African Scrabble Champion, Oluwatimilehin Doko has qualified for the masters category of the 2024 National Sports Festival following the conclusion of the Ogun State Scrabble Association trials held in Abeokuta.
Experienced Scrabble players Adebola Samuel, Cyril Umebiye and Abdulmumin Jimoh also booked their places in the event at the trial that started five months ago.
Doko, whose prowess on the board was never in doubt, amassed a total of 36 wins in 50 games to again, reinforce his status as the No. 1 player on the continent.
In the Intermediate category, African Youth Champion David Ojih punched his ticket to the country’s Olympics with 32 wins after 50 rounds of games.
He was joined by Akeem Ogundokun, Tunde Saporu and Musa Lateef to complete the quartet in the category.
The competition in the open category produced the foursome of Idris David, Emmanuel Ogiogio, Olumide Sobowale and Leke Ogunjobi, while the female class saw 2023 African Games gold medallist Adebisi Adekaunsi, Joy Ola, Bukunmi Afolayan and Blessing Ola.
All 16 qualified players will go camping in April for the Games, which begin on May 16.
The Ogun State Scrabble Association Chairman, Adekoyejo Adegbesan, congratulated the successful players, while also commending all the participants for their commitment and the level of competition displayed at the 2-day tournament.
He further revealed that the final selection for each category would be decided at the end of the camping period.
Adegbesan said: “I would like to congratulate every one of you for what was a good weekend for Scrabble. The qualifiers just ended, and we have four from each category going into closed camping, where we would be deciding who plays individually, doubles, and teams for the state. Whereas the coaches and I can make some straight calls from some of the categories, the majority of how we will set up our team will be based on what we see in camp, so players who are qualified are not to look at how they finished at these qualifiers.”
He, however, warned against being complacent, strongly advising the players to play at their full strength in every situation as the association’s target to win top medals as host of the Gateway Games remains unchanged.
In a similar development, vice chairman Lukeman Owolabi also gave some encouraging words to the players for their conduct.
Owolabi said, “Congratulations to all the qualifiers. Well done! I’m confident that all of you guys will be good ambassadors of the state at the National Sports Festival.
“For those who did not make the Sports Festival team this time, do not despair. There is always going to be another opportunity as long as you continue to hone your Scrabble skills.”
The players were full of appreciation to the board for their motivation, and for creating a level playing field for all.
QUALIFIED PLAYERS
Oluwatimilehin Doko CC
Abdulmumin Jimoh EXP
Samuel Adebola
Cyril Umebiye EXP
David Ojih
Akeem Ogundokun
Tunde Saporu
Musa Lateef
Idris David
Emmanuel Ogiogio
Olumide Sobowale
Leke Ogunjobi
Bisi Adekansi
Joy Ola
Bukunmi Afolayan
Blessing Ola
Taiwo IBRAHIM
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