Nairobi-based Allan Oyende says he is excited to get back to winning ways at the Kitui National Scrabble Kenya Championships held over the weekend at the Parkside Villa Hotel.
He won 16 out of 18 games to emerge victorious — only losing to Michael Gongolo in the 14th and 15th game.
Oyende said he was frustrated after failing to win two tournaments in a row even after leading in both of them.
“I had to compose myself and bring that title again. I had failed to win in Uganda and at Stima Club, Nairobi. This win in Kitui win has given me another opportunity to shine,” Oyende said.
He praised Gongolo, who had settled for second place, for raising the standard of this year's competition.
“It was an amazing and challenging tournament this year. I had to work smart to overcome my opponents and that worked for me,” the engineer said.
Despite beating the champion, Gongolo lost five matches against third-placed Tobias Outi in game 3, Paul Mathuu in Game 4 as well as Oyende on three different occasions.
Oyende will now focus on the Jinja Spa tournament in Uganda before heading to Kisumu for another national round of scrabble.
“With these two events coming up, I was privileged to win over the weekend. I want to use this win as a way of preparing for the Kisumu and Jinja battle of wits,” he said.
The Kisumu tournament has so far attracted top scrabble players from Uganda including number one, Aggrey Komugisha, among others.
