Nigeria Finish 118th at 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Uzbekistan
Nigeria’s Open team finished 118th at the 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, after an 11-round campaign that produced five victories and six defeats.
The Nigerian team ended the competition with 10 match points and 21 game points, while the women’s team finished 85th with 11 match points and 24 game points.
The Olympiad, held from September 16 to 27, brought together teams from across the world in the Open and Women’s sections.
Nigeria’s Open Team
Nigeria made a positive start before struggling for consistency in the middle stages of the tournament.
One of the team’s toughest results came in Round 6, when Vietnam secured a 4–0 victory. Nigeria responded with a strong 3½–½ win over Tunisia in Round 9, but suffered another 4–0 defeat to North Macedonia in Round 10.
The campaign ended with a narrow 2½–1½ loss to Hong Kong. Bomo Lovet Kigigha recorded Nigeria’s only win in the final round, while Odion Aikhoje and Bartholomew Okhipo were beaten.
Abdulrahman Akintoye and Odey Goodness Ekunke were Nigeria’s leading individual scorers, both finishing on 5½ points. Aikhoje ended with 4½, while Kigigha scored 3½.
Nigeria’s 118th-place finish was below several other African teams. Algeria was the continent’s highest-ranked Open team in 80th place, followed by Angola in 81st and South Africa in 82nd.
Women Finish 85th
Nigeria’s women produced a better overall position, finishing 85th after four wins, three draws and four defeats.
The team gathered 11 match points and 24 game points, with a late surge highlighted by a 3–1 victory over Guatemala in Round 10.
Deborah Quickpen, Iyefu Onoja and Sandra Omoruyi secured wins in that encounter.
Nigeria, however, could not finish on a winning note, losing 2½–1½ to Syria in the final round. Quickpen claimed Nigeria’s only individual victory, while Onoja and Michelle Nwankwo lost and Omoruyi drew.
Omoruyi was Nigeria’s top individual scorer with 6½ points, followed by Quickpen and Bridget Michael on 5½ each. Nwankwo finished on 4½.
Egypt led the African women in 53rd place, with Angola 69th, Algeria 72nd and Uganda 79th ahead of Nigeria.
Uzbekistan, China Take Olympic Titles
Hosts Uzbekistan successfully defended their Open title, finishing top with 20 match points after winning 10 of their 11 matches.
India claimed silver with 18 points, while Germany also finished on 18 but settled for third place on the tie-break.
China dominated the Women’s section, completing an unbeaten campaign with nine wins and two draws for 20 match points.
Kazakhstan finished second with 18 points, while India took third with 17.
For Nigeria, the Samarkand Olympiad provided another opportunity for the country’s leading players to compete against the world’s best, while highlighting the gap that remains between Nigeria and the continent’s leading chess federations.
The 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad ended with Uzbekistan retaining its Open crown and China ruling the Women’s competition, as Africa continued its quest for stronger performances and greater depth on the international chess stage.
