Ghana’s national 100m record holder, Benjamin Azamati, has encouraged Ghanaians to adopt an all-inclusive approach after the successful completion of the third Junior Olympics.
Azamati’s remark comes after Thursday’s Junior Olympics athletic meet, where budding talents from Under-4 level through to Under-17 were handed the opportunity to compete at the University of Ghana Stadium.
In an effort to bridge the gap between Ghana and the rest of the world at major athletic events, the double Olympian believes the Junior Olympics is the right approach to implement.
“Absolutely, I think this is the way to go. The Americans introduce the kids to sports at a very young age; that’s why you see most of their talents very young on the world stage. You have 17 years, 18 years, and all that running with professionals. And they’re doing so well; why? It is because they have the talent and also they were introduced to sports at a very early age. I can imagine if the guys that Ghana has right now—if they were introduced early—we wouldn’t know where we will be. So I think yes, this is the way to go. And there’s a future in this,” he said.
“We should continue doing this [introducing kids to sport]. It shouldn’t just be done here in Accra. Most of the regions won’t be able to come here, so if it is possible, we should be able to do it in all the regions. I think that will really benefit the country,” he added.
Subsequent editions of the Junior Olympics are expected to take place in the coming years.
Source:
3news.com
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