Chess Olympiad : Nigeria’s men, women split opening two rounds in Samarkand

After two completed rounds at the 46th FIDE World Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Team Nigeria’s men’s and women’s teams have both recorded one victory and one defeat, leaving each team on 2 match points.

In the men’s event, Nigeria entered the Olympiad as the 84th seed with an average rating of 2282.

In Round 1, Nigeria hit New Caledonia 4-0. All four players won their games, Bomo Lovet Kigigha, Abdulrahman Akintoye Abdulraheem, IM Odion Aikhoje and Odey Goodness Ekunke.

However in Round 2 Kazakhstan beat Nigeria 3½–½. Odion Aikhoje secured Nigeria’s only half-point, drawing Daniyal Sapenov, while Abdulraheem, Bartholomew Okhipo and Ekunke lost.

After two rounds, Nigeria has 2 match points and 4½ board points, with a 1–1 record, and sits 84th in the official standings.

Aikhoje leads Nigeria with 1½/2, while Abdulraheem and Ekunke have 1/2. Kigigha has 1/1, having not played Round 2, while Okhipo has 0/1.

Meanwhile, in the women’s category, Nigeria began as the 66th seed, with an average rating of 2018.

Nigeria knocked down Mali 4-0. Deborah Quickpen and Michelle Nwankwo were among the Nigerian winners in a clean sweep.

But in Round 2, England defeated Nigeria 3½–½. Michelle Nwankwo produced Nigeria’s only positive result, holding Jovanka Houska to a draw. Deborah Quickpen, Sandra Omoruyi and Bridget Michael lost their games.

Nigeria therefore has 2 match points and 4½ board points, also with a 1–1 record, and is 66th after two rounds.

Michelle Nwankwo is Nigeria’s leading scorer so far with 1½/2, while Quickpen, Omoruyi and Michael have 1 point each.

The tournament runs for 11 rounds through September 27, so both Nigerian teams still have nine rounds remaining.

Notably, both teams produced dominant opening-round victories but faced significantly stronger opponents in Round 2, resulting in identical 1–1 records after two days.
‎