A spirited Ghanaian contingent has arrived in Kigali, Rwanda, ahead of the 15th African Scrabble Championship, which begins on Thursday.
The eleven-member delegation, led by President of the Scrabble Association of Ghana (SCAG) Haruna Adamu, arrived on Monday for the prestigious tournament at the Olympic Hotel.
The team is strengthened by the presence of Charles Haizel Tachie-Menson, who made history last month by becoming the first non-Nigerian in a decade to win Nigeria’s Lekki Scrabble Classics.
With teams split across main and side events, seven players from the squad will compete in the main competition, while the remaining members will participate in the side event.
The Ghanaian contingent, comprising two females and eight males, includes Huzeru Sani, Fataw Bayenang, Mohammed Rashad Abdulai, Stanley Ubeidi, Edwin Boama, Betty Kyeremateng, and Ingel Robinson. The delegation is completed by officials Dr. Robert Bannerman and Mike Ofori Mante.
The African Scrabble Championship, now in its 15th edition, is the continent’s flagship event organized by the Pan African Scrabble Association (PANASA). The biennial tournament features Africa’s elite Scrabble players and is rated by the World English-language Scrabble Players’ Association (WESPA).
The tournament, coinciding with PANASA’s 30th anniversary, has drawn 13 nations: defending champions Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, The Gambia, Zambia, Tanzania, Botswana, Mauritius, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, and hosts Rwanda.
A record-breaking 189 players are set to compete in what has been dubbed “The Showdown in Kigali.” This unprecedented turnout includes ten former PANASA Champions who received automatic entry through wildcards, alongside several players from the African diaspora.
The championship, running from October 23-27, features 32 rounds of competition. Prize money will be awarded to the top ten finishers, with the first three places also receiving trophies: the winner takes home $5,000; second place $3,200; third place $2,300; while fourth to tenth positions receive cash prizes ranging from $1,100 to $250.
