The Ace Tennis academy is embarking on the SHE in Action to give opportunities to interested female students of the University of Ghana to pursue a career in sports.

The academy, which is currently in its fifth year, seeks to unearth the next tennis stars from Ghana.

Currently recognised under the Ghana Tennis Federation, Ace Tennis Academy has a target of filling the gap of underrepresentation of women in sports when it comes to Ghana.

The primary goal of this project is to provide professional training for women in coaching and leadership roles in order to inspire the younger generation to pursue careers in sports.

Founder of Ace Tennis Academy, Naa Shika Adu explains why they’re taking steps to help push more females into sports

“Growing up I don't quite remember seeing or hearing of women owning sports companies or playing active roles in national sports development in Ghana. The majority of the female athletes during my time could not pursue other roles in sports once they retire from professional play.”

“I believe that embarking on this project will address the general absence of women in leadership positions in sports and help change the cultural expectations of women. My desire to work with females from UG came about during my competitive days as the number one player for the university. I met lots of athlete students who aside from competing, performed administrative and leadership roles. Out of the lots that I met, just a few pursued sports after graduation,” she added.

The first beneficiary of the project is Margaret Tuffour, a third-year Business Administration student at the University of Legon.

She says: “I joined Ace tennis academy to help me kick-start my fitness career journey.”