Author: web@chessa.co.za

Unfortunately the late arrival last night, the high humidity and heat has taken its toll today on our players.

U8 Open: unfortunately Ernst and Ntokoto both lost their games

U8 Girls – Phumla thought bravely, but unfortunately lost

U10 Open – Philip started well and full of confidence, but the late night and long travel was just too much.

U10 Girls – Atlehang, Ogone and Iviwe thought hard and played long games. Concentration was lacking as the energy levels dropped, and unfortunately we did not bring a win home.

U12 Girls – Maeom lost the battle unfortunately

U12 Open – Jordan got a bye this morning.

U14 Girls – Oreratile and Mika both struggled this morning, but these ladies are well rested and we are holding thumbs for a win tomorrow morning.

U14 Open – unfortunatly Christoph and Oratile played tough games and lost.

U16 Girls – Both Jaculene and Lune were exhausted and concentration lapsed due to not enough sleep and rest. They have played B2 and B3 this morning, and all their energy was required to pull it off. We are hopeful that a good night’s rest will turn tables tomorrow.

U16 Open – Sibonelo made us proud with points on the table – he had a draw. Spiro and Bafana unfortunately struggled and after long games unfortunately lost their games.

U18 Girls – Amber thought hard, but unfortunately the energy levels was not in her favour.

U18 Open – Liam only arrived this morning and missed the first round. Sobangane thought bravely, but unfortunately lost.

U20 Girls, U20 Open and Adults:
These players are playing in one section. Bongolethu had the lead over Martha (whom arrived this morning). Keagen, Nkosikhona and Siyamamkela won this round – which shows that the extra rest assisted our players (Jnrs plays in the mornings and adults/ U20’s at 16h00.
Martin, Musa, Anisha, Gcina, Thato, Nkiyasi, Martha and Andile unfortunately lost.

Tomorrow morning R2 for U10/12/14/16/18 and Rapid for U8/U20/Adults.

In the afternoon it will be Rapid for U8/10/12/14/16/18 and R2 for U8/20/Open.

An exceptional opening round. Eight sections delivered clean sweeps. South Africa finishes Round 1 with a 91.7% scoring rate across all 54 boards.

A delegation of 51 South African players has commenced the African Youth Chess Championship in Entebbe, Uganda.

Today, our players begin Round 1 of the nine-round event. The South African delegation is being led by Vice President Shaun Levitan, assisted by Head Coach Reuben Salimu.

Chess South Africa wishes all our players the very best of luck as they represent the country with pride.

#ChessSA #TeamSouthAfrica #AfricanYouthChessChampionships #AYCC2026 #YouthChess #SouthAfricanChes

All those years of hard work, late nights, dedication, and research have truly paid off. Your achievement is a reflection of your commitment and excellence, especially with your strong academic foundation from EDHEC Business School in Finance.

Wishing you all the very best as you take this exciting next step in your journey, the field is fortunate to have someone of your calibre.

Enjoy the celebration; you’ve absolutely earned it!