Njobvu fired up ahead of national champs

Calistus Kolantsho | Friday February 28, 2014 12:35

 

 

Njobvu is the current national chess champion after winning the tournament last year. He told Mmegi Sport yesterday that his target this weekend was to qualify for the finals and defend his title. 

Njobvu noted that some of the players that pose a threat are Thato Olebile and Phemelo Kheto, who are strong upcoming players that have energy and resilience.

He said that winning the second round will not be much of a priority but he wanted to finish the semis in the top 10 bracket, explaining that he did not play the first round as the rules gave him a bye. 

Njobvu said he was preparing for the tournament through physical training, which includes physical exercise. 

“When you prepare for such a big tournament, you must have stamina that will enable you to concentrate. We will be playing for over 20 hours and someone has to be able to withstand such pressure,” he said. Njobvu said being a national chess champion was a big achievement for any player. He has been the national champion on four occasions.  The national championships are sponsored by Metropolitan Botswana for P108, 750. The first round, which was hosted in open and ladies sections, attracted 240 players of different strengths from around the country.

Top 24 players from the open section and top 18 from the ladies section were selected for the semifinals. The women section’s defending champion is Woman International Master Boikhutso Mudongo.