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The qualifiers are Alicia Mwihaki in the U15 Girls section, Emmanuel Lioba and Brian Chinda Ayodi in U15 Boys, Gloria Wakori, Jesca Ajiza, Lucy Nekesa and Rebecca Wanjiru in Under 17 Girls.

Huge congratulations to these qualifiers as well as to the other Salama players—all from impoverished backgrounds. They must cope with life challenges day-in and day-out to continue with their education and chess study, and to be able to play and win the national qualifications is by no means a small feat! In fact, these players had to cook and pack their own lunch and travel by public bus for one hour and a half to make it to the tournament venue!

There are many people CTC wants to say thank you to for helping make this happen. Big thank you to Mercy Kamoni, who helped register the Salama players and layout all the logistics; thank you to Catherine Biketi, Salama’s resident teacher who quickly rallied the chess club members and the alumni in Gachie High School; thank you to the two Salama faculty members who chaperoned the players to and from the venue; thank you to Chess Kenya for waiving half of the registration fees and many other chess families and coaches who extended their helping hands on site; and lastly, thank you to all CTC donors—without their generosity, CTC’s Global Outreach leaders would not have been able to visit Nairobi in March to build strong coalitions with the Salama players and Kenyan chess families, and to cover all the expenses to send these players to the qualifiers and to the national.

For the full album of this big day, please visit here.  Please join us to wish all qualifiers the best for their debut at the national!

Upon check-in at about 9am, participants received multiple gifts and souvenirs generously prepared by the organizers, including a chess set with traveling bag, a T-shirt, and a pen/pencil. After a brief Opening Ceremony, where instructors introduced themselves and shared their chess stories, the morning session kicked off with participants split into two groups based on their chess levels. While Florina Zhu and Alice Dong taught the beginners the basic chess moves and tactics, the more advanced students were challenged by WIM Ellen Wang, WIM Evelyn Zhu and Claire Cheng through instructive games and puzzles.

After a fun-filled lunch break over pizza and bughouse games, the afternoon session boasted three simultaneous exhibitions. Ellen, Evelyn and Florina each took six to eight ambitious students, who were eager to prove their learnings and strengths over the battlefield of 64 squares. All instructors proudly stayed undefeated, but they were equally impressed by the fighting spirit of their students. The day had to end with the Awards and Closing Ceremony, when medals and prizes were given out to the best-performing participants; but the love for the game continued among all and the excitement to connect and support each other sustained.          

What excited everyone even more was the visits by chess organizers from nearby towns. Discussing with them on possible future collaborations towards a shared mission of promoting girls’ chess, all instructors were thrilled for the promising opportunities to work with more organizations in the area and to generate bigger impact. Moreover, thanks to the great effort by Florina and Claire, two local media, Tap In Millburn/Short Hills and West Essex Tribune, covered this festival the following week. They also co-authored an article, which will soon be published on Chess Connections magazine, where they echoed the mission of Unruly Queens initiative: “Playing chess will empower young girls embark on a journey of self-discovery and learn valuable skills that will shape their future. Together, we can break down gender stereotypes, promote gender equality, and empower the next generation of female leaders with the analytical tools that the game of chess uniquely provides.”    

For the full collection of pictures from the festival, please visit Unruly Queens’ Flickr album.

Alice joined Unruly Queens in Fall 2022 and has been dedicated since then to UQ’s weekly free online group lessons, where she generously shared her memorable positions, games, and tournaments, as well as her inspiring journey with chess. An idol for many girl players to look up to, Alice’s stories especially her new record will motivate young girls to stay with the game and to keep improving to their fullest potential.

In a recent interview with Chess Connections magazine, Alice reflected on her great success with chess and how she felt about resetting the record. Want to hear what Alice said and to learn about her next goal, please watch for the upcoming summer issue of Chess Connections.