Ghanaian skeleton athlete Akwasi Frimpong has earned himself a spot at the 2018 Winter Olympics, becoming the first male West-African skeleton athlete to compete in the Winter Olympics.
A 2013 graduate of Utah Valley University, Frimpong will represent Ghana in the skeleton in the PyeongChang Winter Games held from Feb. 9-25. Frimpong will begin competition in the male skeleton events set to start on Feb. 15.
Frimpong tweeted about his excitement to represent his country in the world event, announcing how proud he was.
It’s official‼️Proud to announce that I will be representing Ghana at the 2018 Winter Olympics??. Dare to dream! #GhanaSkeleton?? pic.twitter.com/xBw6dH1wfq
— Akwasi Frimpong (@FrimpongAkwasi) January 15, 2018
“To me, the Olympic Games are about giving people like myself the opportunity to go against the best in the world,” the Deseret News reported Frimpong as saying. “I’m grateful to have Cocoa from Ghana step into my life as an athlete when it was needed the most. Their support has definitely helped me focus on qualifying for the Games and becoming a better skeleton athlete. I’m now ready to represent Ghana for the first time in history in the skeleton event at the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.”
On the road to the Winter Olympics, Frimpong can count on both Dutch and Ghanaian support in the form of Cocoa from Ghana—a Dutch initiative that aims to raise awareness of Ghanaian cocoa. Cocoa from Ghana recently entered into a sponsorship agreement with Frimpong.
“We are incredibly proud that Akwasi has qualified for the Winter Olympics,” said Joost Bellart, spokesperson for Cocoa from Ghana. “He is a phenomenal athlete with the willpower to succeed even in the face of setbacks.”
As a sprinter, Frimpong became the Dutch National Junior Champion and won four bronze, four silver and eight gold medals at several national and international sporting events. After suffering an injury, Frimpong began focusing on bobsledding. He made his debut as a skeleton athlete in 2016 and is now going to the Olympic Games.
Frimpong joins Chris Fogt as one of two former Utah Valley student-athletes heading to PyeongChang, South Korea, for this year’s Winter Games.
Source: 3news.com | Deseret news