Afua Asantewaa opens up about how she intended to announce GWR sing-a-thon results

Following the news of the disqualification of her longest-singing marathon attempt by the Guinness World Records (GWR), Afua Asantewaa has made some remarks including how she planned to announce the results.

According to her, her team planned to announce the results through a press conference once they received it, stressing that there was no intention to hide the outcome as widely speculated.

She made this known in an interview with GTV on February 26, 2024, where she said that she was surprised and disappointed by GWR's decision to announce the results, as it violated the contract they signed. According to her, she was the one to announce the results and not GWR.

She also revealed that, due to her inability to access her GWR account or the email sent by GWR on February 12, 2024, as a consequence of her disqualification attempt, she was unable to provide an informed explanation for her disqualification.

“What I understand is that everybody is emotional about this and anticipating a lot and I know that they wish that the results came from us. You can ask my husband, we were even planning where to break the news when we received it. We wanted to do a press conference and all that.

“I was almost getting ready to host an event when I saw screenshots on WhatsApp and I was like, ‘Oh, but I have not even heard from them regarding my account, so why would they do that?’

“And it wasn’t even an official post, it was a comment. And in the contract we signed, until I decide to let it out, they can't, and until they log me in, I can't access my results. So how do I see what exactly went wrong?" she said.

She said that she was not afraid of failing and that she was proud of her sing-a-thon, regardless of the outcome.

"My fear was not being able to achieve what I did, rather than letting people know whether I made it or not,” she said.

Background

Afua Asantewaa tried to break the Guinness World Record (GWR) for the longest singing marathon in December 2023. She sang for 126 hours and 52 minutes, aiming to surpass the current record of 105 hours set by an Indian man in 2012.

She held the event at the Akwaaba Village in Accra, where she attracted thousands of fans and celebrities who supported her and witnessed her attempt. She received positive feedback and praise from the public for her remarkable effort.

However, GWR on February 24, 2024, announced that Afua Asantewaa did not break the record, as she did not follow the rules regarding rest break timings. These rules apply to all the longest marathon records, and they cannot be ignored.

Shortly after GWR announced the result via a tweet, she took to social media and stated that she received the news of the outcome just moments before hosting a gala dinner and the launch of the Lebanese Scholarship Alumni Network, attended by President Nana Akufo-Addo.

This statement was the beginning of the controversy and backlash as some argued she knew about the decision even before the tweet from GWR.

They argued that her excuse was problematic, insisting that she knew about the disqualification but decided to conceal it to keep enjoying the benefits of having embarked on the challenge.

Meanwhile, Asantewaa has shared screenshots of her interaction with GWR where she complained on Thursday, February 22, 2024, that she was unable to access her GWR account.

Watch the video below.



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