Steavano Tuekpe, WKU Applauded for Staging African Open

For organising the inaugural 2023 African Open Martial Arts and Combat Sports Tournament in Tema, Master Steavano Kojo Tuekpe and students at WKU Ghana have received praise from senior instructors of the Ghana Judo Association (GJA).

After discussing the recent African Open with Yours Truly, Coaches Samuel Quarcoe, Elkana Dodoo, and Ezekiel Dodoo, Technical Director of Ghana Judo, expressed their enthusiasm for returning for a repeat performance.

Coach Ezekiel Dodoo, a member of the Tournament's Local Organising Committee (LOC), remarked that while the Ghana National Team was pleased with the honours they received, they would like to see even more judokas in future competitions.

He said that the government and businesses should back people like Steavano Tuekpe since the African Open was interesting and tough because the athletes had to work hard to win the medals and trophies they wanted.

African Champion Evelyn Dzato, 16, of Accra Girls SHS, along with elite judokas Isaac Williams, Dallas Awenyese, and Dominic Agudoo, all competed.

There were five different types of athletic competitions, and judo was one of them. Karate-do, Taekwondo, Kickboxing, and Mixed Martial Arts are the others.

The African Open has the approval of the National Sports Authority (NSA), therefore the next one will be much bigger and better.

The President of WKUworld, Mr. Klaus Nonnemacher, attended the African Open and was very pleased with the level of competition, the quality of the officials, and the overall professionalism of the event.