Uganda’s male team beat Mauritius 3.5 – 0.5 in round 6 of the World Chess Olympiad to get to the top of the standings in Group D, one match point ahead of fierce rivals Tunisia. With 5 rounds left, competition in Group D is very stiff.
Uganda’s win was orchestrated by Arthur Ssegwanyi, Harold Wanyama and Bob Bibasa who beat Mauritius’ FIDE Master Phillips Roy (rated 2257), Seegolan Pradeep (rated 2041) and Koster Jeroen Louis respectively.
Patrick Kawuma sealed the sweet victory with a hard fought draw against Mauritius’ Candidate Master Li Ying Patrick (rated 2120) on Board two after the two engaged each other in a Kings Indian formation for hours. The win, the third at the event for Uganda coupled with an earlier draw and two losses means that Uganda now has 7 match points and is occupying Group D’s top spot for the second time since the 2012 World Chess Olympiad started. Group D also has African chess power house Algeria, Tunisia, Jamaica, Lebanon, Myanmar, Thailand and Sri Lanka among other countries.
The current conditions under which the Olympiad is being played are such that a team win earns 2 points, a draw 1 point and a loss 0. In order to emerge Group winner, team work other than individual points collection is at the fore. Eight (8) countries are closely trailing Uganda in joint second position at 6 points. These are Tunisia, Botswana, Thailand, Algeria, Sri Lanka, Guatemala, Myanmar and Jamaica.
Uganda’s hopes of maintaining the Group lead will be in for an acid test in the seventh round against Tajikistan, which is ranked 60th in world chess standings, 48 places above Uganda. Uganda’s players will have to contend with Tajikistan’s skilled and experienced players who include a Grandmaster on board one, an International Master and one FIDE Master. The opposition’s average rating is well above 2300 ELO points. Quite a tall order.
The playing teams are categorized into five Groups at the 40th World Chess Olympiad. The Groups are based on the level of strength of the different countries. After six rounds, China is leading Group A, Phillipines is leading Group B, IBCA is leading Group C, Uganda is leading Group D, and Nigeria is leading Group E. Uganda and Nigeria are the only two African countries leading their respective groups at this stage of the competition.
In the sixth round, the Ugandan ladies team fell at the hands of a more experienced Bangladesh in a 4-0 loss. Ivy Amoko, Goretti Angolikin, Phiona Mutesi and Rita Nsubuga Nansonve lost to Bangladesh’s WIM Hanid rani (rated 1932), WFM sultana Zakia (rated 1987), Khan Nazrana (rated 2008) and Chowdhury Mahmuda Hoque respectively.