Coach C.K. Gyamfi passes on

• Posted on September 2, 2015
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

Ghana legend Charles Kumi (CK) Gyamfi has passed on at the Cocoa Clinic in Accra, Starr Sports can confirm.

The 86-year-old was remarkable for being the first African player to play in Germany, when he joined Fortuna Düsseldorf in 1960.

Gyamfi won three Africa Cup of Nations trophies, making him one of the most successful coaches in the continental tournament besides former Egypt manager Hassan Shehata.

Gyamfi was one of the privileged few who had the opportunity to play for both Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko.

Legacy

He was enstooled as a chief by the people of Okorasi in the Eastern region of Ghana (1999). CK’s importance to football history and development in Ghana cannot be over emphasised.

His influence grew from the landmark genesis of being part of the Gold Coast XI team that toured Great Britain in 1951, where Ghana lost eight of its 10 matches playing barefooted. CK, then a young 22-year-old amongst senior players, scored 11 of Ghana’s goals.

“It was a sign of good things to come,” he told Goal two years ago.

Very few athletes have made the successful transition from exceptional player to exceptional coach. CK would later play for both Kotoko and Hearts, Ghana’s biggest clubs as a star player and captain, as well as once forming his own club (Great Ashanti 1954, after breaking away from Kotoko) through to being a founding member of the Black Stars, captaining and coaching it to many laurels.

-StarrFM