According to a new development emerging from the attack visited on the Ghana Wheelchair Tennis team that competed in the 2023 ITF World Team Cup Africa Qualifiers in Nigeria, the team travelled by bus on their way home because of lack of funds.
The wheelchair tennis national team, it will be recalled, was attacked on their way home from Nigeria after the competiton. The regrettable incident, according to Ghana’s National Paralympic Committee, took place in the Ogun State.
The wheelchair tennis team had gone to Nigeria to take part in the 2023 ITF World Team Cup Africa Qualifiers, which ended on February 12 but owing to a lack of funds from the sports ministry and the government, the team decided to return home immediately as they couldn’t afford to stay in a hotel.
However, on their way back to Ghana, their bus was intercepted by armed robbers at around 2:30 am.
“Due lack funds for the Ghanaian team which made up 3 Men’s team players, 3 Women’s team players and the National Coach, the team hired a private Nigerian Transport company transport the players by road to Abuja, wait for the team and return the team to Accra Ghana by road again,” a statement from the team said.
“The Ghana Team successfully participated in the tournament whiles both Ghana team placed 4th respectively in both categories at the tournament.
“Because the team did not have financial support from the Nation or other stakeholders in sports in Ghana, the team could not afford to sleep at the hotel after their classification event and coaches workshop which ended at 3pm on the 12th of February 2023 so they decided to leave Abuja that evening.”
The statement added: “So on their way to Lagos Nigeria when they got to SADAMU IN OGUN STATE-NIGERIA at exactly 2:30 am early hours of 13th February 2023 they were attacked by armed robbers who shot at their vehicles several times to stop, but the brave driver did not stop but run through the armed men who kept shooting at them.
“The team or driver did not get any gunshot wound but the broken windscreen cut most of the team members and one of the players by name Bernard Yawson who was sitting at the front set got head injuries and cut due to the windscreens that were flying around.
“The team managed to get to the Ghana Border at Aflac before they left at 11pm to get access to internet service to break the news to the Ghana Wheelchair Tennis Fraternity.”
Source – Tru News Report
