Final Report  - Daniel Nsibambi (Uganda)

Hi All,

Uganda has moved a step ahead in the final standings of the 35th Chess Olympiad that ended this afternoon here in Bled. With a total of 23.5 points, Uganda is now in position 114 out of 141 teams, up from 115 ranked at the beginning of the Olympiad. 

The final round was phsychologically diffficut and the Ethiopians got it better when they scored an unexpected 3.5 - 0.5 victory against Uganda. This was sweet revenge for the Ethiopians as they suffered  a similar 3 - 1 defeat  against Uganda in the final round of the 2000 Olympiad held in Isntabul Turkey.

Shadrack Kantinti, Steven Kawuma and Isaac Munanira did not appear to have the correct ammunition to counter the relentless attacks unleashed by Ethiopia. They all conceded defeat to an outfit that seemed to have everything going its way.

It was Emmanuel Mwaka playing black who shone and was in control most of the time. His opponent requested  for a draw  early  in the game.  Emmanuel shook his head for an answer and urged him to play on confident of victory. As the game progressed however, it emerged that a draw was the fairest result.  They both shook hands and declared it so.

Uganda's  tally of 23.5 points has been contributed as follows: Stephen Kawuma 7; Isaac Munanira 5.5; Grace Nsubuga 4.5; Shadrack Kantinti 4.5; Ignatius Wanderema 1; and Emmanuel Mwaka 1.

Russia at 28.5 points emerged champion of this year's Chess Olympiad. Egypt and Zambia are the best performing African countries.

( More details on www.35chessolympiad.com)

The Ugandan team has learnt many  lessons from this Olympiad. The foundation has been laid for even better performances in future Olympiads. The team thanks the sponsors and  well-wishers who made this trip possible. The media deserves special credit for giving Ugandans a regular update of  developments here.  All those who sent words of encouragement are also appreciated.

The team departs Monday morning and arrives in Kampala Wednesday afternoon.

Cheers

Daniel