Sluggish 'Snow Leopard' prowls slopes

ARE, Sweden: The qualifying race for the men's giant slalom at the Alpine ski world championships on Monday attracted entries from some exotic nations but Ghana's Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong stood out from the crowd.

The Snow Leopard, as he calls himself, clocked a time one minute 17 seconds slower than Moldovan winner Urs Imboden, but his race suit, if not his speed, means he will not be forgotten in a hurry.


The 31-year-old Nkrumah-Acheampong, who came a distant last in the two-leg event and therefore will not take part in the main giant slalom on Wednesday, was clad in a leopard-print ski suit and racing helmet, with skis and boots to match.


Some people may scoff at his awkward technique and distinct lack of leopard-like stealth on the slopes, but the Scotland-born Nkrumah-Acheampong insists he is not just a gimmick and that he deserves his chance.


"Ski racers are tough people but I think they look at me and think he's here trying to hack it, they realise that I'm skiing the same course as them and accept me," he said after a training session in Are.


"I'm never going to win a race but I'm giving a voice to Africans and kids will look at me hopefully and think that anything is possible."


Born in Glasgow, Nkrumah-Acheampong moved back to Ghana when he was a toddler and travelled to England as a student, to pursue a degree in tourism management.

It was while studying in 2002 that he took a job as a receptionist at an indoor ski centre in Milton Keynes. After a 30-minute lesson he was hooked and spent the next two years learning how to ski.


Selling himself as the Ghanaian Ski Team, he attracted some funding and after his first venture on to real snow in Val d'Isere in 2004 he managed to get funded for a season in the Italian resort of Val di Fiemme.


TOY LEOPARDS


A year later he made his competitive debut in an International Ski Federation (FIS) giant slalom race in Meribel, France, and set about trying to qualify for the 2006 Winter Olympics.


He did not realise his ambition but, far from being dispirited, he continued training and arrived last week in Sweden to take part in the world championships.


Prowling the streets in his eye-catching suit, Nkrumah-Acheampong gets plenty of attention. He has his own Web site and a glossy catalogue of replica Snow Leopard ski clothing. He even hands out toy snow leopards to bemused passers-by.

"It's turning a few heads," said the amiable Nkrumah-Acheampong, who says the hardest part about trying to become a ski racer is being away from his wife Sena and daughter Ellice.


"Sometimes people look at me like 'What's he doing here?' and sometimes I do wonder what I'm doing but my wife has always been very supportive and encouraged me.


"We are both Christians and when I told her about it we prayed a lot and talked it through. They are coming to Are to watch me in the slalom."


Nkrumah-Acheampong, who has no support team and has to wax his own skis, said his main objective at the world championships was to get safely to the bottom of the slope and "maybe try to beat one of the other smaller nations" but his skiing ambitions go beyond personal achievement.


"My dream is to help an African child become a top skier one day because physically there is no reason why they could not do it, given some encouragement," he said.


FREEZER UNIT

He recently visited Ghana with American Olympic gold medallist Ted Ligety and organised a grass skiing giant slalom competition on a golf course in Accra.


"It was complete mayhem," he said. "None of the kids had ever done anything like it.


"We also got hold of an industrial size freezer unit and got the kids sliding about in there and taking the boots on and off to see which ones could stand the cold for the longest.


"We picked two out with the hope of bringing them to Italy to learn to ski but unfortunately we had some problems with the immigration authorities and we are still waiting for it to happen.


"One day I want to have an artificial slope in Ghana and make it free for kids. If we get 600 kids I'm convinced one could become a top skier."


Nkrumah-Acheampong's Web site features links to the Snow Leopard Conservation Trust, an organisation trying to protect the endangered big cats.

"They are beautiful animals but are very rare," he said. "I've been given an opportunity and I intend to try and use it to do some good."


Despite his last place on Monday, he says he will be at the starting gate on Thursday for the slalom qualifiers, even though new FIS rules mean it is virtually impossible for some of the smaller nations to get athletes in the race proper.


"I'm here and I'm going to make sure I ski out of my skin," he said. "When I reach the bottom I'll look back up the hill and say 'Yeah. . .I got down there'.


"Then I'll feel like going back and doing it all over again."