Sudan, and South Sudan, are yet to confirm their presence at the prestigious sporting event.
The African Games, formally known as the All-Africa Games or the Pan African Games, are a continental multi-sport event held every four years, organized by the African Union with the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa and the Association of African Sports Confederations.
Here are all the 49 countries that will converge in Accra and compete:
Van Niekerk, the king of South African athletics, will make his first appearance in his pet 400m event at the national championships since 2016. The Olympic champion and world record holder will be looking to win his fifth national title in the one-lap sprint event when he steps onto the track at the McArthur Stadium.
Van Niekerk can expect a hostile reception when he lines up against two Young Turks – Zakithi Nene and Lythe Pillay – eager to take down the double world champion.
Chief among the challengers is two-time defending 400m championNene, the top local athlete in the one-lap event over the last two seasons. The 24-year-old Nene enjoyed a breakthrough year in 2022 when he became only the seventh South African to dip below 45 seconds in the 400m. He has since done it on two more occasions, including a personal best of 44.74 seconds which ranks him the fifth South African of all time.
While Pillay is yet to run a sub-45 second time, he has demonstrated a temperament for big events after winning gold in the men’s 400m final at last year’s World Athletics U20 Championships in Cali, Colombia. Pillay clocked a personal best of 45.28s to claim his maiden global title.
Van Niekerk will use the championships as a launching pad for the rest of his season, which may include a shot at reclaiming his world title in Budapest in August.
“I want to be back on the podium and get back to winning gold medals and challenging world records,” Van Niekerk told Gsn24 live .
“That has always been my goal, that has always been what I am looking forward to, and with that comes competition and challenges from various competitors. To get myself to the top, I have to start winning, which is a key focus for my upcoming competitions.
“I’ve experienced gold medals, and I have experienced a world record; I’ve experienced winning races, so that is where you want to be.”
GFA announces roadmap for Black Stars’ future following AFCON 2023 exit
The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has announced that Chris Hughton and his entire technical team have been dismissed from their roles as coaches of the senior national team, the Black Stars, following the team’s dismal performance at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
The decision comes after Ghana failed to win their final group game against Mozambique, drawing 2-2 and consequently crashing out of the tournament in the first round.
Hughton, who was appointed as head coach in February 2023, had a win-loss-draw ratio of 30.77%, 30.77%, and 38.46% in all competitions during his nearly one-year tenure. The team scored 13 goals under his leadership, averaging one goal per match while conceding 16 times.
Assistant coaches George Boateng and Didi Dramani, goalkeepers’ coach Richard Kingston, and other members of the technical team are also leaving their positions. The GFA has stated that it will provide a roadmap for the future direction of the Black Stars in the coming days.
Ghana’s poor performance at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations has sparked criticism and concerns about the team’s ability to compete at the highest level. The GFA’s decision to dissolve the technical team is seen as a move to address these issues and restore the team’s credibility.
The Black Stars have struggled in recent years, failing to replicate their successes of the past. The team’s early exit from the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations has prompted calls for change and a renewed focus on developing young talent.
The GFA is expected to appoint a new head coach and technical team in the near future, with speculation already surrounding potential candidates.
Fans and stakeholders are eagerly awaiting the association’s roadmap for the Black Stars, hoping that it will signal a fresh start for the team and a return to glory.
