By Bolfrey William Abbam
The Bono Region has taken another step towards strengthening grassroots sports development following the successful launch of the WABs Athlete Development Camp, held in Sunyani on August 7 and 9, 2026.
The camp, organised by WABs, brought together young athletes, university student-athletes, coaches and an international American football player with the goal of helping young people understand that becoming a better athlete goes beyond simply playing a sport.
What is WABs?
WABs is a multi-purpose creative and development platform founded and led by Bolfrey William Abbam. The organisation focuses on sports performance, youth development, health education and sustainable impact.
Through its sports development programmes, WABs seeks to provide young athletes with practical knowledge and simple training methods that they can continue using even when they are not on the court or at a formal training session.
The WABs Athlete Development Camp is part of this vision. The programme is designed to help athletes develop the physical qualities needed for sports, including strength, balance, speed, endurance, coordination, mobility and body control.
Building athletes beyond the game
The camp was designed around a simple message: playing basketball or another sport is only one part of becoming a complete athlete. Participants were introduced to exercises that can be performed with little or no equipment and can be continued at home.
The aim was to give young athletes the tools to take responsibility for their own development and become better athletes outside their normal team training sessions. The exercises included squats, push-ups, squat jumps, single-leg balance exercises, sprints in place and lateral bounds, among others.
Each exercise served a specific purpose. Squats help develop lower-body strength, push-ups build upper-body strength, squat jumps introduce explosive power, single-leg balance improves stability and body control, while sprints in place and lateral bounds help develop speed, coordination and movement.
The programme therefore focused not simply on getting the participants tired, but on teaching them why they are performing each exercise and how it can contribute to their sporting development.
Young athletes take the first step
The first session on August 7 featured young athletes from XCEL Basketball Academy, with children as young as five years old participating. The young players took part in age-appropriate drills designed to introduce them to basic athletic movements while keeping the session enjoyable and engaging.
Beyond the practical training, the participants were given personalised home workout plans to encourage them to continue working on their development after the camp. The young athletes also received the WABs Charge 1.0 performance wristband, an unreleased product from WABs WEAR, adding another memorable element to their experience.
International experience inspires university athletes
The second phase of the camp focused on university student-athletes and their developmental needs.
One of the major highlights was the appearance of Jeffrey Isha, an American football player based in Germany who plays for the Potsdam Royals in the German Football League 1 (GFL1).
Isha shared his personal experience of competing outside Ghana and gave the student-athletes an honest look at what it takes to pursue sporting opportunities at the international level.
His message went beyond motivation.
He spoke about the discipline, consistency, commitment and personal responsibility required to progress as an athlete. His experience gave the participants a practical example of what can be achieved when an athlete takes development seriously and is prepared to put in the necessary work.
Isha also encouraged the university athletes to embrace structured development programmes such as the WABs Athlete Development Programme.
His presence was particularly important because it allowed the young athletes to hear directly from someone who has moved from competing in Ghana to playing professionally in Europe. For many of the participants, the interaction provided a clearer picture of the possibilities that exist beyond Ghana and the level of preparation required to reach them.
Strong coaching foundation
The camp was also supported by experienced coaching leadership, including Coach Anthony Nii Adotey, Head Coach and General Manager of XCEL Basketball Academy.
Coach Tony brought his experience in basketball development and worked with the participants throughout the sessions. His involvement helped athletes understand proper movement, technique, discipline and the importance of developing good habits at an early age.
The combination of practical training, coaching education and international exposure made the camp more than a conventional sports clinic. It created an environment where participants could learn, train, ask questions and understand the bigger picture of athletic development.
A vision beyond Sunyani
Speaking on the programme, WABs founder and Managing Director Bolfrey William Abbam said the Sunyani camp represents only the beginning of a broader vision for athlete development in Ghana.
The organisation plans to expand the WABs Athlete Development Programme to other parts of the country, with the introduction of more training modules, regional development camps and talent identification initiatives.
The long-term objective is to help create a stronger pathway for young Ghanaian athletes by connecting grassroots participation with structured training, mentorship, education and opportunities to compete at higher levels.
For WABs, the goal is not simply to produce better basketball players, football players or athletes in one particular sport. It is to help develop well-rounded young people who understand how to train, take care of their bodies, develop discipline and pursue excellence both in sport and in life.
As the organisation continues to grow, the WABs Athlete Development Camp is positioning itself as a platform through which young athletes can discover that their development does not have to stop when practice ends.
The message from Sunyani was clear: Ghana’s next generation of athletes needs more than talent. They need knowledge, discipline, opportunity and the right development pathway—and WABs is working to help provide it.
