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Princeton University Athletics
Leaving A Lasting Legacy: Francis Akomeah '24
September 22, 2023 | Men's Soccer, Featured
Francis Akomeah, a senior captain on the men's soccer team, has developed into a well-respected leader and aims to leave a lasting legacy on the program.
Akomeah, born in 2002, was raised in a town called Apam, located on the coastline of Ghana in West Africa. At the beginning of 2008, his mother was accepted into the University of Denver to pursue her Master's and later her PhD, so she and Francis' two sisters moved to the United States while Francis remained with his father in Ghana. "I remember just missing my sisters and my mom a lot," said Akomeah. "It was really emotional when they left." Nine months after the move, Francis made his way to the United States to reunite with the rest of his family.
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Once in Denver, Francis' interest in soccer was sparked through pick-up recess games along with joining a youth recreational team run by a family friend. "That was the first team I played on in the United States - the Cosmos," said Akomeah. "It was the first coach who got me my first ever pair of cleats, shin guards, soccer socks, all of that. I didn't even know what I needed to show up to practice at that point."
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Fast forward 15 years, Akomeah has since been named the co-captain along with fellow teammate Ryan Winkler. When asked what it meant to him to be a senior captain, Akomeah said "it definitely means a lot because when I first got to campus, it was the spring of COVID year. So we still had to train with masks on. In my first real season, we were able to win the league with our leaders at the forefront." He believed that the leaders on that 2021 squad set a great example for the rest of the team as to the kind of leadership necessary to facilitate a winning team.
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"This year, it was definitely an honor to be voted captain with Ryan," said Akomeah. "First of all, because we're really good friends in the first place, and because I would say we definitely had a vision of how leadership should be on the team and how to best facilitate a winning environment for us. For me personally. It's not something to be taken lightly. I like that responsibility a lot because the team's results reflect a lot on me and Ryan as leaders."
Looking ahead to graduation, Francis has reflected upon the type of legacy that he aims to leave. "The legacy that I want to leave is that I competed every day," said Akomeah. "I competed every day and I hated losing more than I loved winning at some points." The senior also mentioned "being extremely competitive at the forefront and also being somebody that listened to everybody on the team and allowed everybody to have a voice on the team. On top of that just, an easy guy to talk to and to hang out with all the time as well."
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Akomeah continues to display the qualities of a Princeton student-athlete bound for a lasting legacy. His dedication and passion will impact the Tiger men's soccer team for many years to come.
Interesting Tidbits about Francis Akomeah:
- Interesting class in his Fall 2023 schedule - "I'm taking a class right now called Economics of the internet. It is a very engaging class because the topics are really relevant today, like talking about AI. What I really like about it is that we do case studies in a kind of debate style where one side of the class picks one side of the debate, then the other is assigned to the other half. Then you go into a debate style form. That's definitely a class that's really engaging. Really interesting, for sure."
- Leadership style - "We definitely wanted to take more of a big brother approach rather than that of dictators. That type of team is way more fun from my experience. Before senior year, the team was a lot better when everybody felt like they're involved and their voices were heard. I think that just breeds an environment where everybody becomes happy for everybody else's success, even if they might not be going through their best moment in time."
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