CAPE COAST TOPPED MILO ACCRA INTERNATIONAL MARATHON

HON. Ebo Barton Oduro ( MP of Cape Coast) 

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Cape Coast, Mr Ebo Barton Oduro, has called on the youths engaged in sports to let their sportsmanship reflect in their social and political activities.

He explained that sporting activities apart from enhancing people’s life span, could also help in ensuring discipline and order among the youth and asked parents to encourage their children to take part in sporting activities.

Mr Oduro said these when the 12-member Cape Coast team, which participated in the 5th Annual Accra International Marathon (AIM), presented their medals to him in Cape Coast.

They presented the medals to show their appreciation for the MP’s support and commitment to their activities.

The team comprised seven boys, including a deaf and three girls, who competed in marathons of which they topped in the juvenile group.

Mr Oduro commended them for bringing laurels to the Region and urged them not to rest on their oars but to work harder to enable them to win more medals in future.

He urged them to take their education seriously, stressing that without it all their sporting activities would be meaningless since nobody would like to work with illiterate sports persons.

The MP promised to give them the needed support to enable them to participate in future marathons.

Dr Anna Bannerman-Richter, Director of the Accra International Marathon, commended the cape coast team for the splendid performance and encouraged more youth from the Region to participate in next year’s marathon.

She underscored the importance of regular body exercise which could reduce the cases of ailment such as diabetes and hypertension and other heart related diseases.

Dr Bannerman-Richter asked the general public to lead healthy life styles by checking food they eat.

She said the life expectancy of an average Ghanaians was below 60 years  as compared with people in Japan and other European countries, who live up to about 80 years, stressing that it was an embarrassing situation for the nation and that it was time for all to change their life style.

Dr Bannerman-Richter noted that an active and healthy life meant exercising regularly, eating good food and living a responsible life.

The team manager, Alhaji Mahmoud Seidu, thanked Mr Oduro for the moral and financial support he gave the team during the training and participation in the marathon.

He called on other stakeholders particularly parents to also support the team.