Chess: Mongeli reclaims title, men's race heads for nail-biting finish
Sasha Mongeli ponders her next move against Madelta Glenda during the 2023 Kenya National Chess Championship (KNCC) on December 29, 2023 at Nairobi Charter Hall, Nairobi.
What you need to know:
- Equity Bank Chess player Elvis Likoko (1817) leapfrogged Gohil into second spot with seven points after defeating Gabriel Mwangi. Kimani Kimingi defeated Matthew Kamau to jump four places to third with seven points.
- Gohil, who has drawn twice and won five times, has also amassed seven points, but with an inferior tie-breaker.
The battle for the brand new Nissan Note car, which is at stake in the Open Section of the 2023 Kenya National Chess Championship (KNCC) will go down to the wire on Saturday at Charter Hall in Nairobi.
This after eight of the nine rounds that have been played failed to produce an outright winner. In the Ladies Section, Woman Fide Master (WFM) Sasha Mongeli won the crown after taking her points tally to eight with a win over Glenda Madelta.
It is her second title after her maiden triumph in 2021. Defending champion Joyce Nyaruai was second with seven points after defeating Shakira Shukri (1162) in round eight on Friday evening. WCM Nyaruai cannot win the title since she lost to Mongeli in round six on Thursday even if she triumphs in the final round and Mongeli loses due to head-to-head record.
Former top seed Joseph Methu (1986) remained on the steering wheel in the Open Section with 7.5 points after he battled to a draw with defending champion Mehul Gohil (1966) in the eighth round Friday evening.
It was the first time that Methu failed to bag maximum points in the competition that began on Tuesday.
Elvis Likoko ponders his next move against Gabriel Mwangi during the 2023 Kenya National Chess Championship (KNCC) on December 29, 2023 at Nairobi Charter Hall, Nairobi.
Equity Bank Chess player Elvis Likoko (1817) leapfrogged Gohil into second spot with seven points after defeating Gabriel Mwangi. Kimani Kimingi defeated Matthew Kamau to jump four places to third with seven points.
Gohil, who has drawn twice and won five times, has also amassed seven points, but with an inferior tie-breaker.
The 2021 champion Martin Njoroge (1870) was fourth with 6.5 points after sharing spoils with Austin Steve (1801) in the eighth round. Candidate Master (CM) and player-cum-coach Ben Magana, Steve, and Kinoti Mutuma followed in that order with 6.5 points each.
By the time of going to press, the pairings for the round nine planned for Saturday morning were not yet out.
While Methu is hoping to win his maiden title in the competition, Gohi is chasing his fourth crown after achieving the feat in 2014, 2019, and 2022.
He was awarded a brand new Mazda Demio Car for his victory in 2019 and 202Mong2. The second and third-place finishers in the Open Section of this year’s KNCC will receive Sh100,000 and Sh50, 000 respectively.
Mongeli will pocket Sh100,000, while the runners up will get Sh50,000. The KNCC is the first phase of the national team selection.
