The delayed 2022 National Chess Championships of Lesotho ended in Good Night Lodge, Maseru. The event was a 7-round Swiss tournament with 65+30 time control that stretched over three days from April 14-16, 2023. The 2021 winner, CM Tokelo Klaas, did not defend his title, citing personal reasons.
Twenty-nine players from different qualifying zones were in contention for the highest title in the country. It was a highly contested competition, with the winner being determined in the final seventh round. The top finishers walked away with trophies, medals and cash.
The fourth seed Bokang Motsamai (pictured above) scored an impressive 6/7 and tied for the top position with Sechaba Khalema but claimed the title as the winner of the direct encounter (the first tiebreaker). The 2019 national champion Tsephe Lebajoa and George Mahommed shared third place, but the former took bronze thanks to better tiebreaks.
Reitumetse Taioe netted 4 points and became the best female player, while Ntsielo Bonolo and Thetsane Nteboheleng came second and third, respectively.
Mahommed George and Reitumetse Taioe also won the best junior prize in their categories.
Final standings:
|
1 |
Motsamai, Bokang |
1507 |
6 |
|
2 |
Khalema, Sechaba |
1810 |
6 |
|
3 |
Tsephe, Lebajoa |
1768 |
5 |
|
4 |
George, Mahommed |
1456 |
5 |
|
5 |
Nzema, Ngakane |
1451 |
4½ |
|
6 |
Khiba, Selatela |
1409 |
4½ |
|
7 |
Koetle, Kemohele |
1498 |
4 |
|
8 |
Molapo, Joang |
1599 |
4 |
|
9 |
Mokhachane, Naeo |
4 |
|
|
10 |
Taioe, Reitumetse |
1236 |
4 |
Women
1. Reitumetse Taioe - Trophy + Gold medal
2. Bonolo Ntsielo - Silver medal
3. Nteboheleng Thetsane - Bronze medal
The complete results can be found here.
The Chess Federation of Lesotho would like to thank all the players who showed up and participated even after a long delay following the qualifiers in their respective zones. The organizers are grateful to the event's sponsors, Azania ML Cleaning Services and Good Night Lodge, who made this championship possible.
