Badminton: 16 For Nigeria tourney

Sixteen athletes, made up of 10 men and six women, last Tuesday began residential camping at the University of Cape Coast (UCC) to prepare adequately for the Nigeria International Badminton competition slated for Lagos from July 26 to 29.

The athletes are Ebenezer Andrews, Ben Noah Ayim, Abraham Ayitey, George Ayittey, Michael Opoku Baah, Emmanuel Botwe, Daniel Doe, Joseph Gordon and Aaron Tamakloe.

The rest are Samuel Lamptey, Emmanuel Yaw Donkor, Stella Koteikai Amassah, Eunice Arthur, Grace Atipaka, Stella Bentum and Eyram Migbodzi.

The coach of the team, Jacob Evans Wilson, and his assistant, Ocansey Ahumah, who led the team to win 11 medals at the just-ended Cote d'Ivoire and Benin International tournaments, are currently taking the athletes through a series of grills at the camp.

Speaking to the Daily Graphic, Ignatius Ellertey, Secretary General of the Badminton Association of Ghana (BAG), said the team kicked off Ghana’s hunt for points to qualify for the 2018 Commonwealth Games Mixed Team event by working hard to win the medals in the two previous competitions.

He said the contingent for the Nigeria event, as well as the Mauritius Championships in August, has resolved to improve upon the feat to secure ticket for the Commonwealth Games slated for Australia next year.

He called on corporate entities to come on board to support the association and the team financially to help them to win more laurels for the nation.