2024 GUSA Games: University of Ghana claims second gold in Women’s Goalball

The University of Ghana (UG) has secured its second gold medal at the ongoing Ghana University Sports Association (GUSA) Games, currently taking place at the University of Cape Coast in the Central Region.

Following the women’s tennis doubles team’s victory in their event, UG’s women’s goalball team added another gold to the university’s impressive tally.

In the final held on Thursday, January 9, UG faced the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) at the S.K. Adjepong Lecture Theatre. UG dominated the match from the start, leading 8-0 at halftime.

The second half saw UG extend their lead by adding four more goals, while UEW managed only two, resulting in a commanding 12-2 final score in UG’s favor.

UG began their goalball campaign on January 6 with a dominant 19-9 win over Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), after KNUST was forced to forfeit. The team then triumphed over both Ghana Communication Technology University (GCTU) and the host University of Cape Coast (UCC), with 11-1 victories, before advancing to the final.

Head coach of the UG goalball team, Benedict Sarpei Ntreh, shared his satisfaction with the gold medal win, acknowledging the challenges along the way in securing the team's spot in the final.

“It feels good, it’s a joy. It hasn’t been easy, especially our first match against KNUST. They have the height, the build, and they are very strong, but we’ve been in this for a long time, and we defeated them. We showed them that goalball belongs to us,” he said.

Since the introduction of goalball in the GUSA Games in 2014, UG women have consistently claimed gold, with the exception of the 2022 edition held at KNUST.

However, the women have bounced back in 2024 to reclaim their gold status. Coach Benedict revealed the secret to their success:

“It’s all about having a good coach and attentive players. Discipline is key. In anything, if you have a good coach, you’re good to go. And if you have good players who listen to you, you’re good to go. It’s all about training and discipline.”

The sport was introduced to offer visually impaired students a chance to compete, as there were no other sports available to them at the time.

Goalball, an internationally recognized sport, was featured as an exhibition event during the 2014 GUSA Games to raise awareness and educate the public about the game.

It became a competitive event at the GUSA Games in 2016 when the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) hosted the games.