Ghana Scrabble Association keen on moving the game forward- Haruna Adamu

The 13th African Games hosted by Ghana for twenty days has come and gone, but it’s alluring fragrance will live in the sporting firmament for as long as we talk about sports on planet earth.

Egypt, the next host of the Games in 2027, took the top spot with 103 gold medals, 6 more than what they won in the Morocco 2019 African Games, while Nigeria came a disappointing distant second with 47 gold medals ahead of South Africa and Algeria.

Host Ghana, finished sixth with 19 gold. Tunisia came fifth at the end of the sporting feast that took place in two cities, Accra and Cape Coast and it has ‘Experience the African Dream’ as theme. 44 countries registered their names on the medal table.

Out of the seven demonstration sports at the 13th African Games, the game of words, Scrabble made it’s grand and stylish entry into the sporting spectacle on the 15th of March at the exotic, classy and serene Alisa Hotel with eleven countries, eight English and three French speaking countries in attendance.

Host Ghana, Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Uganda, South Africa, Kenya and Zambia are the English invaders while Benin Republic, Gabon and Togo competed in the French event at the Games.

Besides the main demonstration event, the Pan African Scrabble Association (PANASA), and the Scrabble Association of Ghana (SCAG) staged a side event that had 64 participants from ten countries.

At the end of three days of grueling rounds of games, ten countries appeared on the podium, seven English and three French speaking. Only South Africa, left Accra the Ghanaian capital without any colour of medal.

Emmanuel King of Sierra Leone and Adebisi Adekansi of Nigeria were decked with the gold medal in the men and women singles events, Uganda’s men took the team gold at the expense of Liberia.

Nigeria amazons trio of Joy Ola, Adebisi Adekansi and Tuoyo Mayuku returned to Abuja with the women’s team gold in addition to the Best Board gold won by the most successful female player and a living legend of the mind game, Tuoyo Mayuku, from Delta State, South-South of Nigeria.

Nigeria’s ladies were the most successful team at the Games, while Uganda have the bragging rights in the men’s field.

It was frustration, despair and disappointment for Nsikak Etim, Wellington Jighere and Tega Okiemute of Team Nigeria as they failed to reach the medal bracket in both the team and individual event in Accra despite their high ratings.

Some analysts and scrabble commentators attribute Nigeria’s poor outing in the men’s event due to the shorter version of numbers of games adopted and the small number of players (3) per team.

That argument can been described as watery, weak and should be confined to the dust bin. A school of scrabble pundits believe that nearly all sports have shorter versions like T20 for cricket, 60m, & 300m in athletics, 5 Aside in football, 3×3 in basketball, just to mention but a few and top players must be ready to swim in all kind of waters and weather.

It was a big battle between two neighbours, Benin Republic and Togo in the French event with Benin Republic topping the table.

Behind this fantastic outing by wordsmith from East, Central and Southern Africa, there lies some big, powerful and deep pocket individuals who contributed to the success story of scrabble at the 13th African Games.

One of such individual is the Executive member of World English Scrabble Players Association (WESPA) and the President of Scrabble Association of Ghana (SCAG), Haruna Adamu.

Adamu, explained that they threw their full weight and might behind the project because it has the power to transform the economy of Ghana and other African Scrabble playing Nations.

Interestingly, Ghana will be hosting the next edition of the PANASA President’s Cup and hopefully the WESPA Championship in 2025.

“We are involving the Ghana Ministry of tourism, the home office and all relevant government agencies to make Ghana 2025, which is an African bid a reality.” Adamu a security expert stressed.

Scrabble Association of Ghana (SCAG), under the stewardship of Haruna Adamu and it’s grand patron, Architect Samuel Mbrayeh Quartey, fondly called SM. Quartey ensured that the two-in-one event did not encounter any hitches.

At the end of the Scrabble event, Architect Samuel Mbrayeh Quartey, hosted the entire scrabble contingent to a dinner on Sunday night; one to remember at Sally’s Nest, his mansion off Spintex road, Accra.

During the dinner, Sierra Leone, host of the African Scrabble Championship (ASC), in October gave a firm commitment about their readiness to stage the best ever ASC, while PANASA may add the West African Scrabble Championship (WASC), to the bouquet in Freetown.

The presence of these passionate and devoted scrabble supporters and sponsors, Engineer Gbenga Ojofeitimi, Engineer Osikhena Ojior, Emmanuel Egbele and Engineer Ebikeme Adowei underscore the importance the scrabble family attached to this historic outing.

The downside of scrabble in Accra and going forward

1. The continental governing body of scrabble Pan African Scrabble Association (PANASA) needs to be RESTRUCTURED and REDEFINED, it should not be seen as a One-Man Show, as it was in Ghana.

2. A functional secretariat with a Secretary General who will oil and activate all the activities and programs of the Association, this will help in making international events inviting.

3. The tenure of the President of PANASA, should be increased from two to four years in line with other national and international sporting Federations and Olympic charter.

4. Each Sub Region, should produce a Vice President for PANASA and all African Executive Council Members of WESPA should be included in an expanded PANASA Executive Committee.

5. Merchandise and the rules of merchandising must be clearly spelt out before any competition. Scrabble like other sports flourishes with the help and sales of merchandise and memorabilia, which was not defined at the African Games, in Accra, raising some bad blood.

6. The Local Organizing Committee, that is the host Association and country should be fully carried along just like is obtainable in football, basketball and other sports, scrabble shouldn’t be different.

7. At all international events, PANASA and the host Association and country must harmonize the media coverage, create a Media Hub or Centre to spread it message, this was lacking or rather missing at the Games.