Habiba Atta Forson (born 18 August) is a

Ghanaian Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

veteran

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

administrator and a former

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

athlete for Ghana. On 24 October 2019, she contested and won a slot to serve on the Executive Council of the

Ghana Football Association The Ghana Football Association (GFA) is a governing body of association football, based in Accra. Founded in 1957, it was dissolved with "immediate effect", according to Minister of Sport, Isaac Kwame Asiamah, on 7 June 2018, after the uncoverin ...

, making her the only woman currently serving on the Ghana Football Association's executive council. She is known for being the first person to introduce women's football in

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

. She is also the founder of Fabulous Ladies, one of the popular women football team in Ghana.

Early life

Forson started her basic school education at Yaa Achiaa Girls Basic in Kumasi, where she started developing the love for sports. She proceeded to

T.I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School, Kumasi T.I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School (Real Amass) is a coeducational second-cycle public educational institution in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. History The school was established by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission, Ghana, on 30 January 1950. ...

where she continued to nurture and develop her skill in high jump and other field events. Whilst in school she represented Ashanti Region during National Sports Festivals where excelled by winning medals in

high Jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...

javelin throw The javelin throw is a track and field event where the javelin, a spear about in length, is thrown. The javelin thrower gains momentum by running within a predetermined area. Javelin throwing is an event of both the men's decathlon and the ...

and

4 × 100 metres relay The 4 × 100 metres relay or sprint relay is an athletics track event run in lanes over one lap of the track with four runners completing 100 metres each. The first runners must begin in the same stagger as for the individu ...

events.

Career

Athletics

In 1965, during the first All-Africa Games held in

Congo Brazzaville The Republic of the Congo (french: République du Congo, ln, Republíki ya Kongó), also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply either Congo or the Congo, is a country located in the western coast of Central Africa to the w ...

, she was part of the Ghana's track and field athlete team and won silver in the high jump contest. She was also a member of the team that also won silver in

. Between 1962 and 1965, Forson made a huge impact in track and field when she won the national high jump championship consecutively and set a national record in 1963 - a record which stayed intact for five years before it was broken. In 1977, she won the regional tennis championship at which point in time she had bowed out from active athletics competitions.

Football administration

Forson was a staff and coach at Kumasi Secondary Technical College (KISCO). She is known for her instrumental role in transforming players like

Frimpong Manso Stephen Frimpong Manso (born 15 May 1959) is a Ghanaian football coach and former player who manages Bofoakwa Tano. Playing career Manso played as a defender for Cornerstones and Asante Kotoko Asante Kotoko Sporting Club, simply known as ...

from a striker into a defender and George Kennedy to become a lethal striker on the local scene. Frimpong Manso went on to play for

Asante Kotoko Asante Kotoko Sporting Club, simply known as Asante Kotoko, is a professional football club founded on 31 August 1935 and based in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Nicknamed the ''Porcupine Warriors'', they compete in the Ghana Premier Lea ...

and Ghana national team. In 1985, Forson started Ghana Women's Premier League side Fabulous Ladies, with the name Ashtown Ladies. She vied for position on a position on Ghana Football Association executive committee via the sole Constituent Bodies slot on two occasions but lost to Leanier Addy. However, in October 2019, she was won a slot on the executive committee via the newly created women's football slot. She polled eight of the 16 available votes edging her closest challenger Evelyn Nsiah Asare by a solitary vote. One of her tasks as the women's representative was to work along with Naa Odofoley Nortey to come up with a comprehensive policy document on women's football, with focus on improving visibility, packaging and branding. In 2020, she was appointed as the Black Queens management committee chairperson, retaining the position also in 2021. Prior to that, she has served on the committee as a member for several years. She also headed and worked as a member of several other sports committees including working Ashanti Regional Women's League and juveniles committees. In December 2019, she was appointed as the head of

Ghana Women's FA Cup The Ghana Women's FA Cup, is the top women's knockout tournament of the Ghanaian association football. The competition is played between the clubs of the Ghana Women's Premier League and Division One League. The inaugural winners of the competitio ...

Committee retaining that position also in 2021. She is also a former management member of

Kumasi Asante Kotoko Asante Kotoko Sporting Club, simply known as Asante Kotoko, is a professional football club founded on 31 August 1935 and based in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Nicknamed the ''Porcupine Warriors'', they compete in the Ghana Premier Le ...

Personal life

Forson has six children.

Honours

In June 2021, during the 2021

Ghana Football Awards Ghana Football Awards is an annual award scheme organized to recognize the best Ghanaian players playing in and outside of the country and key stakeholders who contribute significantly to the game. Several category of awards are given to the most o ...

, Forson was honoured with the Special Achievement Award for her immense contribution to Ghana football and specifically women's football in Ghana.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forson, Habiba Atta Living people Ghanaian sportspeople Year of birth missing (living people) Ghanaian football chairmen and investors Women association football executives Ghana Football Association executives T.I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School (Kumasi) alumni Ghanaian female high jumpers Athletes (track and field) at the 1965 All-Africa Games African Games silver medalists for Ghana African Games competitors for Ghana African Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Sportspeople from Kumasi