The relay team of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology dominated both the men’s and women’s races in the first-ever Relay Open Championship held in Ghana.

The historic event, which took place at Paa Joe Park on Saturday, 14 February 2026, in Kumasi, attracted 300 athletes of all levels from schools, institutions and athletics clubs across the nation. The athletes participated in the 4x100m, 4x200m, 4x400m and 4x800m events.

The competition was open to multiple age groups, including Under-15, U18/U20 and seniors.

A short drizzle during the 4x100m events caused a major inconvenience for the electronic timing team, with no times recorded during the race.

Despite the inconvenience, the KNUST quartet delivered an outstanding race in the men’s 4x100m to win gold in front of the home crowd. Their direct rivals, Ghana Police, missed a baton change on the curve.

Their women’s team came from behind to finish in style and win gold ahead of Ghana Police.

Earlier in the day, best home-based sprinter Edwin Gadaye, on his birthday, excited the crowd as he anchored Ghana Police to win the men’s 4x200m with a photo finish ahead of KNUST. Both teams ran 1.26s, but it was Gadaye’s Ghana Police who won by inches at the end. Golden Spirits settled for bronze with 1.28s.

“The feeling is normal for me. The African Championship is the main target. This is to open the season and I look forward to big and surprising things,” Gadaye said.

Osei Kyeretwie Senior High School’s quartet of Ansu Gyeabo Christopher, Ayuba Abdalai, John Kombat and Abubaka Alhassan won gold in the men’s 4x800m final, running 7:53, while Ghana Police’s quartet of Haruna Gyibril, Sackitey Peter, Germain K. Dzorgbesi and Tininya Kombat ran 7:59 to take silver.

The championship is designed to create awareness and build momentum ahead of Ghana’s National Open Championships later in the year, while placing special focus on relay development, an area Ghana Athletics CEO Ahmed Baffoe believes the country continues to show promise in on the international stage.

“At the national level, our strength lies in the relay, so this event forms part of what we are doing to augment our team,” he told Joy Sports.

The winners of the event will run as curtain raisers when Ghana host the 2026 African Senior Championships in Accra next May.

Organisers believe the initiative will strengthen baton exchange efficiency, team coordination and depth-building within Ghana’s relay structure, key components for international success.

SEEDAfrique (Strategic Engineering Experience Drive Afrique) is actively involved in promoting athletics in Ghana. Its co-founder, Billy James Dega, said they want the event to stay.

“We are looking forward to establishing a relay competition next year as World Athletics does. We want to see this event become a main national event to qualify athletes for the African Championships, which Ghana is hosting soon.”