{"id":118909,"date":"2026-05-18T11:47:56","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T11:47:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=118909"},"modified":"2026-05-18T11:47:56","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T11:47:56","slug":"from-inter-co-to-africas-biggest-stage-odo-broni-gaza-ignite-ghanas-athletics-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=118909","title":{"rendered":"
From Inter-Co to Africa’s biggest stage: Odo Broni, Gaza ignite Ghana\u2019s athletics future<\/div>"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>4 Minute, 6 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>

At a championship dominated by Africa\u2019s established sprint queens, two Ghanaian schoolgirls quietly stole the spotlight, not necessarily because they won, but because they showed that the leap from school sports to elite African athletics.
\nAishatu Jaffar \u2014 better known as Odo Broni \u2014 and Gladys \u201cGaza\u201d Boateng arrived at the 24th African Athletics Championships as talented but largely untested teenagers from Kumasi\u2019s school sports circuit.<\/p>\n

\u00a0By the time the curtain fell on the 24th African Athletics Championships at the University of Ghana Stadium, the two schoolgirls \u2013 and other promising young athletes — had emerged not merely as surprise performers, but as the most compelling evidence yet that Ghana may finally be closing its long-troubled transition gap between school sports and elite international athletics.
\nThrown into the deep end following the absence of Ghana\u2019s leading female sprinters Deborah Acheampong and Hur Alutie due to Us collegiate athletics commitments, the two teenagers responded with maturity, composure and startling confidence far beyond their age.
\nRunning alongside experienced campaigner Janet Mensah and Level 100 university student Janet Darkoah Kwarteng, the pair played a decisive role in Ghana\u2019s dramatic bronze medal finish in the women\u2019s 4x100m relay last Friday.
\nWhat followed triggered wild scenes inside the stadium. The 17-year-old Odo Broni \u2014 who had travelled back to Kumasi earlier in the week to write her WASSCE oral examinations after competing in the women\u2019s 100m \u2014 produced a fearless final burst to surge past nearly three opponents and snatch an unlikely bronze medal for the youthful Ghanaian quartet competing at its first major international championship.
\nIt was the kind of performance that instantly transformed two schoolgirls into national talking points. Last Saturday, Odo Broni narrowly missed out on a place in the women\u2019s 200m final after finishing third in her semi-final and placing 10th overall \u2014 an impressive conclusion to a breakthrough continental campaign.
\n\u201cIt was difficult racing with these experienced athletes but the motivation to run on such a big stage was higher; it pushed us to go the extra mile,\u201d Odo Broni told the Graphic Sports.
\n\u201cThe target was to achieve a personal best. It was intimidating but we surprised ourselves with the bronze medal.\u201d
\nGaza, equally overwhelmed by the moment, admitted the medal had exceeded expectations but insisted the ambition remained bigger.
\n\u201cI am very excited because I was hoping to win something for Ghana and with hard work and determination, here we are,\u201d she said while proudly displaying the bronze medal.
\n\u201cI thank God for this victory, but we need more support to achieve bigger things.\u201d
\nLong before the African Championships, the two teenagers had already built cult status within Ghana\u2019s schools athletics scene. At the Ashanti Regional Super Zonals earlier this year, Gaza and
\nOdo Broni dominated headlines with electrifying performances and an emerging rivalry that captivated spectators.
\nOdo Broni, a student of T.I. Ahmadiyya SHS, helped her school smash Super Zonal records in the 4x100m, 4x200m and 4x400m relays in March.
\nGaza, of St Louis SHS, stormed to victory in the 100m, 200m and 1000m medley, combining elite sprinting talent with a showmanship that quickly made her a crowd favourite.
\nNicknamed \u201cGaza\u201d by her police officer father, who recognised her potential early, the 16-year-old has become known not only for her speed but also for her playful confidence and flamboyant celebrations \u2014 a style many supporters have compared to Jamaican sprint icon Usain Bolt.
\nRather than criticising her expressive personality, many within Ghana athletics believe it should be embraced as part of a new generation bringing energy and entertainment back into the sport.
\nThe championship also showcased a wider pipeline of emerging school talent within Team Ghana.
\nAmong the standout performers were Portia Nkrumah of SAMO SHS, Leticia Ohenewaa and Esther Namungu of St Louis SHS, Blessed Owusu of St Hubert Seminary, and Albert Kwaku Gyabaah of T.I. Ahmadiyya SHS \u2014 all products of Ghana\u2019s increasingly competitive schools athletics system.
\nTheir emergence has now sparked a much bigger debate within Ghanaian sport: Has the country finally found a way to bridge the long-troubled gap between school athletics and elite senior competition?
\nGhana sprint legend and coach Leonard Myles-Mills believes the signs are encouraging.
\n\u201cMonitoring from here in the US, I was impressed with their performance; they represent the future of athletics and the authorities must support them in their development to the top,\u201d the former Ghana 100m record holder told the Graphic Sports.
\nMyles-Mills also rejected claims that the girls had been rushed prematurely into senior elite competition.
\n\u201cI disagree with those who said they were too young,\u201d he said. \u201cAbedi Pele showed us the way when he was integrated into the Black Stars early in his career and won the African Cup at 16 years. There is nothing like you\u2019re too young or too old in athletics; it\u2019s all about time and performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n

\"Ghana\u2019s<\/p>\n

At a championship dominated by Africa\u2019s established sprint queens, two Ghanaian schoolgirls quietly stole the spotlight, not necessarily because they won, but because they showed that the leap from school sports to elite African athletics. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Aishatu Jaffar \u2014 better known as Odo Broni \u2014 and Gladys \u201cGaza\u201d Boateng arrived at the 24th African Athletics Championships as talented but largely untested teenagers from Kumasi\u2019s school sports circuit.<\/p>\n

\u00a0By the time the curtain fell on the 24th African Athletics Championships at the University of Ghana Stadium, the two schoolgirls \u2013 and other promising young athletes — had emerged not merely as surprise performers, but as the most compelling evidence yet that Ghana may finally be closing its long-troubled transition gap between school sports and elite international athletics.<\/p>\n

Thrown into the deep end following the absence of Ghana\u2019s leading female sprinters Deborah Acheampong and Hur Alutie due to Us collegiate athletics commitments, the two teenagers responded with maturity, composure and startling confidence far beyond their age.<\/p>\n

Running alongside experienced campaigner Janet Mensah and Level 100 university student Janet Darkoah Kwarteng, the pair played a decisive role in Ghana\u2019s dramatic bronze medal finish in the women\u2019s 4x100m relay last Friday.<\/p>\n

What followed triggered wild scenes inside the stadium. The 17-year-old Odo Broni \u2014 who had travelled back to Kumasi earlier in the week to write her WASSCE oral examinations after competing in the women\u2019s 100m \u2014 produced a fearless final burst to surge past nearly three opponents and snatch an unlikely bronze medal for the youthful Ghanaian quartet competing at its first major international championship.<\/p>\n

It was the kind of performance that instantly transformed two schoolgirls into national talking points. Last Saturday, Odo Broni narrowly missed out on a place in the women\u2019s 200m final after finishing third in her semi-final and placing 10th overall \u2014 an impressive conclusion to a breakthrough continental campaign.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was difficult racing with these experienced athletes but the motivation to run on such a big stage was higher; it pushed us to go the extra mile,\u201d Odo Broni told the Graphic Sports.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe target was to achieve a personal best. It was intimidating but we surprised ourselves with the bronze medal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gaza, equally overwhelmed by the moment, admitted the medal had exceeded expectations but insisted the ambition remained bigger.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am very excited because I was hoping to win something for Ghana and with hard work and determination, here we are,\u201d she said while proudly displaying the bronze medal.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thank God for this victory, but we need more support to achieve bigger things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Long before the African Championships, the two teenagers had already built cult status within Ghana\u2019s schools athletics scene. At the Ashanti Regional Super Zonals earlier this year, Gaza and<\/p>\n

Odo Broni dominated headlines with electrifying performances and an emerging rivalry that captivated spectators.<\/p>\n

Odo Broni, a student of T.I. Ahmadiyya SHS, helped her school smash Super Zonal records in the 4x100m, 4x200m and 4x400m relays in March.<\/p>\n

Gaza, of St Louis SHS, stormed to victory in the 100m, 200m and 1000m medley, combining elite sprinting talent with a showmanship that quickly made her a crowd favourite.<\/p>\n

Nicknamed \u201cGaza\u201d by her police officer father, who recognised her potential early, the 16-year-old has become known not only for her speed but also for her playful confidence and flamboyant celebrations \u2014 a style many supporters have compared to Jamaican sprint icon Usain Bolt.<\/p>\n

Rather than criticising her expressive personality, many within Ghana athletics believe it should be embraced as part of a new generation bringing energy and entertainment back into the sport.<\/p>\n

The championship also showcased a wider pipeline of emerging school talent within Team Ghana.<\/p>\n

Among the standout performers were Portia Nkrumah of SAMO SHS, Leticia Ohenewaa and Esther Namungu of St Louis SHS, Blessed Owusu of St Hubert Seminary, and Albert Kwaku Gyabaah of T.I. Ahmadiyya SHS \u2014 all products of Ghana\u2019s increasingly competitive schools athletics system.<\/p>\n

Their emergence has now sparked a much bigger debate within Ghanaian sport: Has the country finally found a way to bridge the long-troubled gap between school athletics and elite senior competition?<\/p>\n

Ghana sprint legend and coach Leonard Myles-Mills believes the signs are encouraging.<\/p>\n

\u201cMonitoring from here in the US, I was impressed with their performance; they represent the future of athletics and the authorities must support them in their development to the top,\u201d the former Ghana 100m record holder told the Graphic Sports.<\/p>\n

Myles-Mills also rejected claims that the girls had been rushed prematurely into senior elite competition.<\/p>\n

\u201cI disagree with those who said they were too young,\u201d he said. \u201cAbedi Pele showed us the way when he was integrated into the Black Stars early in his career and won the African Cup at 16 years. There is nothing like you\u2019re too young or too old in athletics; it\u2019s all about time and performance.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,103],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-118909","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sports","category-travel"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118909","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=118909"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118909\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=118909"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=118909"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=118909"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}