Borteyman Sports Complex came alive on the opening day of the 15th Africa Armwrestling Championship as host nation Ghana delivered a strong performance, topping the medal table with 95 medals, 34 gold, 44 silver, and 17 bronze at the end of the championship.
Ghana’s strong performance was clear from the start. With more than twice the medals of their closest rivals, the Golden Arms team showed they were determined to win the African title at home.
Benin, South Africa and Nigeria Mount a Challenge
Behind Ghana, the Republic of Benin emerged as the strongest challenger, recording 16 gold, 19 silver, and 12 bronze for a total of 47 medals, a haul that would headline almost any other championship but was nonetheless made insignificant by Ghana’s output.
Nigeria, competing with a squad known for its physical strength and competitive depth, climbed to fourth on the standings with 21 total medals including 7 gold and a notably high 10 bronze, reflecting several podium finishes that fell narrowly short of the top step.
South Africa, meanwhile, registered a composed 13-medal return to secure third place overall, built primarily on 10 gold medals and marking the South Africans as one of the technically precise sides in the field.
Egypt, Togo and Mali Complete the Top Eight
Egypt contributed six gold medals to a nine-medal total. Togo and Mali each recorded six and eight medals respectively, with Mali’s four bronze medals suggesting a squad capable of pushing for top-two finishes on Day Two.
Cameroon, Niger, and Madagascar each secured modest but meaningful returns, underlining the widening competitive base of the sport across the continent.
Mauritius presented one of the more intriguing statistical stories of the opening day, five silver medals against zero gold speaks to athletes who reached finals across multiple categories but could not convert on the decisive pull.
Twenty-three countries in total took to the tables at Borteyman on Day One, making the 15th Africa Armwrestling Championship the most broadly represented edition in recent memory.
Countries including Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Gabon, Malawi, Sierra Leone, and Zambia are yet to open their medal accounts but remain in competition, reflecting both the growing reach of organised armwrestling governance on the continent and the commitment of the Armwrestling Federation of Africa to developing the sport at every level
Countries like Côte d’Ivoire, Chad, Eswatini, Senegal, and Kenya all won medals on the first day, showing that armwrestling is growing across Africa. Kenya’s bronze medal and Senegal’s silver medal were proudly celebrated by their teams.
