Fide Master Walter Okas, the national youth chess coach, believes that the juniors that represented Uganda at the inaugural World Schools Chess Championship in Kazakhstan did a “decent” job.
Uganda had two teams competing in the U-12 category, Friends International Christian Academy (FICA) and Peak Primary School.
Both teams finished in the bottom third of the field, with FICA coming in 24th and Peak in 25th.
However, Okas believes that the results are not a true reflection of the Ugandan players’ abilities.
He says that the youngsters did not have enough time to train for the tournament, and that they were up against some of the best chess players in the world.
“Certainly they didn’t perform to their full potential,” Okas said, “but the kids had a very decent performance considering the limited time they got for training prior to the event.”
Okas was particularly impressed by one of the juniors, Ruth Thelma. She finished with a score of 3.5 out of 7 games, which was the best of any Ugandan player.
“Thelma Ruth was the outstanding performer for me,” Okas said. “Her play was composed and calm.”
In addition to Ruth Thelma, the other Ugandan players who competed at the World Schools Chess Championship were:
- Kayla Mulindwa (4 points out of 7 games)
- Natalie Nakandi (2 points out of 7 games)
- Elizabeth Saasi (1 point out of 7 games)
- Chanelle Iculet (2 points out of 7 games)
- Timothy Mulungi Serwadda (2 points out of 7 games)
- Samora Omara (1 point out of 7 games)
- Benjamin Mwesigwa Serwadda (1 point out of 7 games)
- Sankara Oyang (3 points out of 7 games)
Mulungi, Mwesigwa, and Oyang were the only Ugandan players who were rated before the tournament.
Mulungi had a rating of 1025, Mwesigwa had a rating of 1114, and Oyang had a rating of 1262.
The World Schools Chess Championship is an annual tournament that is open to players from all over the world. The 2023 tournament was held in Aktau, Kazakhstan, from August 4-8.
The tournament was won by the Russian team, with India finishing in second place and China in third.
Courtesy Photos
