TODAY'S CHESS PIC OF THE DAY: "INGENUITY AT ITS BEST'!!! Meet one of Africa's most feared young player, 9 year old WCM Naledi Marape from the Continent's Women's Chess powerhouse, Botswana! WIth so much confidence on the chess board that exudes that of Grandmasters, the Wondergirl has taken continental youth chess by storm and may just become the youngest ever Grandmaster from Africa!!!! Coached by her father and veteran Botswana former National Team Player Dr. Marape Marape, in collaboration with David Mooketsi, Naledi seems to be 'obsessed' with Gold honours going by the number of Gold awards credited to her name!!! She gained much public notoriety on the local chess scene in the year 2014 due to the many chess accolades that she managed to achieve in just a year. For instance, she qualified and represented Botswana at the 2014 World Youth Chess Championship and was the best performing Motswana at the same tournament!!! In the same year, she qualified and represented Botswana at the 2014 African Youth Chess Championships in Tunisia. At home, Naledi banged three awards, she was crowned the 2014 Botswana National Youth Chess under 8 Girls Champion, 2014 Botswana Junior Closed under 8 Girls Champion and 2014 Self Sponsored FIDE Rated primary schools best performer!!!! A year later (2015), she would continue her 'skyrocketment' to the top both on the local and international chess scene! The 2015 Botswana Junior Closed under 9 Girls champion was a marvel to watch at the 2015 Airfficiency year opener under 10 girls champion as she banged a GOLD MEDAL. She would later bang more GOLD MEDALS at the 2015 Self Sponsored FIDE Rated Chess Championships primary schools best performer, 2015 Botswana National Youth Chess Championship under 9 Girls Champion, 2015 Gaborone Open Chess Championships under 9 girls section, Enpassant Annual Chess Club championships 2015 under 11 category, 2015 Botswana-Zimbabwe Youth Chess Challenge Under 9 girls, 2015 Botswana International Open Chess Championships Under 9 girls and more recently after being crowned joint 1st at the 2015 African Youth Chess Championships held in Lusaka, Zambia!!!! The youngest ever Motswana to have a FIDE title and rating, Naledi has raised the standard of play amongst the younger chess players most especially amongst the young girls. She has raised the bar of competitiveness and has cemented her place as a force to reckon within the chess circles. At National level, Naledi’s contribution and impact includes and is not limited to the following: as a chess Icon, she has aided the federation’s drive to increase the number of chess players at grassroots level. She is a living proof that when trained at a younger age, kids can surpass their potential in everything they do, in this case chess. With the assistance of her family, Naledi has a club through which she invites young chess players that she mentors through the stages to develop them to her level. KUDOS to this CHESS GENUIS and CHESSZEALOT wishes her well in her future chess escapades and recognizes the effort being made by Dr. Marape Marape to nurture and develop young talent!!!
By Chess Zealot
