Kofi Adams Defends Ghana Against Broken Pole Vault Blame | Discuss Ghana

The Minister for Sports and Recreation, Hon. Kofi Iddie Adams, has strongly rejected claims that the Local Organising Committee (LOC) supplied substandard or faulty equipment during the recently concluded 2026 African Senior Athletics Championships in Accra.

Speaking to the media today, Monday, May 18, 2026, the Buem lawmaker addressed intense public backlash that erupted after television broadcasts captured multiple vaulting poles snapping mid-competition, which led critics to accuse Ghana of hosting a poorly equipped tournament.

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Standard International Athletics Protocol

Dismissing the criticism as a complete misunderstanding of the sport, Hon. Kofi Adams explained that in highly technical track and field events like pole vault or javelin, the host nation is never responsible for providing the primary handheld equipment.

"In the course of the competition, we witnessed some athletes whose vaulting poles broke, but people thought those vaulting poles were provided by Ghana," the Minister stated. "No, every athlete who took part in the event came with their own vaulting poles. Let it sink well with everybody that the vaulting poles that were snapping were not poles provided by Ghana."

 

The Host's Responsibility: Adams clarified that under international regulations, organizers are strictly mandated to provide only fixed facility infrastructure—such as the landing foam mats, the vertical support stands, and the crossbars.

 

The Athlete's Choice: Because a vaulting pole is highly customized to an individual's weight, grip strength, and flex preferences, athletes always travel with their personal poles, which are then certified by technical officials before the event begins.

The South African Customs Proof

To further dismantle the narrative of state failure, the Sports Minister provided concrete logistical evidence, pointing to the strict border protocols the visiting teams had to clear at the airport.

Temporary Importation: "Indeed, for the South Africans, they had to pay a deposit at the airport so that upon departure they could prove the equipment was brought in only for the competition and not to remain in Ghana," Adams disclosed.

The LOC Walkback: The Minister also addressed claims that an LOC official had previously admitted on the radio that the broken equipment belonged to the state. He clarified that Ghana Athletics Association Vice-President Charles Osei Asibey had initially misspoken on air but quickly corrected himself and retracted the comment once he realized his error.