An 8-year-old pupil, Dave Chief Quansah Acheampong of the Jack and Jill School has won Africa Under 9 Chess Champion Competition in the just ended African Schools Individual Chess Championship 2020.
This year’s African Chess Confederation contest was hosted online as a result of the covid-19.
The five-day tournament saw 105 players from countries in the continent including Kenya, Uganda, Botswana, South Africa, Egypt, Angola, Algeria, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Morocco competing in different age categories: Under 9 years, Under 11 years, Under 13, Under 15 and Under 17years.
Dave, who is currently Ghana under 8 champion started the tournament with a win in the 1st round and suffered 3 losses in subsequent rounds and that would make many junior chess player lose hope and forfeit a tournament, however, the young boy showed great fighting spirit, he came back to win every game in the remaining 5 rounds of the tournament.
Finishing with 6 points out of 9 to grasp first place prize ahead of top favorites: Mohammed Hossam Adham from Egypt and Rannveer Tak from South Africa.
It came as a surprise to many in the Ghana Chess Association, even though Dave is believed to be a promising and talented young player, it is still hard to believe this incredible feat. This is the first time a Ghanaian chess player has conquered all of Africa.
Speaking to his father after the award ceremony, Mr. David Acheampong who is also the founder of Mentors Chess Academy said he introduced his son to chess at age four and since shown love for the game. He described his son as an asset for the country. Dave has won some local competitions and this is the biggest prize so far won.
He hopes this achievement would inspire more children to take interest in learning chess as it helps enhance problem-solving and analytical skills.
For his prize as the continental champion, Dave Chief Quansah Acheampong gets a roundtrip economy class air ticket by the African Chess Confederation to represent Africa in the World Schools Individual Chess Championships to be held in Halkidiki, Greece between May 2-11, 2021, where he would contest with winners from other continents.
The boy wants to be a chess grandmaster in the near future. It has become imperative for young prodigy to maintain his consistency in his chess hobby and therefore will need all the support going forward.
