900 trainee teachers to rumble at 11TH COESA games

Ahead of Ghana’s hosting of the African Games next year, the best trainee teachers in the country are set to compete at the 11th biennial Colleges of Education Sports Association (COESA) Sports Festival at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology from the 21st to the 26th of November.

About 900 male/female athletes drawn from the 5-zones of colleges of education will not only participate for honours at the six-day event but will also be aiming for places in the national teams for the Ghana Games 2023.

This is the final stage of the elite competition for trainee teachers which initially started with 46 colleges of education competing for honours.

Subsequently, 150 athletes were drawn from the 5-zones consisting of the Ashanti-Brong Ahafo zone, Central-Western, Volta zone, and Northern Zone for the upcoming competition at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi.

Themed “Unearthing sports talents in the midst of pandemic: the role of Colleges of Education,” the President of COESA, Alhaji Dr. Suleman Iddrisu says that the importance of the Games to sports development in Ghana cannot be overemphasised.

“Our role is to educate educators,” he said before adding, “Our core mandate is to train teachers at the basic level. If our students can go throw this process, they would have a positive effect on the children at the basic level.

The participating zones will battle for honours in volleyball, football, handball, netball, athletics, table tennis, and cross country championship.

Technical Chair of COESA, Bismark Tsorhe said one of the main objectives of the event is to put the spotlight on trainee teachers and also attempt to secure national call-ups for some prospective sportsmen/women.

“All the zones have had their zonal games and the athletes are on camp. I know the Northern zone is already on camp. We have invited national team coaches as motivation so we can expect some of them (athletes) to make the national teams.

“We have Cynthia Konan, who is a national team goalkeeper for one of our junior teams currently schooling at the Tamale College of Education.

According to COESA, athletes would be given medals, certificates, and cash prizes for achieving honours at the Games.

The last COESA Games which was scheduled to be held in 2020 was postponed due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.