NAIROBI, Kenya, December 29 – Even as he maintains a stranglehold on the lead at the ongoing Kenya National Chess Championships, Joseph Methu is adamant his ultimate goal is not to drive home with the top prize of a brand new Nissan Note.
Methu says the 22nd edition of the annual tournament is an opportunity to prove to himself and other players that he is not past his sell-by date as far as the sport is concerned.
“You know I’ve been a top player for long and I just got sick and tired because my rating was going down. So, I just trained and…I just want to prove something to myself. The car…we will think about it later. For now, I just want to play well and prove something to myself that I can still play some good chess. Whoever wins it (the car) …whether it is me or somebody else, we will just see,” Methu said.
The Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) chess player shot to the leaderboard on Wednesday with a 100 per cent score to usurp top seed Kenneth Omollo of Equity Bank.
With two more rounds to the end of the competition, Methu has maintained his lead and believes he has the experience to remain consistent in his quest to succeed Mehul Gohil as the national champion.
“I’ve competed in this tournament for a while now. I have won many competitions in Kenya but never this one. I have the experience plus I am a top player so I believe I can go toe-to-toe with the top players. We will just see if my form will remain,” he said.
Casting his eyes wide to the overall competition, Methu observed the increasingly high standards over the years, pointing out that more younger players are rising rapidly.
“Unfortunately, some top players have slipped…like the top seed. Some upcoming guys from the university are really giving the top guys a hard time. We have some junior guys who are actually playing very well so the top players need to be very careful in future,” he said.
Methu added: “We have good coaches in Kenya…not so many but still very good coaches. These kids are training under some very good coaches. Parents are also very dedicated; these kids play in many competitions all year round.”
One of the perks of a good performance at the national championships is the chance to fly the national flag at next September’s Olympiad in Budapest, Hungary.
Methu is unsure of his participation at the global competition but is confident those who will represent the country will give a good account of themselves.
“I haven’t yet planned for it, so I don’t know. It takes like two weeks…if I am free, I will go but I will play the qualifiers. It will depend on my schedule but regardless I know we will have a strong team,” he explained.
