Omprakash bags Uganda’s first gold at Africa Youth Chess Championship

Medalists
Gold
Sana Omprakash (U18)

Silver 
Juliet Asaba (U14)
Apollo Ahumuza (U12)

Bronze
Suhana Anil (U12)
Elvis Tumusiime (U10)

Uganda’s Sana Kayyar Omprakash etched her name into the history books after winning the country’s first-ever gold medal at the Africa Youth Chess Championship (AYCC), which concluded yesterday in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Competing in the fiercely contested U18 girls category, Sana outclassed Africa’s elite junior players, including Nigeria’s top-ranked quickplay specialist Deborah Ebimobo, whom she defeated in a pivotal sixth-round encounter.

She sealed the title with a composed draw against Lesotho’s Ntsieho Bonelo in the final round, completing an unbeaten campaign of seven wins and two draws to finish with eight points from nine rounds.

Her landmark triumph also earned her the prestigious Woman International Master (WIM) title, making her the first female player from East Africa to achieve the honor. In recognition of her exemplary conduct, Sana was additionally awarded the Fair Play Award for sportsmanship, respect, and maturity.

“I am very happy to be the first to win Uganda a gold medal at the AYCC. It was a very tough experience, but I thank God that I finally made it,” Sana said, adding that her next ambition is to pursue the Woman Grandmaster title next year.

Uganda enjoyed a memorable final day overall, collecting five additional medals—two silver and three bronze—to finish the championship with six medals in total. Juliet Asaba (U14) and Apollo Ahumuza (U12) secured silver after winning their final games against Kenya’s Shukri Shakira and Tak Rannveer respectively.

Bronze medals went to Suhana Anil Yadav (U12), Soubith Omprakash (U16), and Elvis Tumusiime (U10), the latter producing a remarkable run of five consecutive victories to close the tournament.

Kenya emerged overall winners of the 16th edition of the AYCC with 10 medals (four gold, two silver, and four bronze), followed by Algeria with two gold and one silver. Uganda finished an impressive third overall, ahead of South Africa, Egypt, and Nigeria.

Uganda’s head of delegation, Patrick Ojok, hailed the performance as a strong statement of the country’s growing stature in African chess.

“Finishing third on the continent is a signal to the world that we have risen to the occasion,” Ojok said, attributing the success to a deliberate five-year talent identification and development strategy led by the Uganda Chess Federation with support from the National Council of Sports.

The Ugandan team is expected to return home from Zimbabwe today.