Summary

NAME: CAN OLY GHA 20120219I TAPE: EF10/0158 IN_TIME: 10:26:12:09 DURATION: 00:03:07:08 SOURCES: AP TELEVISION/HANDOUT DATELINE: Whistler, 18 Feb 2010/ Recent RESTRICTIONS: SHOTLIST: AP TELEVISION Whistler - 18 February 2010 1 Wide of crowds walking past Olympic Rings in central Whistler Village 2 Ghanaian Olympian Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, nicknamed The Snow Leopard shaking hands with a young girl 3 Child watching 4 Kwame, coach and manager climb onto Olympic Rings to pose for photo 5 Close of Kwame 6 Close of Ghana Ski Team badge 7 Wide of Kwame, coach and manager posing on rings 8 Kwame entering news conference 9 Cutaway cameras 10 SOUNDBITE: (English) Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, Olympic slalom competitor: There is a country called Ghana and we have our own type of culture We don''t have snow but we can ski 11 Wide of news conference 12 SOUNDBITE: (English) Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, Olympic slalom competitor: When I go on the slope it is just about me going through those gates as quickly as I can and at the end I want to turn around and look at the clock and see a few other names behind me and then I''m okay 13 Close of Ghana black star on shirt 14 SOUNDBITE: (English) Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, Olympic slalom competitor: So it is about the competition It is not about all the funny things you can do to create loads of money or silly adverts and stuff like that 15 Cameraman 16 SOUNDBITE: (English) Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, Olympic slalom competitor: It''s about the future of the Ghana ski team If I go up on the slopes and make a muppet of the whole racecourse then the whole struggle has been a waste of time 17 Wide of news conference 18 Reverse of Kwame speaking to media 19 Close of Kwame talking to media, pulls out 20 SOUNDBITE: (English) Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, Olympic slalom competitor: I know people go like it''s about the participation, it''s about the fun But I wouldn''t be standing here if it was about the fun I''d be sitting down in my living room because I get cold feet, cold fingers, frost bite Why do it? It''s the competition at the end of the day Q: You don''t like the cold? A: No, I do not like the cold The only time I really love skiing is when it is sunny and my whole body is feeling warm Then it''s fine 21 Royal Canadian mounted police on horseback outside news conference venue 22 Kwame walks towards RCMP ''Mounties'' HANDOUT Mount Washington, Vancouver Island - recent 23 Various of Kwame skiing STORYLINE: Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, better known as ''The Snow Leopard'', is next week set to become the first ever Ghanaian to represent his country in the Winter Olympic Games, competing in the Men''s Slalom His story is one of triumph over adversity Arriving in Whistler, host of the Olympic Alpine Skiing events, Kwame received a warm welcome from fans gathered beside the Olympic Rings Born in Scotland, but raised in Ghana, in the last five years 35 year old Kwame has largely taught himself to ski It''s been a real battle to make it to Canada First he had to qualify and then raise enough money to bring the shoe-string ski team to contest one of the toughest events Through his own struggle, he hopes to spread word of his homeland and to blaze a trail for future Ghanaian competitors ''The Snow Leopard is unlikely to make it to the winner''s podium but he says he''ll be happy if he finishes other than last Some of the media have uncharitably compared his taking part to that of ''Eddie the Eagle'' in the 1988 Games, a jocular British ski long jumper whose ability level was so far off that of the rest that many onlookers frowned at his participating at all ''The Snow Leopard'' would rather be compared to the gutsy Jamaican bobsleigh team who made a name for themselves with a great performance in the 1988 Calgary Games Kwame hopes his legacy will to be build a base for future Ghanaian competitors to improve on and attract sponsorship to help him train the next generation of African skiers The Men''s Slalom is scheduled to be held on February 27