IOC to support Ghanaian athletes

The International Olympic Committee is to offer financial and other logistics supports to a number of athletes and the various sporting disciplines under the National Sports Council for it to form a formidable team for the All Africa Games slated for Abuja in October next year.

The money would be channel through the Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC) to the beneficiaries. However, the beneficiaries would have to submit their training programmes to convince the GOC that the money would be put to good use.

A Source at the National Sports Council (NSC) told the GNA Sports in Accra that the itinerary would have to include date, location, and coaches and a total breakdown of how the money would be used.

The Ghana Cycling Association, which is one of the beneficiaries, is preparing a document to be submitted to the GOC early next month in order to kick-start their training programme. Ghana would be participating in Cycling for the first time at the games and as such, the association is planning to use the La Rout competition scheduled for Kumasi later in the year to select 12 cyclists to represent the country.

The 12 would later engage in series of competition before moving to Koforidua in February next for camping to toughen them. A spokesman for the Cycling Association said plans are afoot to move the team to the north but added that "this would be subject to availability of funds".