“Messi!”
The name rings out from the balcony of the SRC Hostel at the University of Cape Coast. It’s the Games Village for the Ghana University Sports Association (GUSA) Games, and someone’s looking for Emmanuel Dela Mensah.
He pauses, tilts his head slightly, trying to locate where the voice came from. Leaning gently against a wall, he makes his way toward the washroom, navigating a world he can’t see—but one he deeply understands.
Emmanuel was just seven when everything changed. One moment, he was a typical child, full of energy and curiosity. The next, darkness. His sight vanished in an instant, long before he had the chance to figure life out. But even when the light left his eyes, his vision for the future didn’t dim.
In 2012, his life took a new direction. He enrolled in a school for the blind, stepping into a world where sound and touch would become his sharpest tools.
“I went to a school for the blind around 2012,” he says. “Every March 21st and 22nd, they’d hold inter-house sports. That’s where I found Goalball. Some years we did athletics, sometimes just indoor games.”
Before everything changed, life was simple and promising. He lived under the care of his mother, who was also a teacher at Osu St. Peter’s Primary School. But in the span of two years, he lost both his sight and his mother.
“Stevens-Johnson syndrome,” he explains softly, fighting back tears. “I had these intense headaches. My mom took me to the hospital. The next day, my skin turned black, and my eyes were burning. It felt like I was standing at the edge of death.”
He stops for a moment, then finishes the thought with quiet finality. “I became blind.”
That loss might have broken him, but instead, it led him to Goalball—a sport crafted for people like him. In Goalball, players track the ball by the sound of bells inside it. At first, Emmanuel was just a kid on the sidelines, soaking in the energy.
“I met senior players like Henry and Alhassan Aboagye,” he says. “I was only 12, so I stayed quiet. I just watched and learned.”
To him, the older players were legends. Their skills felt almost unreachable. But something had already been sparked in him—an ambition that refused to fade.
THE TURNING POINT
In Form Two, he finally got his chance. His Physical Education teacher, Mr. Evans Edu Gyemfi—one of his favorites—saw something in him.
“He told me to be patient,” Emmanuel remembers. “He said, ‘One day, you’ll be great in Goalball.’”
That promise stuck. Emmanuel poured everything into the game. His speed, accuracy, and love for competition soon earned him a nickname among his peers—“Messi.”
THE MESSI CONNECTION
The nickname fits in more ways than one. Like Lionel Messi, Emmanuel is a quiet force of nature. Messi, despite being just 5’6”, became one of the greatest footballers ever, overcoming a growth hormone deficiency diagnosed at age 11. Doctors once said he’d never be tall enough to compete. But he proved them wrong—with treatment, grit, and raw talent.
That story hits close to home for Emmanuel. Both he and Messi faced huge setbacks early on. One lost his vision. The other fought to grow. But neither let those struggles define them. They found their power in the very thing people assumed would hold them back.
And even though goalball and football rely on different senses, the spirit behind them is the same—heart, instinct, and the courage to keep playing.
Messi conquered football. Emmanuel believes he can do the same in goalball.
A NEW STAGE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA
Now studying Political Science and Philosophy at the University of Ghana, Emmanuel continues to sharpen his craft. His sense of direction, timing, and anticipation on the court set him apart. At the recent GUSA Games in Cape Coast, he helped lead his team to a silver medal. They didn’t take the top spot, but he proved he’s among the best in the country.
“He deserves it,” said his coach, Benedict Sarpei Ntreh. “He has passion, and when you’re passionate about something, you put your all into it. That’s exactly what Emmanuel did.”
“He gave it everything—his throws were so powerful,” the coach added. “Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was the tournament’s top scorer. We just didn’t track goals.”
Coach Benedict, who once served as technical director for the Ghana Blind Sports Association, understands how hard it is for athletes like Emmanuel to rise in a system that doesn’t always support them.
“Getting help from the government is incredibly tough,” he admits. “It’s hurting the sport. Not just Goalball, but all the lesser-known ones. Every time you ask for funding, you hear the same thing—‘no money.’”
BEYOND SIGHT, BEYOND LIMITS
Emmanuel’s not letting that stop him. His dreams go far beyond university games. He wants to wear Ghana’s colors on the world stage, to show that talent doesn’t care about limitations—it just needs a chance.
“In places like Algeria, Brazil, and China, goalball is a big deal,” he says. “But in Ghana, sports for the visually impaired are always pushed aside. The focus is only on the Black Stars.”
There’s a quote from Pablo Picasso that says, “Every child is an artist. The problem is staying an artist when you grow up.”
Emmanuel lives that truth. He lost his sight but never lost his ability to dream. And as he moves forward, one thing is clear: he may live in a world he can’t see, but nothing can dim the light he brings to it.
Credit: AIPS Media
