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Kenya’s chess captain for people living with disabilities Anthony Kionga has said the country will be in a better position to take on the world in their next outing.

The national team bowed out of the ongoing first-ever online World Olympiad Chess Championship for People Living with Disabilities with a big fight,  after recording one victory, two draws, and four defeats in their seven outings to leave captain Kionga full of optimism and praise for the team.

“This is a good performance given that it is their first outing. We’ve identified our weak spots and once we resume training we shall be working on them.

This team is determined and willing to put in the work to be the best. I can say the future is bright” said captain Anthony Kionga.

The team represented by the 2019 national champion Sadam Ali Sheikh, as well as Robert Ndirangu, Geoffrey Maoga, and Ivini Boke started their campaign on a low note, losing the opening three fixtures 4-0 to Turkey team A, 3-1 to Turkey B, and 4-0 to Malaysia. 

In the fourth time of asking, Kenya turned tables and grew in stature and momentum as the competition continued, beating Libya 4-0 before slowing down to draw with Nicaragua and Mongolia with identical 2-2 draws in their final preliminary matches, leaving the championship with heads high and valuable lessons learned.

Robert Ndirangu, playing in board two, was the star performer in team Kenya beating four players from Libya, Nicaragua, Panama, and Mongolia with impressive Ivini Boke, the only lady in the team, standing out as second-best performer after beating three players from Libya, Nicaragua, and Mongolia. 

Sheikh had one victory against Libya while Geoffrey Maoga recorded two victories against Libya and Turkey team B players.

From the individual brilliance of the quartet, Kenya finished top in Africa and 53rd globally out of the 60 teams from 45 different countries across Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe that took part in the inaugural championship that will come to its climax on Thursday, December 3 during the International Day for Persons with Disabilities.