The Government of Barbados has appealed to Ghana to adopt its indigenous Barbadian sport, road tennis, as a discipline and expand it to the rest of the African continent.
Madam Mia Mottley, QC, Prime Minister of Barbados, said that the country was looking for cooperation in sports, hence the idea of Ghana adopting their road tennis discipline.
The Prime Minister was speaking at the Ghana-Barbados Business Roundtable in Accra, where some Ghanaian private sector companies met with the Barbadian delegation to discuss possible investment opportunities available to both countries.
She said Ghana’s success in developing the discipline could enable the country to put up athletes who can compete and qualify to participate in the 2032 Olympics.
Road tennis is a variation of tennis invented in Barbados in the 1930s by primarily local working-class Barbadians who could not afford to play lawn tennis.
Though mainly concentrated in the island nation of Barbados, it has been further introduced to California and the wider Caribbean.
It is a sport open to all and is played on the streets and on courts. It requires no sports attire; bare feet are fine.
There is nominal equipment: an 8-inch net, a tennis ball (bald is fine) and wooden paddles. With its fast, close volleys, it looks like table tennis outdoors without a table.
The Court is the road, internationally it is played on tarmac on a 21ft by 10ft court.
Madam Mottley said plans were far advanced to sign a memorandum of understanding between the Barbados Cricket Association and the Ghana Cricket Association to develop many talents in the cricket space for the country.
“Barbados has such expertise in the area of cricket and can support us to improve the discipline,” she added.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister made mention of possible collaboration between Barbados-based artistes and their Ghanaian counterparts.
She said there are opportunities for the two countries and their artists to engage in the areas of dancehall and reggae music.
The Prime Minister was in the country as the special guest of honour at Ghana’s 65th Independence Day Celebration in Cape Coast on Sunday, March 6, 2022.
By GNA
