The 2023 World Athletics Championships get underway today in Budapest, Hungary, where Ghanaian athletes will be among the over 2000 athletes competing for the over 250 medals that will be handed out at the event.

Team Ghana’s preparations for this year’s World Athletics Championships have been less than ideal, with a contingent of just 6 athletes competing in three (3) events. It’s the lowest number of athletes the country is sending to the competition since 2011.

A one week pre-competition camp in France was meant to provide much-needed sharpness, and yet, off field issues, such as the denial of visas to talented high jumper Rose Yeboah, and sprinter Sarfo Ansah, have dampened spirits.

The Relay Hopes

The biggest hope for a first medal in the competition since 2005, rests on the shoulders of the men’s 4x100m relay team, which has made the final of each of the last four global championships, setting national records along the way. Or at least, that was the feeling before injury forced experienced member of the team, Benjamin Azamati to pull out of the competition. 

In fact, only one member of the relay team that competed at the World Championships in Oregon last year is making a return - Joseph Paul Amoah, leading a relatively young quartet comprising Isaac Botsio, Edwin Gadayi, Raymond French and James Dadzie. 

The 38.07s National Record time the team ran in Oregon last year ranks 7th among the teams competing in Budapest. Ordinarily, that's a fast enough time to get them into the final. But, that race was more than a year ago, and in 2023, Team Ghana's relay team has no competitive 4x100m relay race. In order words, there's no practical measure of just how good or otherwise this team is.

But then again, nobody knew anything about them when they burst onto the scene to win gold at the African Games in 2019. The surprise element has always been their trump card, it bears reminding.

The 200m Swansong

On the individual front, Dadzie provided great inspiration in late April when he stormed to a new national record and then world lead in the men’s 200m, becoming the first Ghanaian to run under 20 seconds with his 19.79 finish. Since then however, injury has marred the West Texas College student’s journey to Budapest. That notwithstanding, Dadzie's time still ranks 6th in the world this year and there's cautious optimism the former Aggrey Memorial student will spring something special in Budapest.

He, alongside compatriot Amoah, will compete in the individual 200m event, the latter, bolstered by the bronze medal he won at last year’s commonwealth games. That historic performance, a first 200m medal for an African since 2006, and a first by a Ghanaian since 1974, has given him the confidence to go into Budapest believing he can at least make the final.

This is the 3rd World Championships for the former Prempeh College student, whose previous national record (20.08) Dadzie broke back in April, and yet, in the previous editions in 2019 and 2022, he failed to make the finals in both the 100m and the 200m.

Amoah's three races in 2023 make for a difficult reading, despite securing a contract with sports brand Asics earlier in the year. 20.43s, 20.62s and 20.56s are a far cry from his own best, but a very good last two weeks of training gives room for hope that he would be 3rd time lucky.

Leap of Faith

Deborah Acquah, the only female athlete in the team, will compete in the women’s long jump, hoping to build on the bronze medal she also picked up at the Birmingham Games in 2022. 

She will be Ghana's first athlete to compete, taking to the pit on Saturday morning at 10.25am. The automatic qualifying leap for the final is 6.80m. She must make that distance to qualify for the final. Failing which, she could still make the final if she finishes in the top twelve (12).

She has been placed in Group B alongside Jamaica's Ackelia Smith and the USA's Jasmine Moore.

It's a baptism of fire for Acquah, who graduated from Texas A&M last year. Hopes were high for her at the 2022 event in Oregon, where she failed to qualify for the final.

Her Personal Best in the event is 6.94m, a leap she achieved in her bronze-winning performance in Birmingham 12 months ago.

This season, the 27-year-old has only competed once in the outdoor season, a disappointing 5.58m jump in California in April, before injury interrupted her season.

Here's Team Ghana's Schedule at the World Championships:

Elsewhere, Africa’s hopes for a first podium finish in the men’s 100m event rests on the shoulders of the continent’s fastest man, Ferdinand Omanyala, who has the world’s 2nd fastest time over the event this year. 

But once again, it’s the usual suspects - Jamaica with Shericka Jackson and Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce, and the USA with Noah Lyles and Fred Kerley, who are expected to dominate the headlines over the next 9 days. 

The World Athletics Championships start on Saturday August 19 and conclude on Sunday, August 27, 2023.

You can follow Team Ghana's exploits on all of Joy Sports' platforms on TV, Radio, Online and on Social Media.