Dankwambo Applauds Nigeria’s Chess Players After World Championship Hosting
The President of the Nigeria Chess Federation (NCF), Senator Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo, has praised Nigerian players for their performances at the recently concluded World Amateur Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships held in Abuja.
According to AllAfrica, citing the Daily Trust newspaper, Dankwambo commended the players following the close of the international tournament in the Nigerian capital. The championships, sanctioned by FIDE, the world governing body for chess, brought together amateur competitors in the rapid and blitz formats, two fast-paced variants of the game in which each player operates under a strict time limit for the entire match.
Chess in Nigeria
Chess has been steadily gaining visibility in Nigeria, with the NCF working to expand grassroots participation, school programmes, and competitive opportunities for players across the country. Abuja has hosted major chess events in recent years, reinforcing the capital’s growing profile as a destination for international tournaments in West Africa.
A continental sport on the rise
Across Africa, the number of FIDE-rated players and registered national federations has expanded significantly over the past decade, with Nigeria among the countries leading the drive to professionalise the sport at the amateur level. The successful staging of a world championship is widely viewed as an indicator of a host country’s organisational capacity and its ability to attract global competitions.
Dankwambo’s remarks, as reported by AllAfrica, signal the federation’s intention to build on the tournament’s momentum, with the NCF expected to continue investing in youth development and competitive structures aimed at producing more internationally ranked Nigerian players.
Sources
This report was written from coverage published by the following news organisations. Follow the links for the original reporting.
