Ghana's first female Olympic weightlifter Alberta Boatema Amponsah dies aged 32

Ghana's first female Olympic weightlifter, Alberta Boatema Amponsah, has died at the age of 32.

The Ghana Olympians Association, Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC) and the GOC Athletes' Commission announced her death in a joint statement on Sunday, November 8, five days after her 32nd birthday.

“With deep sorrow, the Ghana Olympians Association, Ghana Olympic Committee and GOC Athletes Commission mourn Alberta Ampomah, OLY (1994-2026), Ghana's first Olympic weightlifter and a devoted servant of her fellow Olympians and athletes. May her soul rest in peace,” the statement read.

No cause of death was disclosed by the Olympic bodies or her family.

Born in Accra on November 3, 1994, Amponsah made history at the age of 17 when she represented Ghana at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

She competed in the women's +75kg super-heavyweight division, recording 73kg in the snatch and 101kg in the clean and jerk for a total of 174kg. Her performance placed her 13th among 14 competitors.

Amponsah secured her place at the London Games through a wild-card entry after winning bronze in the clean and jerk at the 2012 African Olympic qualifiers.

Her international career had begun earlier, with the then 15-year-old representing Ghana in the women's 75kg weightlifting category at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India.

Following her weightlifting career, she remained active in sports, taking part in and officiating at armwrestling competitions in Ghana.

Beyond competition, Amponsah served as an executive member of the reconstituted GOC Athletes' Commission, where she worked alongside fellow Olympians, including chairman John Ampomah, Abeku Jackson, Gemma Acheampong, Emmanuel Dasor, Abdul Wahid Omar and Kaya Forson.

The commission focused on strengthening athlete representation and improving post-career welfare across Ghana's national sports federations.

Her death marks a loss to Ghana's sporting community, particularly the weightlifting fraternity, where she made history as the country's first female Olympic representative in the sport.