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Michelle Nwankwo, a member of the Nigerian contingent for this year’s Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, has promised that she and her colleagues will do everything possible to give their best performances.
Sports247 reports that Nwankwo equally expressed confidence in their abilities to excel during the competition which began on Tuesday as he revealed that they are in a stable state of mind, staying focused and quickly adapting to the new environment.
Nwankwo added that they are looking forward to the start of their games on Wednesday in the highly prestigious global competition, dubbed the 46th FIDE World Chess Olympiad.
Other players on the Nigerian team are the men’s quintet of Bomo Kigigha, Bartholomew Okhipo, Abdulrahman Abdulraheem, Odion Aikhoje and Ekunke Goodness, while the women’s quintet are Deborah Quickpen, Sandra Omoruyi, Bridget Michael and Joy Iyefu.
Nwankwo, who adds youthful enthusiasm to Nigeria’s quest, alongside 15-year-old Ekunke, further revealed that representing Nigeria in the Chess Olympiad is an exciting experience for her, although she also acknowledged the need to remain calm and fully concentrate once the game begins.
“I’ve been playing chess for about five or six years. I feel very excited. It’s amazing to be able to represent your country in the Olympiad. But you also have to stay strong and focused in the games to be able to perform well.
“You have to balance excitement with concentration, because you don’t want to get carried away and end up making mistakes in your games. So I’m excited, but I also want to stay focused.”
“Chess lovers across the country and everyone cheering for the Nigerian team should hope that we do well. We will do our best and hopefully come back with something good,” Nwankwo concluded.
