To mark my 47th anniversary as a professional sports journalist I present to readers my forty seven Ghanaian sports heroes since Independence.

IKE QUARTEY Snr.: The first and to date the only Ghanaian Olympic silver medallist (Rome Olympics in 1960)in boxing. Also won gold at the Perth Commonwealth Games in 1962.

MIKE AHEY: Won long jump gold at the Perth Commonwealth Games in 1962 setting a Games record of 26ft 5ins.

CHRISTIANA BOATENG: Known in her hey days as the “Flying Queen”, she was one of the most outstanding women’s sprinters the nation has produced. She represented Ghana in numerous international games including the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

ALICE ANUM: affectionately called “Baby Jet”. International sprinter and long jumper of Accra Girls secondary school fame. She was long jump gold medallist at the 1965 Africa Games in Congo Brazzaville and also gold medallist 100m and 200m in Africa Games Lagos 1973.

ROSE HART: Top sprinter and hurdler, later on shot putter and discus thrower. Won 80 metres gold in Africa Games Brazzaville 1965. Eight years later won shot putt gold in Africa Games in Lagos 1973.

HANNAH AFRIYIE: Top sprinter triple gold medallist at the 1978 Africa Games Algeria in 100m, 200m (Games record of 23.01 secs) and 400m relay.

STANLEY ALLOTEY: Top sprinter 200m gold medallist in 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica.

JOSHUA OWUSU: Outstanding international triple jumper. Gold medalist, 1974 Commonwealth Games in Christchurch, New Zealand. Gold medallists, triple jump 1973 Africa Games in Lagos.

OHENE KARIKARI: Great international athlete of Opoku Ware Secondary School fame. Gold medalist 100m and 200m, 1973 Africa Games in Lagos.

FRANCIS DODOO: Gold medallist triple jump 1987 Africa Games in Nairobi, Kenya.

ANDREW OWUSU: Triple jump gold medallist 1999 Africa Games in South Africa. Gold medallist, triple jump 2003 Africa Games in Abuja, Nigeria.

LEO MYLES MILLS: Gold medallist, 100m 1999 Africa Games in South Africa. The first Ghanaian to run 100m under 10 secs.

IGNATIUS GAISAH: Gold medallist, long jump 2003 Africa Games in Abuja; gold medallist 2006 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, Australia.

MARGARET SIMPSON: Gold medallist, heptathlon 2003 Africa Games Abuja; bronze medallist heptathlon 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester

EDDIE BLAY: Top amateur boxer. Bronze medallist 1964 Tokyo Olympics; Gold 1962 Commonwealth Games in Perth ,Australia; Gold 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica.

PRINCE AMARTEY: Boxing, bronze 1972 Olympic Games in Munich., Germany.

SULLEY SHITTU: Boxing gold 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica; gold 1970 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh Scotland.

FLASH EMMA: Boxing, gold 1970 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Scotland.

RAYMOND NARH: Boxing gold 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

ADAMA MENSAH: Heavyweight boxing, gold 1978 Africa Games in Algeria.

STEPHEN DOTSE: Light flyweight boxing gold 1990 Africa Games in Cairo

DAVID KOTEY POISON: ( Professional Boxing). First Ghanaian professional boxer to win a world title. He beat Reuben Olivares of Mexico in Los Angeles, September 1975 to win the world featherweight title.

AZUMAH NELSON: World champion in three different categories- featherweight, super featherweight and junior lightweight spanning more than 12 years. As an amateur, won gold in 1978 Africa Games in Algiers and gold in 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton Canada.

IKE BAZOOKA QUARTEY: Hard hitting WBO world welterweight champion, who reigned for three years 1999-2001.

NANA YAW KONADU: Won WBC flyweight title in Dec 1989 against Gilberto Roman of Mexico.

PATRICIA OFFEI/PATIENCE OPOKUA: Gold medalists, Africa Table Tennis championships (doubles) in Mauritius 1987.

ESTHER LAMPTEY: Gold medallist Africa table tennis championships (singles) in 1980.

ROY ANKRAH: Popularly called the “Black Flash”, he was the first Ghanaian Commonwealth boxing champion. On retirement he became national boxing coach and produced two Olympians in Ike Quartey and Eddie Blay and numerous Africa and Commonwealth champions. At the Perth Commonwealth Games in 1962, Roy led Ghana to be rated the best Commonwealth amateur boxing nation with two gold and four silver medals.

FLOYD ROBERTSON: First Ghanaian professional boxer to fight for the world title. Even though he lost in a highly disputed verdict to Sugar Ramos in Accra he continued to be ranked one of the best boxers of his generation. On his retirement from the ring, he assisted in unearthing a lot of budding talents for the nation.

ATTUQUAYE CLOTTEY: One of the busiest boxers in his generation who actually sold the name of Ghana in his adopted base in Australia. Back home on retirement he established the Akotoku Academy boxing club, where a number of good boxers were produced. He guided D.K.Poison to become the first Ghanaian world boxing champion.

E.A.QUAYE: A name associated with table tennis in Ghana for nearly four decades. He was a reputed national and Africa champion and one of the pioneers who made table tennis a very popular sport in the country.

CHRIS BRIANDT: First captain of the senior national football team Black Stars, one of the first top Ghanaian footballers to train as a coach.

BABA YARA: Of Kumasi Asante Kotoko fame, the prolific footballer known in his hey days as “king of wingers”. He was a member of the national team that scored the historic 7-0 win over Nigeria in 1955.

CHARLES KUMI GYAMFI: Founding member of the Black Stars ,who later on became the first Ghanaian to train the Black Stars to win the Africa Cup for the first time in 1963. He was also head coach when the Black Stars won the cup for the 4th time in 1982 in Libya.

EDWARD AGGREY FYNN: Utility player and captain of the Black Stars that won the Africa Cup for the first time in 1963 beating Sudan 3-0 in the final in Accra.

EDWARD ACQUAH: Of Sekondi Eleven Wise fame affectionately called “the man with the sputnik shot”. He was one of the greatest strikers the nation has produced.

ADDO ODAMETEY :Of Accra Hearts Of Oak fame and captain of the victorious Black Stars of 1965, that retained the Africa Cup in Tunis beating hosts Tunisia 3-2 in extra time.

OSEI KOFI: The amazing dribbler of Kumasi Asante Kotoko fame, who played for the Black Stars in three Olympic Games; Tokyo 1964, Mexico 1968 and Munich 1972.

ROBERT MENSAH of Cape Coast Dwarfs and Asante Kotoko fame rated Africa’s number one goalkeeper in the 1970s.

AWULEY QUAYE: The tough central defender of Accra Great Olympics fame who captained the Black Stars to win the original Africa Cup for keeps in 1978 beating Uganda 2-0 in the final in Accra.

EMMANUEL QUARSHIE of Sekondi Hasaacas fame. The well built striker, who captained the Black Stars to the then unprecedented fourth Africa Cup of Nations victory in Libya in 1982 beating the hosts 6-5 on penalties in the final.

ABEDI AYEW PELE: One of the most exciting footballers of his generation. He played for the Black Stars at the age of 17 when Ghana won the Africa Cup for the 4th time in 1982. He played in four more Cup of Nations finals, three as captain. He played top class professional football with Marseille of France.

ANTHONY YEBOAH: Great international goal scorer of repute. He played regularly for the Black Stars in the 90s .Was a sensation in the German Bundesliga He was the first black to captain German top division club Frankfurt. He later featured prominently for English premier club Leeds United.

IBRAHIM SUNDAY: Top international midfielder both for the Black Stars and Kumasi Asante Kotoko. He captained Kotoko to win the Africa Cup for the first time in 1971 and trained the team to win the cup again in 1983.

JONES ATTUQUAYEFIO: A great midfielder and member of the victorious Black Stars 1965 Cup of Nations in Tunis. Later became an astute coach and led Accra Hearts of Oak to win the Africa Cup for the first time in 2000.

STEPHEN APPIAH: The young midfielder, who led the Black Stars to their first ever World Cup qualification in Germany 2006.

MICHAEL ESSIEN: The sensational midfielder of Chelsea FC in England who is reputed to be one of the most expensive African footballer plying his trade in Europe.