(ATR) The IOC confirms to Around the Rings the Ghanaian Olympic Committee is once again a member of the Olympic Movement.
On Friday, the IOC Executive Board lifted its suspension of the GOC, which was stuck in a quagmire over its autonomy.
In January the GOC was suspended by the EB due to political interference. The IOC feared that a new sports law would infringe upon the GOC’s autonomy as the government had the authority to appoint heads of national sporting federations. The Olympic Charter mandates all National Olympic Committees must be free of government interference.
Following an IOC meeting with the GOC earlier this year, the Ghanaian parliament amended the law in July, the requirement set forth by the IOC to be reinstated.
Troubles initially began in 2009.
Benson Baba lost his reelection to Francis Dodoo at that time. Dodoo is a professor in the United States and was believed to be backed by the national government.
Baba did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Had Ghana's suspension remained in place for the London Olympics, its athletes would have had to competeunder the Olympic Flag, not Ghana’s.
Only one other National Olympic Committee, Kuwait, remains under IOC suspension.
In an interview with Around the Rings, KOC president Sheikh Ahmad said he is confident the IOC will lift Kuwait’s suspension "very soon".
"Before London 2012 Games this problem will be solved," said Ahmad, also president of the Olympic Council of Asia. "We will be very keen to make the Kuwaiti athletes walk in the Opening Ceremony under the Kuwaiti flag."
Ghana’s Olympians have won four medals at the Games: a silver in boxing in 1960, a bronze in boxing in 1964 and 1972 and a football bronze at the 1992 Olympics. No African country had won a medal in football at the Olympics before.
Nine athletes represented Ghana at the Beijing Olympics, with six coming from boxing.
Ghana made its first Olympic appearance in 1952 as the Gold Coast. Since then its flag has appeared at every Olympics except the 1956, 1976 and 1980 Games.
Written by Ed Hula III.
Recent Articles
Sinner-Alcaraz, the duel that came to succeed the three phenomenons
Beyond the final result, Roland Garros left the feeling that the Italian and the Spaniard will shape the great duel that came to help us through the duel for the end of the Federer-Nadal-Djokovic era.
Table tennis: Brazil’s Bruna Costa Alexandre will be Olympic and Paralympic in Paris 2024
She is the third in her sport and the seventh athlete to achieve it in the same edition; in Santiago 2023 she was the first athlete with disabilities to compete at the Pan American level and won a medal.
Rugby 7s: the best player of 2023 would only play the medal match in Paris
Argentinian Rodrigo Isgró received a five-game suspension for an indiscipline in the circuit’s decisive clash that would exclude him until the final or the bronze match; the Federation will seek to make the appeal successful.
Rhonex Kipruto, owner of the world record for the 10000 meters on the road, was suspended for six years
The Kenyan received the maximum sanction for irregularities in his biological passport and the Court considered that he was part of a system of “deliberate and sophisticated doping” to improve his performance. He will lose his record and the bronze medal at the Doha World Cup.
Katie Ledecky spoke about doping Chinese swimmers: “It’s difficult to go to Paris knowing that we’re going to compete with some of these athletes”
The American, a seven-time Olympic champion, referred to the case of the 23 positive controls before the Tokyo Games that were announced a few weeks ago and shook the swimming world. “I think our faith in some of the systems is at an all-time low,” he said.
