The 13th African Games in the land of Ghana ended with a resounding victory for Egypt, who won 102 gold medals (191 total), twice as many as their nearest rivals, Nigeria, who settled for second place with 47 gold medals (121 total). South Africa secured third place with 106 medals, 32 of which were gold.

The African Games Accra 2023 also saw remarkable team performances from the host nation.

Football

Desmond Ofei, head coach of the "Black Satellites", attributed the success of Ghana's U-20 men's national football team to the incorporation of Ghana's football DNA, which led to their gold medal win at the 13th African Games. He expressed optimism that "with the gold medal at the African Games, the team will surely get more support and exposure".

Ghana, who hosted the African Games for the first time, dominated the men's and women's football competitions. In the men's competition, the "Black Stars" beat Uganda 1-0 in the final to claim gold in the U-20 category. The gold medal is Ghana's first in men's football at the African Games since the 2011 edition in Mozambique. The winning goal was scored by Jerry Afriyie in the 90th minute.

The "Black Princesses" also secured the women's title with a late goal. Ghana were crowned champions of the U-20 women's tournament after a dramatic 2-1 win over defending champions Nigeria. Uganda took bronze after defeating Senegal in the play-off for bronze.

Hockey

In a nail-biting showdown at the Theodosia Okoh Stadium, Ghana's national women's hockey team, the Black Sticks, secured their first field hockey gold medal at the African Games. The dramatic victory came when they defeated fierce rivals Nigeria 4-3 in a sudden-death penalty shoot-out.

Ghana's best performance prior to today's gold medal was a fourth place finish at the Abuja Games in 2003. Kenya, who finished last in the group stage, improved in the closing stages to take bronze.

In the men's competition, Egypt overcame Ghana after a 2-2 draw in which the hosts staged a historic comeback from 2-0 down. The penalty shootout ended 3-1 in favour of the Egyptians, leaving a sour taste in the hosts' mouths as they failed to complete a 'double in hockey.

Basketball 3x3

Algeria overcame a 6-9 halftime deficit to win gold in the men's 3×3 basketball competition at the XIII African Games with a 16-11 final victory. Uganda finished third with a 17-11 victory.

In the women's competition, Mali defeated Nigeria 21-11 in a West African derby, while the Democratic Republic of Congo beat Benin to finish third.

Handball

In handball, Egypt claimed one of its 102 gold medals with a narrow 33-32 victory over the Republic of Congo, while Nigeria completed the podium with a 38-20 win over Benin.

In the women's competition, Angola won the gold medal unbeaten and convincingly, beating Burkina Faso 47-13, Ghana 35-13, Algeria 38-18 in the group stage and the Republic of Congo 33-15. Meanwhile, Cameroon beat Algeria 29-21 in the play-off for third place to claim bronze.

Cricket

Zimbabwe was the inaugural champions of the women's T20 cricket tournament at the 13th African Games, winning the gold medal after a thrilling super-over win over South Africa in the final. 

In the men's competition, Zimbabwe also claimed glory in the final. In an impressive bowling display, Zimbabwe restricted Namibia to 113/7 in 20 overs. The opening partnership between Tadiwanashe Marumani (25*) and Rodney Mufudza (24*) led Zimbabwe to victory over Namibia and the gold medal.

Rugby

The Accra 2023 tournament will go down in history as the debut of rugby as a competitive sport at the 13th African Games. South Africa, the reigning world champions, did not take part in the event, leaving the field open for others. 

Uganda won gold in the men's competition, with Zimbabwe taking silver. Uganda were the women's champions, with Madagascar taking silver and Tunisia bronze.

Volleyball

The Egyptian men's volleyball team secured the gold medal at the end of the tournament, beating Kenya 3-0 in the final. The team was watched by Egypt's Minister of Youth and Sports, Ashraf Sobhy, who attended the match and received the flag for the next edition of the Games, which Egypt will host in 2027. Ghana finished third after beating Cameroon 3-2.

In the women's competition it was the other way round as Kenya (3-0) denied Ghana the chance to break the all-time record for medals at the African Games on the final day of competition.

With this victory and the gold medal in men's volleyball, Egypt equalled their previous tally of 102 gold medals in the history of the African Games. Not bad for the North Africans, who led the tournament on Ghanaian soil from start to finish.