To celebrate International Chess Day, Bamboo Towers is set to organize a one-day Rapid Chess Tournament tagged “Rumble in the Jungle” It is scheduled to hold on Saturday, July 24th, at Bamboo Towers, Opposite Trans Amusement Park, Bodija-UI Road Ibadan.
The International Chess Day is celebrated annually on July 20th, the day the International Chess Federation (FIDE) was founded, in 1924. This year’s celebration coincides with the Eid Kabir celebrations hence the need to have the tournament on July 24th.
The tournament is being held in commemoration of International Chess Day and it is a collaborative effort between Bamboo Towers, the Chess League, Ibadan, Oyo State Chess Association and Oyo State Sports Council.
The Chairman of the Chess League, Ibadan, Mr Iredele Ogunbayo who happens to be a director at Bamboo Towers said the tournament will follow a 6 rounds swiss format and 10 + 5 secs as time control.
The event is also a part of the Chess League, Oyo State Chess Association and Oyo State Sports Council’s efforts at creating awareness, promoting and increasing participation in the game of chess especially among children and females.
Mr Ogunbayo said that a key objective is to encourage children to play chess as it has proven to help with their overall development with emphasis on critical thinking, pattern recognition, concentration and problem-solving. He further stated that the tournament will have in attendance key sports individuals including the general manager, Oyo State Sports Council, Mr Adegboyega Makinde, the immediate past president of Nigeria Chess Federation, Mr Lekan Adeyemi, the secretary of Oyo State Chess Association, Mrs Adekunle, Chess Olympiad Individual gold medalist, IM Odion, one of Nigeria’s foremost Chess player, FM Adegboyega Adebayo, Nigeria’s current female National Champion, Woman FIDE Master (WFM) Deborah Akintoye and Director, Bamboo Towers (Sponsor of the event), Chief Ayobanji Ayoola.
