Accra poly tops all at GHAPSA Games

The Accra Polytechnic has emerged as the overall winner of the 9th edition of the Ghana Polytechnic Sports Association (GHAPSA) Games held at the Takoradi Polytechnic after picking a total of 41 medals at the tournament.

The A-Poly team won a total 31 gold, 7 silver and 3 bronze medals to become the team with the highest medal haul thereby picking the overall winners’ position. The host, Takoradi Polytechnic came second in the medal ranking by winning 12 gold, 24 silver and 6 bronze medals.

The Cape Coast, Koforidua, Tamale, Ho, Kumasi, Sunyani, Wa and Bolga Polytechnics, followed in that order by placing third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth respectively.

The teams competed in disciplines such as Athletics, Soccer, Basketball, Volleyball, Handball, Table Tennis, Tennis, Badminton, Taekwondo and Chess.

The Accra Polytechnic, the overall winners, won gold in events such as Handball Men and Women, Basketball Men and Women, Badminton Women, Tennis Men and Women, Chess, Table Tennis Men and Women and Women’s Football. The team also picked silver in the Badminton Men’s game.

The A-Poly team’s Taekwondo squad also won a total of 11 medals including seven gold medals, three silver medals and one bronze medal while the athletics team won a total of 19 medals.

The athletics team won gold in 100m Men, 200m Women, 400m Women, 4x100m Men, 800m Men, 1,500m Men, 5,000 Men, 4x400m Men and Women, Shot Putt Men and Women, Long Jump and Tripple Jump Men’s events. The team also won bronze in both the 200m and 400m Men’s events.

Accra Polytechnic’s Prosper Goku who picked gold in the 800m, 1,500m and 5000m Men’s events set new records in all three events by making 1.53.16, 3.54.45 and 14.44.49 seconds respectively thereby reducing the existing times which stood at 2.01.09, 4.35.11 and 16.16.36.

In the Men’s Soccer final match that was played between the host, Takoradi Polytechnic and Cape Coast Polytechnic, the former defeated the later by 4-0 to pick gold.

In a keynote address delivered on his behalf, the Vice President, HE Paa Kwesi Ammissah-Arthur thanked the Conference of Rectors of Polytechnics for keeping up the GHAPSA games because it fit into the national sports agenda.

He urged athletes to improve their games, saying “Ghana is the host of the 3rd West Africa Polytechnic Games Association (WAPOGA) Games in August with Accra Polytechnic as the organizing institution and as patron and custodian of the games, I urge you to improve upon your performances so that we can have a fair host-and-win attitude.

Meanwhile, the GHAPSA Games flag has been handed over to Wa Polytechnic who will be the host of the next GHAPSA Games.