Azumah Nelson to Grace Chicago GhanaFest

Three time world champion and Ghanaian boxing legend, Azumah "Zoom Zoom" Nelson will attend the largest and most spectacular Ghanaian cultural festival in the diaspora, Ghanafest, scheduled for on July 28 2007 in Chicago.

Reports reaching Ghanaweb indicates that the champion has accepted an invitation by the Ghana National Council of Metropolitan Chicago a few weeks ago and all arrangements have been completed for the boxing "professor" to be in Chicago for the celebrations.

The itinerary of the champion includes "keep fit with the champion" on Friday July 27 at the Washington Park in the morning and an evening with the champion ; where selected fights of the former champion will be shown to the public.

Meanwhile organizers of the festival, the Ghana National Council of Metropolitan Chicago, has informed Ghanaweb that this year's celebrations will close the curtain on the Ghana@50 celebrations Chicago.

For the first time, Professional Ghanaian cultural groups are being invited to perform alongside the Adowa and Borborbor groups in Chicago.

Ghanaweb has indicated that it will continue its sponsorship of Ghanafest this year with pre and post coverage

Ghanafest was the brainchild of the Ghana Chicago Club, a Ghanaian investment and Social Club, It began as a small festival in Jackson Park for the Ga-Dangme ethnic group in Chicago in 1987. The first celebrations was so successful and strongly supported by the Ghanaian community in Chicago.**In 1990, Ghana National Council , an umbrella organization for Ghanaian associations in Chicago, eventually became the key organizer of the event and hence named it Ghanafest.

Today the small community event that started almost two decades ago is now the largest Ghanaian cultural celebrations of its kind in the diaspora and attracts over ten thousand participants yearly.*

The organizers have recently brought the festival to the global audience by their massive advertisement on Ghanaweb and other major Ghanaian and other news sources coupled with the attendance by notable Ghanaian officials . Youtube, the most popular video sharing web site, has logged over ten thousand views of Ghanafest clips on its site.

*Of all of the Ghanaian festivals in the Diaspora, Chicago's Ghanaian cultural celebration is exclusive and offers a mixture of different Ghanaian cultures and traditions on the same stage. ***

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*Majority of the attendees are members of the Ghanaian-American community in Chicago and Ghanaians across the Globe. There is also a large group of non-Ghanaians presence at the festival. *

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*At Ghanafest, one will expect to see a procession of richly dressed chiefs and queens; endless dancing to variety of Ghanaian music; traditional performances;African Arts and craft, and lots of delicious and authentic Ghanaian food.*

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*Ghana Fest would not be complete without a guest appearance by some renowned politician or celebrity. In past years, notable guests such as former Ghanaian president, Jerry John Rawlings,Mayor Richard Daley of Chicago; ,Nation of Islam leader, Louis Farrakhan and almost all past Ghanaian Ambassadors in the United States made appearances at the festival.

*The Brong-Ahafo Regional Secretary, has indicated that he will attend this year's festival. The keynote speaker is Dr. John A . Awah, the Chief-Executive and owner of the Korlr-Bu Medical Hospital in Chicago.*

*Details of the celebrations can be found at www.ghananationalcouncil.org .*