08 Feb 2021

Botswana Chess Federation (BCF) Women Fide Master (WFM), Beta Masaiti has clinched a silver medal in the Under 20 girls’ category at the just ended Africa Online Individual Chess Championship.

Speaking during an interview on Saturday, BCF secretary general, Mokwaledi Tingwane said the player performed well to scoop the silver medal, adding that it was worth celebrating, more so that sporting activities had been halted due to COVID-19.

He said her performance was a continuation of the 2020 national championship where she excelled and was awarded an elite scholarship by Botswana National Sports Council.
Tingwane noted that Masaiti was competing with players such as WFM, Naledi Marape and World Candidate Master, Nathali Banda.

He noted that before the tournament, Masaiti was ranked third and Marape seventh, which he said put them in good stead for medals.

He also noted that some were playing the tournament for the first time, and that they believed that with time they would improve their rankings.

Tingwane said International Master, Providence Oatlhotse completed the tournament with four points in the open section, while Candidate Master, Thuso Musutha also attained four points, noting that the category had high profile participants.

He also said they were hindered by the lack of a national team coach, adding that they needed one even if it was on a temporary basis. He noted that it would help them in preparing for tournaments.

Tingwane said they had also engaged Internet providers to help, and that they had shown interest in helping athletes to have more online practice.

For her part, Masaiti applauded the association and the government for their support, stating that with time they would master the online chess games.

Masaiti said the games were not easy as they were playing against Africa’s best from countries such as Egypt and Algeria. She said players from  the two countries did everything to win, and that winning silver was a great achievement.

She said she attained 7.5 points out of 9, adding that it was a great achievement at the continental level and something worth celebrating.

She noted that playing online differed from country to country depending on Internet connectivity.

She added that players would be happy if Internet connectivity could be improved, noting that a player could lose a game just because of slow response due to poor Internet connectivity.

Masaiti encouraged players to urge parents to get them coaches, noting that having a coach helped a lot during preparations.

Masaiti also said she would be playing a Fide Online Tournament to prepare for the World Africa Junior Championship 2021. ENDS