Youth Olympics: Team Ghana Banking Hopes On Sprinter Diafo For Medal

Team Ghana is banking its hopes on 400m runner Solomon Diafo for a medal at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires.

Two athletes, swimmer Abeiku Jackson and weightlifter Sandra Mensimah Owusu have completed their respective competitions and stand absolutely no chance of winning any medals. Sandra competed in the 58kg weightlifting event but was unable to go beyond the 80kg jerk category in day five of the youth games. Ghofrane Belkhir from Tunisia went ahead to win that event after lifting 108kg.

Diafo thus remains Ghana’s most potential medal hopeful. With a time of 54.09seconds, Solomon placed third in heat one of the men’s 400m event and eighth overall with best of time to progress to the grand finale on Sunday.

The 17-year-old who won bronze in this year’s All Africa Games in Algeria said he could have done better “but for the bad weather. I have been training in 20 to 24 degrees so when I saw the weather was at about ten degrees, I knew I will suffer.”

“But on Sunday, if the weather is good, between 20 to 24 degrees, I will definitely get a medal,” he added.

The beach volleyball team will have until close of day on Friday to know their fate as to whether they qualify for the round of 24 or not depending on their point ratio. Kelvin Carboo and Eric Tsatsu lost to Costa Rica in the final game of the preliminary stage by two straight sets.

On the medal table, Russia still leads with a total of 27 medals made up of 18 gold, six silver and three bronze. Hungary are still in second place with eight gold, one each of silver and bronze making it ten in all.

Mixed National Olympic Committees are third with 22 medals made up of seven gold, seven silver and eight bronze.