The national table tennis team head coach, Anthony Owusu-Ansah, has expressed optimism about winning medals for the nation when they compete in the 2019 African Games.
The coach, in an interview, said his team had prepared well and were ready to improve upon the bronze medal the Black Loopers won at the 11th African Games in Brazzaville, Congo, in 2015.
“We are taking our training very serious because we want to do much better than our achievement the last time. The players are poised to fight and win laurels for Ghana,’’ he said.
Although Coach Owusu-Ansah believes that the players are making the most of the training time in Ghana, a trip outside to train would have helped the players to continue to learn.
“Although we have not gone for any competition, our local preparation like our league, which has been consistent for the past three years, has kept us active till now.
“However, players from other teams have had very good camping; the likes of Angola have camped their players in Portugal, DR Congo are camping in China and others. Countries like Nigeria, Egypt and Tunisia are coming with players who play professionally in France and Germany, so it would have been good if we had the opportunity to train outside.”
The coach explained to the Graphic Sports that he would name his final team only after their intensive nine-day residential camping in Cape Coast, with only six places available for male and female players to make the final team for the continental competition.
“It is for me to decide on which players are going, and it’s not mandatory that it would be three males and three females. We are going to the camp with eight players and out of that six would be selected for the competition,” he stressed.
Checks by the Graphic Sports revealed that four male and four females make up the eight players in camp with players such as Emmanuel Commey, Felix Lartey, Derek Abrefa and Samuel Akayade, Cynthia Kwabi, Linda Annor, Eva Adom Amankwah and Celia Baah Danso to battle for the final six places.