Uganda Chess Federation (UCF) has set 8th, 22nd and 23rd as dates for the National Juniors Chess Championship.
The annual event that has produced some of the biggest chess stars in the country will take place at the Chess home, Gloria’s Garden in Namugongo.
It is set to attract a mammoth of juniors in both the Open and Girls sections which have been categorized into Under-8, U10, U12, U14, U16, U18 and U20.
The Championship will double as a qualifying event for the Africa Youth Chess Championship set to take place in Cairo, Egypt at the start of September.
The event will also act as a honing ground for the team that is set to travel to Eindhoven, Netherlands for the World Youth U-16 Chess Olympiad happening between August 12 to August 19.
It was a hotly contested event last year, but Benjamin Netanyahu Ajiri came out tops on a tie-break. He is the defending champion, but Arthur Mwase who he beat to the trophy and who is part of the Olympiad team will be seeking for revenge.
Nygaard Ajiri, Ethan Kigundu and Jacob Kairu are the other players that missed out on the title last year on a tie-break. They will also be hoping to follow in the footsteps of their stars like Fide Master Haruna Nsubuga, International Master Arthur Ssegwanyi who have won it before.
FM Harold Wanyama who is the national team coach says this event helps the Association in “keeping track on the best Juniors” they have.
