By Akol Madut Ngong
South Sudan Chess Federation has initiated training for ladies who attended the earlier months’ exercise to participate at Chennai in India’s 41st Olympiad in the quarter of July 2022.
Speaking to No.1 Citizen Daily Newspaper yesterday at Nyakuron Cultural Centre, Eng. Aduot Madit said Chess is one of the sports that fall under the National Ministry of Youth & Sports, and was establish in 2014.
He said that South Sudan has been participating in international and regional competitions.
Madit stated that currently they only have 4 ladies who have turned up, yet their target is 20, adding that they had around 18 ladies who were training Chess game.
“The Ladies’ team will be the first in South Sudan to participate in month. We need to prepare our players, there has been this biasness that ladies cannot participate in some of the sports and we wanted to break through that biasness that some indoor games, ladies have the talent and the skills to showcase South Sudan outside,” Aduot said.
Eng. Madit said that there are a lot of opportunities for ladies in chess, and they can compete globally.
He said that there are some tournaments where South Sudan has not been participating, but now they have teams to represented the new nation regionally, continental and global.
Meanwhile, one of the ladies who acted as Chess Coach, Amat Wundior Gideon said that she just sacrificed herself to train ladies and compete with other ladies in a global tournament.
Amat said some of the challenges ladies have included; “we don’t have space to train them, we do just come here in Nyakuron to try to train them, we have more ladies but the situation is not matching with them well, some of them can catch up on how to play chess, they can play at Chennai in India”.
Moreover, the coach said that they would be having tournament and she wants to see one of them represent the country in Chennai, India.
She added that as trainers, the lack of transport, space, and stoppage from parents. She said some parents don’t allow their daughters to participate in the chess, arguing that the game is for men only.
She appealed for parents whose daughters had interest of playing chess to allow them improve their skills.
Another lady who is the deputy treasurer for Chess Federation, Ms. Aluel Elizabeth Akuei said chess game can unite ladies towards common goal.
“It can help us of thinking capacity and our health in brain, those who have stroke, it helps you to make the vein feel free and it’s given us what to do tomorrow, in future,” she said.
Meanwhile, Calvary John one of chess players who started playing three months ago said chess is a nice game that can make someone think wisely.
He encouraged others especially girls to join chess game. “The challenge that I have is the check making King, this thing is very hard but I can play really but to check making is very hard to me and my performance is now 50% and I’m expecting to be a good player like other guys, they are coming to number one and I want to be like that,” he said.