‘It's a little bit sad, I also thought I had won’ – Ghana’s 4x100m star on losing to Nigeria

Joseph Amoah, a member of Ghana's 4x100m relay team, has opened up about losing the final to Nigeria in a photo finish on March 20, 2024.

He said it was a little bit sad the way the team lost to their arch-rivals. "We wanted the gold; we did not get it, but we'll take the silver," he told journalists at the end of the race.

Asked about how he felt after crossing the line at a time when many thought he had won, he replied, "I also thought I had won; I just wanted to make sure that I had seen it.

"Maybe I could have dipped even better. I wasn't really focused on him (the Nigerian); I was just trying to run as fast as I could. I really wish I could have done better," he stressed.

The team missed out on clinching gold at the ongoing African Games, losing narrowly to Nigeria.

Nigeria won the race with a time of 38.41s, beating the defending champions, Ghana, who clocked 38.43s, while Team Liberia came in third with a time of 38.73s.

A final baton change was the undoing of the hosts, having led the race through the first two baton changes.

Ghana's team consisted of the 200-meter record holder Joseph Paul Amoah, Edwin Gadayi, Hammond Solomon, and Benjamin Azamati.

Team Nigeria comprised Israel Sunday, Itsekiri Usheoritse, Ekanem Consider, and Akintola Alaba Olukunle.

Despite the disappointment of missing out on gold and defending their title from the last two games, the team has been widely praised on social media, with X users lamenting the baton change that cost the team.

Watch the full race and the photo finish below:





SARA

Our coverage of the 13th African Games is brought to you by Bethel Logistics Co. Ltd

Bethel Logistics, experts in shipping logistics.

Click here to follow the GhanaWeb General News WhatsApp channel

Watch the latest episode of People and Places on GhanaWeb TV below: