Sports
The Day Rivers Players Shone Brightest At Chess Open Championship
Precisely from 20th – 24th April 2024 the attention of Nigeria Chess Federation (NCF) was drawn to Port Harcourt the Garden City of Nigeria as it played host to the third edition of Naphtali Open Chess Tournament,
The five days competition which was sponsored by Naphtali Physiotheraphy and Wellness Clinic Ltd., was held at Vee Hotel, Trans Amadi, in Port Harcourt and over 80 players in Nigeria had the opportunity to vie for honours, prizes and showcase their talents in the tournament.
The championship was recognised by Naphtali Chess Club and recognised by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) with the view to rank chess players in the country.
The Championship was witnessed by huge crowd, including notable chess players in the country, people from all walks of life, relatives and friends of the competitors.
The edition had an electrifying start as only eighteen (18) players emerged with a perfect score of 2/2 after the first two rounds, with only four players trailing by half a point.
Categories that participated in the tournament were; Male, Female, Veteran and Teenage; all these have different trophies and prizes at stake.
The atmosphere of the venue was captivated with excitement and can be compared to a Brazilian carnival as various fanfare took the stage while the tournament was on.
It was a keenly contested tournament as every player wanted to make a name for him/herself, most especially those competing for ranking.
There was absolute tranquility and concentration in the midst of the fanfare as the competition was going on because chess required such serene environment.
One of the matches that drew much attention was between 16-year-old Ferdinand Tersee Nyiuma and seasoned player CM Omorere Benjamin. The match saw a bold facing Tersee a resolute response from Benjamin. The game was breathtaking as both shared first position at the end.
It was a clash of the titans between Rivers born Koko Obubele and IIouno Ikenna, both players displayed what could be described as topnotch Chess artistry, showcasing skills and experience that saw Obubele, who eventually triumphed, dubbed the ‘king of double knight’.
This win earned Obubele the coveted trophy even as both finished tops in the tournament.
It was another exciting and notable encounter between Emmanuel Idara and Dr. Onyekwere Donald, South-East representative of NCF Board. Despite Idara’s status as the top seed, Donald’s steadfast defense and calculated play denied his opponent a place at the summit.
In the female category Rivers State born Queen Dan-Jumbo, made an impressive performance as she emerged the best female player in the Open Championship.
Also, special recognition was given to veteran participants, Dr. Apollos Akomaka also from Rivers and veteran female player Amadasun Rosemary, as they received the best veteran prizes.
It is worthy of note that Rivers State currently has the best chess players in Nigeria following track records both in the National Sports Festivals and National Competitions but it is worrisome that the game is not getting the desired attention as other Sports.
Consequently, the acting Chairman of Chess Association in the State, Dr. Appollos Akomaka has appealed to the Commissioner of Education in the State to make it mandatory for Chess to be included in the extracurricular activities of schools at all levels.
According to him, this will help to develop and promote the game at the grassroots level.
“ Chess is a very easy game to play both the rich and poor can play, but it requires commitment and determination to get to the peak. I personally started playing Chess as a teenager, it is good to start early.
“Honestly I am excited that I participated in the Open Chess Championship, and am also happy that I won the veteran category of the event”,Akomaka said.
Speaking shortly after the event, the winner of the male category, Koko Obubele, said the victory did not come easily, and noted that it was a very difficult competition but thanked God he won.
“ I am really happy that I emerged the champion in the male category because most of the best chess players in Nigeria participated.
“ Right now I am looking forward to international competitions because I have the zeal and talent.But what I really need is sponsorship, that is the only way for me to excel and make Nigeria, especially Rivers State proud” Obubele said.
Koko Obubele is one of the best Chess players in Nigeria, he has won several State and national championships including West African Universities Games, National Sports Festivals, Shell Chess Championship etc.
Also speaking, the winner of the best female player award in the tournament Queen Dan-Jumbo, expressed joy over her victory, saying that her dream was to become a chess grand master worldwide.
“ I am happy that I won this championship, this will spur me on do more and make Rivers State proud.
Tonye Orabere
Thierry Henry has called for the return of the away goals rule in the aftermath of the bombastic Champions League semi-final between Inter Milan and Barcelona.
The visitors at the Estadio Olimpic Lluis Companys came within milimeters of clinching the first leg of the final-four clash after former Arsenal star Henrikh Mkhitaryan netted late in the second-half.
But the linesman was quick to raise his flag, and semi-automated offside ruled out what would have been a thrilling conclusion to the high-octane 3-3 draw.
The hosts came from behind twice to share the spoils, chasing Inter Milan from the first minute of the game after Marcus Thuram stunned the Barcelona faithful into silence with his neatly flicked goal.
Denzel Dumfries doubled Inter’s lead 20 minutes later, but it took just three more for the Blaugrana to finally get on the scoresheet courtesy of a moment of magic from teenage starlet Lamine Yamal.
Ferran Torres drew Barcelona level ahead of the break, but Lamal was forced to play catch-up again in the second-half after Dumfries scored his second.
In light of the impressive effort from Inter, Henry wondered if the team should have got more from the fixture ahead of the second-leg at the San Siro.
‘I know it’s been like that for a very time, and we have to accept it,’ Henry said of the removal of the away goals rule, ‘But off air I was talking to Jamie (Carragher), and I was like, “how can you score three goals away from home and you don’t have an advantage?”
‘Away goals for me were massive, you score three goals away and you still don’t have an advantage 0-0 at home,’ Henry shrugged.
UEFA took the decision to scrap the rule which gave goals scored away from home the ability to act as a tiebreaker in the case of level scorelines ahead of the 2021-22 season.
Current FIFA Chief of Global Football Development Arsene Wenger claimed during his time as Arsenal manager in 2015 that the away goals rule ‘encouraged the team at home not to attack’ and that ‘the weight of the away goal (was) too big today’.
Without the rules, the tie at San Siro will go to extra time and penalties to decide which teams books their spot in the Champions League final.
But based on Wednesday evening’s performance, Henry seemed to give Inter a fighting chance against the newly minted Copa del Rey champions.
The 2025 London Marathon set a new world record for the number of finishers despite hot conditions on Sunday for its 45th edition.
A total of 56,640 runners crossed the finish line at the end of the 26.2-mile route, Guinness World Records has confirmed.
The number surpassed the previous record of 55,646 set by the New York Marathon in November.
Hugh Brasher, chief executive of London Marathon Events, said he hoped the high number of finishers inspired people to apply for the 2026 race ballot.
“The London Marathon was already the most popular in terms of ballot entries, with 840,318 people applying for the 2025 race,” he said.
“It is also the world’s largest annual one-day fundraising event with more than £1.3bn raised for charity since 1981.”
The number of people applying for the ballot to enter this year’s race broke the world record of 578,304 for the 2024 edition.
Of UK applicants 49% were female, while there was a 105% increase in applications from people aged between 20-29.
Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa surged to victory in the elite women’s race in a world record for a women’s only field, while Kenya’s Sebastian Sawe triumphed in the men’s event.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has said that his side will have to do something special in Paris if they are to reach the Champions League final following defeat in their semi-final first leg.
Ousmane Dembele’s early strike at the Emirates leaves the Gunners needing to overturn a one-goal deficit against Paris St-Germain in the second leg at the Parc des Princes next week.
It was an ultimately frustrating night for Arsenal at Emirates Stadium, who failed to convert any of their five shots on target.
“If you want to win the Champions League final, you have to do something special. We’re going to have to do something special in Paris to be there,” Arteta said.
PSG dominated the opening 20 minutes of the match and, while the hosts grew into the game, they continued to be frustrated by the French side’s solid defence, failing to score in a home Champions League match for the first time since February 2016.
“We have a lot of chances to be in that final. As I repeat myself, you have to do something special in the competition to have the right to be in the final. And the time to do it is going to be in Paris,” said Arteta.
Arsenal have not reached the final since 2005-06 while PSG are hunting a first Champions League trophy.
As they did against Liverpool and Aston Villa earlier in the campaign, Luis Enrique’s side relied on Italian keeper, Gianluigi Donnarumma to keep them out of trouble.
The 26-year-old kept a clean sheet and made five saves – including important stops to deny Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard in one-on-one situations.
“At the end, we have two of our front players one v one with Donnarumma. If they scored the goal it is different. He made the saves, like he did against Liverpool and Villa, and that’s the difference in the Champions League,” Arteta said.
But Enrique says the shot-stopper was just doing his job.
“That’s the work of a goalkeeper, no? Save the team, they work every day for that. In a semi-final, you need all the players,” the Spaniard said.