Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Snow Leopard to bring Ghana to Whistler in 2010

Ski racer checks out giant slalom course and other sights
58778_l

The Snow Leopard of Ghana is a ski racer from a country with no snow.

He is a black African in a sport dominated by fair-skinned athletes from cold countries.

And he wants to put a Ghana/Africa House in Whistler, complete with drums, shields, spears and traditional dancing, alongside winter Olympic powerhouses like Austria, Germany and Switzerland, all of whom will have a national house presence in the resort.

In short, Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong is a man of contradictions, his story one of paradoxes.

But he wants all that to change. And he sees Whistler in February 2010 as a platform to do just that as Ghana's first winter Olympian.

"There's never been a winter Olympics... where anybody has actually experienced anything about an African nation," he said, relaxing on the patio at the Marriott - Residence Inn where he stayed with his wife and two young children while in Whistler.

"Skiing (in 2010) is not just an opportunity for me to jump on the slopes and ski."

This week Nkrumah-Acheampong was given the opportunity to actually see the course he will be skiing in February. He was brought to Whistler by the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) as part of its Connecting with Canadians program.

He used his time here not only checking out the sights but also preparing for his return in seven months. He was searching out accommodation for his family, transportation, and a possible storefront partner where he could sell his Snow Leopard merchandise.

He also spoke to local restaurateurs to see if there was the possibility of hosting a Ghana/Africa House in Whistler during the Games.

"We've got to show people what we have to offer and I think what other better opportunity than the Olympics to showcase (my country and culture)," he said.

The Snow Leopard had his game face on however when he was standing on Whistler Mountain with local racing legend Steve Podborski.

"You get scared looking at a course like that," admitted Nkrumah-Acheampong.

"But, I think, it's good to have some fear, respect the course.

"It's given me a good idea of how much I have to step it up in terms of training."

One thing that could help him race down the mountain is the fact that his fans will be right beside him.

As the Snow Leopard, Nkrumah-Acheampong competes in a leopard print cat suit. Fans can pay to have their names on each black spot on the suit at a cost of five pounds.

"It's a way of raising funds," said the racer, who doesn't have the deep pockets of a ski federation behind him. "As well, as it's going to be a unique cat suit because you have your fans with you."

He knows he may not look the part of a traditional ski racer, but he also knows he can hold his own among the best, though he has been skiing for just six short years.

Nkrumah-Acheampong's Olympic dream began in an indoor English ski centre where he worked as a receptionist while studying for his masters in tourism management.

After one 30-minute lesson he was hooked.

The Snow Leopard was born as he began to dream about the Olympics and one of the first reporters who ever wrote a story about him coined the moniker.

He tried his best to qualify for the 2006 Torino Games but fell short. And then in March he found out he had qualified for the 2010 Games.

He is training at the Snow Centre at Hemel Hempstead in England and said he doesn't believe his Olympic dream would have become a reality had it not been for his British passport - he was born in Scotland while his father was studying overseas.

When asked how he would gauge success on the slopes next year, Nkrumah-Acheampong said: "Not coming at the bottom of the list."

He has an ever-growing list of competitors he is aiming to beat. And while it's tough to come up against the racers from the cold countries where ski racing is a part of the culture he said he has a chance against competitors from smaller nations, particularly those without mountains.

His goals for 2010, however, don't end there.

"Success off the mountain would be to get the support I'm looking for to build a ski slope in Ghana," he said.

That dream is just in the beginning stages. He needs money to build the grass ski slope, donations of second-hand boots and skis and poles, to name just of few things. It is a big task ahead but one that he believes is worthwhile, one that could create more Ghanaian ski racers in the future.

People once told him it was an impossible dream to compete in the winter Games.

"It can happen and it will happen," he said of his Ghanaian ski slope. "It will just take time and effort."

To learn more about the one man Ghana Ski Team go to www.ghanaskiteam.com.

The CTC program Connecting with Canadians involves bringing elite international athletes and their families to Canada to meet locals, have adventures and make memories before they come back in 2010.