Onkemetse�s dream Olympiad

Onkemetse Francis
Onkemetse Francis

The last four of the 11 rounds at the Chess Olympiad in Baku, Azerbaijan spoilt the party for what was until then looking to be Botswana women’s memorable performance at the world stage by board one player Onkemetse Francis.

By Saturday, Onkemetse was cruising with unbeaten streak and ranked amongst the top five board one players at the Olympiad, in contention for one of the three available board prize medals. She looked poised to finish the 2016 Chess Olympiad on a high and appeared zeroing into emulating Boikhutso Modongo’s Olympiad medal winning performance of 2002.

 Onkemetse’s unbeaten streak was ended on Saturday evening by New Zealand as the Botswana women lost 3-1 in round 8, before a shock 2-2 draw with neighbours Zimbabwean in round 9 where she was the only loser in the team.

Editor's Comment
Deadly weekend demands immediate vigilance

The heartbreaking reports carried elsewhere on this publication of a woman killed in Metsimotlhabe and four family members perishing near Metsimaswaana Bridge are, devastatingly, not isolated incidents. They represent the sharp, painful tip of a weekend that has seen far too many collisions, injuries, and losses on the roads. This alarming spike in fatalities is a screaming siren we cannot ignore. It compels a direct and urgent plea to every...

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