Current News
Steve Ouma Wins Top Prize at WeCC June Rapid Open
Filed: Friday, 6th July 2012
After a dismal performance in the final phase of the 2012 Olympiad Qualifiers, Steve Ouma bounced back at the WeCC June Rapid Open on 30th June and 1st July to win it in style with 7 points in 8 rounds beating strong opponents such as Francis Ngesa, Bryan Taboso, Brian Kidula and Brian Adorwa.
View of the playing hall at Slush Coffee World. / Photo: Paras Gudka
Joining him in the prize winners bracket were: Jacob Onditi (2nd place - overall) with 6.5 points, Francis Ngesa (3rd place - overall) with 6 points, Daphne Mwikali (1st place - ladies) with 5 points, Krishi Shah (2nd place - ladies) with 4 points, Purity Maina (3rd place - ladies) with 4 points, Sumit Deshpande (1st place - juniors) with 4 points, Dev Shah (2nd place - juniors) with 4 points and Roshni Raichura (3rd place - juniors) with 3.5 points.
Prizes for best dressed players (male and female) were awarded to Brian Kidula and Ann and Mary Kung'u while raffle prizes were won by Njuru Mwangi, George Nyaga and Moses Andiwoh.
Of the 51 participants who registered, those who played in the tournament were given key rings in the shape of the WeCC logo as souvenirs along with certificates.
Click here for the full report and more photos
WeCCie Sharanya Iyengar Takes Kenyan Media By Storm
Filed: Monday, 11th June 2012
After winning first place in two consecutive tournaments, WeCC member Sharanya Iyengar continues to dazzle the nation – being featured on major TV stations and in the print media.
Included below is an article from the 'young nation' supplement of the Sunday Nation on 10th June 2012:
Paras Gudka Leads Division 1 of the WeCCMIL
Filed: Saturday, 26th May 2012
Founder and President of Westlands Chess Club, Paras Gudka, took the lead in Division 1 of the ongoing WeCC Members Individual League (WeCCMIL) on Saturday, 19th May 2012 winning his fifth game in a row to get to 5 points. His wins have come against fellow members Sumit Deshpande, Sanjana Deshpande, George Nyaga and Shammah Wanyonyi.
WeCC President Paras Gudka (right) playing a game at a WeCC club meet
Following closely on his heels are Sanjana Deshpande with 3 points (out of 5 games) and George Nyaga with 2 points (out of 3 games). Current top 5 standings are as follows:
- Paras Gudka - 5 points (out of 5 games)
- Sanjana Deshpande - 3 points (out of 5 games)
- George Nyaga - 2 points (out of 3 games)
- Sharanya Iyengar - 1 point (out of 2 games)
- Sumit Deshpande - 0 points (out of 5 games)
The experimental league will continue until all Division 1 members have played 2 games each (with white and black pieces) against their 9 opponents.
Click here for the complete cross-table and up-to-date standings
WeCC Formally Recognised by Deputy Registrar of Societies
Filed: Saturday, 26th May 2012
Westlands Chess Club, on Saturday, 19th May 2012, finally received its registration certificate issued by the Deputy Registrar of Societies recognising it as a formally registered society after four months of anxious waiting and following up.
Westlands Chess Club's registration certificate
According to the certificate, WeCC's official date of registration is 28th March 2012 though the club was founded as an informal group 8 months prior to that in August 2011. The recognition of Westlands Chess Club as a legally registered entity reaffirms the club's commitment to its objectives and seeks to assure players that it is here to stay.
WeCC is now the third club after Nairobi Chess Club and Checkmates Chess Club to be registered as a legal entity and recognised by the Government of Kenya.
WeCC Junior Members Excel at WYCC Final Qualifiers
Filed: Saturday, 26th May 2012
Sharanya Iyengar and Sanjana Deshpande, junior members of Westlands Chess Club did the club proud at the recently concluded WYCC Final Qualifiers tournament by winning first and second prizes in the Girls' Under-10 and Girls' Under-16 categories respectively.
WeCC junior member Sharanya Iyengar receiving her trophy for first place in the Girls' Under-10 category at the WYCC Final Qualifiers tournament
Held at Oshwal Academy Nairobi Primary, this tournament was the final qualifier for the World Youth Chess Championship tournament to be held in Slovenia in November 2012. It also doubled as the Kenya National Youth Chess Championship 2012.
The round-robin event saw Sharanya beating all of her opponents in the Girls' Under-10 category to achieve a 100% score of 7 points out of 7 games while Sanjana managed to defeat 6 of her opponents in the Girls' Under-16 category to finish with 6 points out of 6 games, missing out on first place by half a point.
Sumit Deshpande and Avi Mathur, the other WeCC members to participate in this tournament didn't fare as well finishing in fourth and sixth places in the Boys' Under-10 and Boys' Under-12 categories with 4 and 2.5 points out of 7, respectively.
WeCC is extremely proud of the young ladies' achievements and wishes them all the best in Maribor, Slovenia.
Brian Obilo Wins WeCC Youth Open Chess Tournament!
Filed: Tuesday, 3rd April 2012
Three years after he last played in a tournament, Brian Obilo (past under-10, under-12 and under-14 national champion) showed his competitors just how he had won those titles when he decimated his opponents in five rounds, lost in the last round for being late and still had the most points to win the WeCC Youth Open Chess Tournament!
Brian Obilo begins his game against Kais Mussa in an earlier round
On his way to victory, Brian beat Hardiv Karania, Imran Gulam, Sharanya Iyengar, Kais Mussa and Smit Shir while losing to Akkshay Khoslaa in the sixth round. Following him closely at the end of 6 rounds were Kais Mussa (2nd place) and Akkshay Khoslaa (3rd place) with 4.5 points each and Krishi Shah (4th place) and Sharanya Iyengar (5th place) with 4 points each.
Two raffle 'surprizes' were won by Mary Gathoni and Avi Mathur.
Click here for the full report and more photos
Dr. Victor Ng'ani Crowned First WeCC Blitz Champion!
Filed: Friday, 30th March 2012
On 11th March 2011, Dr. Victor Ng'ani created history by becoming the first ever WeCC Blitz Champion at the WeCC Biannual Blitz Chess Championship. Held at WeCC headquarters, the tournament was a two-leg event with the first 10 rounds conducted using the Swiss system to determine 8 challengers who would proceed to the playoffs consisting of quarter-final matches of 2 games each, semi-final matches of 4 games each and a final match of 8 games.
Dr. Victor Ng'ani (left) begins the historic finals of the WeCC Biannual Blitz Championship against Wang'ombe Mugo (left)
Following Dr. Ng'ani in second place was Wang'ombe Mugo, who had also played 27 games by the end of the tournament. Jackson Kamau and Kenneth Omollo who made it to the semis but couldn't hold out to Dr. Ngani and Wang'ombe, finished in third and fourth place respectively while the fifth place prize went to Martin Oyamo for his excellent performance in the first leg.
Click here for the full report and more photos
Party Held in Honour of Thoroughbreds' Fifth Place Finish
Filed: Saturday, 24th March 2012
The mood at WeCC headquarters on Saturday, 10th March 2012 was jubilant as team members of the WeCC Thoroughbreds came together for a small celebration that involved cake and photo sessions. Thrown by founder and President of Westlands Chess Club—Paras Gudka—the party was to celebrate the team's excellent performance at the 2012 Nairobi Chess League, which they ended in 5th place (erronously thought of as 4th place earlier) ahead of 11 other teams.
A delicious cake in the shape of half a chess board was cut by team members Isabelle, Sumit and Sanjana which was enjoyed by the others present including Jules Cerera, Satish and Sandhya Deshpande, Paras Gudka and Adarsh Gudhka.
After the cake had been eaten the WeCC Thoroughbreds posed for photos with their teammates and supporters practising silly poses and having a jolly good time while the camaraderie was captured by photographer Paras Gudka.
More photos from the Party for WeCC Thoroughbreds' Fifth Place Finish
WeCC Thoroughbreds Finish in Fourth Fifth Place at 2012 NCL
Filed: Sunday, 4th March 2012
The WeCC Thoroughbreds battled valiantly against the strongest team of this year's NCL – the Lion Kings – during their Round 7 encounter on 3rd March 2012 but failed to overcome their might losing to them 1-3.
Isabelle Asiema on Board 4 provided the only win for the Thoroughbreds, while Vasanth Ramesh on Board 1, Hesbon Omanjo on Board 2 and Sanjana Deshpande on Board 3 struggled against their opponents Ben Magana, Philip Singe and Wang'ombe Mugo respectively.
The loss saw them end Round 7 with 4 match points bringing them face to face with another very strong team – the Mating Zombies – in the final round of the 2012 Nairobi Chess League.
Round 8 ended in a neutral result as Vasanth Ramesh on Board 1 and Hesbon Omanjo on Board 2 secured wins for the WeCC Thoroughbreds against Edward Oluoch and Brian Adorwa, while Isabelle Asiema on Board 3 and Sumit Deshpande on Board 4 could not maintain the momentum, losing both games.
![Round 8 [Final]: Mating Zombies (left) v/s WeCC Thoroughbreds. Result: 2-2.](../images/DSC_4415.jpg)
The loss in Round 7 and the draw in Round 8 meant that the WeCC Thoroughbreds finished the league with 4.5 match points (out of a possible 8) and 19 game points (out of a possible 32) putting them in joint fourth fifth place with four other teams. The league was won by Sicilian Simbas, followed by Lion Kings in second place and Mating Zombies in third place.
Individual results of WeCC Thoroughbreds team members were as follows (in board order):
- Vasanth Ramesh — 3 points (out of 4 games played) with a win % of 75
- Hesbon Omanjo — 4.5 points (out of 6 games played) with a win % of 75
- Irfaan Juma — 0.5 points (out of 2 games played) with a win % of 25
- Adarsh Gudhka — 2 points (out of 4 games played) with a win % of 50
- Sanjana Deshpande — 1 point (out of 4 games played) with a win % of 25
- Isabelle Asiema — 5 points (out of 8 games played) with a win % of 62.5
- Sumit Deshpande — 3 points (out of 4 games played) with a win % of 75
- Renee Kachra — 0 points (out of 0 games played)
With 6 and 8 games played respectively, Hesbon Omanjo and Isabelle Asiema remain eligible for board prizes to be announced at the prize giving ceremony later this month.
To celebrate this excellent performance by the WeCC Thoroughbreds at the 2012 NCL, we will be hosting a small party for them at club headquarters on Saturday, 10th March 2012 from 2 to 5 pm. Players, officials, members and supporters of WeCC are all invited! There will be green cake to look forward to along with a photo shoot with the Thoroughbreds in their green WeCC tees.
Thoroughbreds Wallop Opponents in Rounds 5 & 6 of 2012 NCL
Filed: Sunday, 19th February 2012
In a stunning display of team spirit, the WeCC Thoroughbreds thrashed Tritonite Kids 3.5-0.5 and University of Nairobi Chess Club 3-1 in games played during Rounds 5 & 6 respectively on Saturday, 18th February 2012.
The afternoon began when the Tritonite Kids fielding a weak side, went down to the WeCC Thoroughbreds on Boards 1, 2 and 4 at the hands of Vasanth Ramesh, Hesbon Omanjo and Sumit Deshpande respectively while the sole draw was inflicted on them by Isabelle Asiema on Board 3.
The win in Round 5 meant that the WeCC Thoroughbreds would face tougher opposition in Round 6 in the form of University of Nairobi Chess Club.
Against the university side, Vasanth Ramesh – who was fresh from his 3-week break in India's chess capital of Chennai – proved to on-lookers why he was our Board 1 player by defeating UoN captain James Muchai as Hesbon Omanjo on Board 2 and Isabelle Asiema on Board 4 also tore through their opponents defences. On Board 3, Sanjana Deshpande conceded the only defeat of the afternoon.
The WeCC Thoroughbreds are scheduled to meet the league's strongest team – the Lion Kings – in Round 7 to be played on 3rd March 2012. The 2012 edition of the Nairobi Chess League will come to a close on the same afternoon when Round 8 games are completed.
More photos of the WeCC Thoroughbreds at the 2012 NCL
WeCC Thoroughbreds Perform Well in Rounds 3 & 4 at the 2012 NCL
Filed: Sunday, 5th February 2012
The WeCC Thoroughbreds picked themselves up after a humiliating defeat to the Sicilian Simbas in Round 2, to fight much tougher against hosts Nairobi Chess Club in the third round of the 2012 Nairobi Chess League played on 4th February. Adarsh Gudhka and Sanjana Deshpande playing on Boards 1 & 2 respectively lost to their stronger opponents John Hadley and Warren Pollack while Isabelle Asiema squeezed out a draw from Jules Cerera on Board 3. On Board 4, Sumit Deshpande delivered the only win of the round to bring the team to 1 match point and 5.5 game points.
(Photo courtesy of Nairobi Chess Club)
The loss to Nairobi Chess Club did not deter our valiant warriors as their Round 4 match against Kenya Polytechnic proved. The team finally performed their first clean sweep of the league winning all 4 games on Boards 1 to 4 with Adarsh Gudhka, Sanjana Deshpande, Isabelle Asiema and Sumit Deshpande doing the honours.
At the end of 4 rounds, the WeCC Thoroughbreds now have 2 match points and 9.5 game points and are estimated to be in joint 4th position with three others. They will now face the Tritonite Kids in Round 5 to be played on 18th February 2012 and are expected to win without trouble.
WeCC Thoroughbreds Start 2012 NCL With a Win
Filed: Monday, 30th January 2012
The WeCC Thoroughbreds began their 2012 Nairobi Chess League experience at the Goan Gymkhana on Saturday, 28th January with a resounding victory over opponents NCA Team 1 as the latter managed just half a point in their first match. On Boards 1, 3 and 4, Hesbon Omanjo, Adarsh Gudhka and Isabelle Asiema won their games against Srinjay Mukhopadhyay, Dev Shah and Sathya Iyer respectively while Irfaan Juma managed a draw on Board 2 against Kais Mussa. The team finished with 1 match point and 3.5 game points.
The win meant that they would be facing one of the league's strongest teams comprising of Mehul Gohil, Wachira Wachania, Collins Young and Njuru Mwangi – the Sicilian Simbas – in the next round. Our relatively inexperienced team didn't do so well against them and lost their games on Boards 2, 3 and 4 while Hesbon on Board 1 managed a draw against Mehul. The WeCC Thoroughbreds ended Round 2 with 1 match point and 4 game points.
More photos of the WeCC Thoroughbreds at the 2012 NCL
WeCC Successfully Conducts First Tournament
Filed: Monday, 16th January 2012
Westlands Chess Club successfully conducted its first tournament – the '2012 NCL Qualifiers' at Café 64, Westlands Road, over the weekend of 14th and 15th January. A total of 17 players (6 seniors and 11 juniors) participated. This was the first time in recent years that juniors and seniors got to play against each other at the same event.
Favourite-to-win Mehul Gohil won the tournament with a perfect score of 7 points out of 7, followed by Vasanth Ramesh in second place with 6 points and talented 9-year old Sharanya Iyengar in third place with 5 points. Isabelle Asiema won the 'Best Lady' prize with 3.5 points, while Sharanya also won the 'Best Junior' prize.
Click here for the full report and more photos
