By Tatiana Mhararira
Masvingo District proved to be the home of chess after scooping the first position at the National Secondary Heads Masvingo Provincial tournament which was held at Pamushana High School on March 14, 2025 to select the team that will represent the province at the national tournament.
The tournament had eight districts that were competing in seven different age groups namely Under 13, 14, 15,16,17,18 and 20.
Masvingo district walked away with seven gold, three silver and six bronze medals. Chiredzi District came second with three gold medals and one silver medal with four girls and three boys namely Abiud Venge, Akon Chaora, Ignatius Mhaka winning gold medals in the Under 14, 15 and 17 respectively.
Speaking to one of the school player coaches Moses Kujinga from Temeraire High School said he was excited with the outcome and some of his players contributed to the overall position.
“I am happy that of the seven gold medals we got as a district, two came from our school and this shows the sport is growing from school level to provincial level.
“Our efforts were rewarded because my players practise a lot at school. Chess is very easy but it takes consistency, discipline and practice to win a single game especially at Provincial level,” said Kujinga.
Females category Under 17 gold medalist who was also crowned outstanding player of the tournament Rutendo Hwede who won a gold medal in the 2024 national finals Under 16 girls category said the tournament was not that tough for her.
“The competition was not tough for me though I was nervous at first knowing that my coach, school head and family had high expectations since I was the 2024 national chess gold medalist in under 16 category.
“I didn’t want to disappoint them and after playing and winning four games I relaxed my mind. Having a clean sheet of 7/7 made me feel happy,” said Hwede.
She warned against overconfidence which she said nearly costed her one game and she corrected the mistake before it was too late.
“There was a moment of overconfidence during my fifth game and that’s when I made a mistake which I later corrected. The tournament taught me that I should never be overconfident and never to underestimate any opponent at any level of the competition,” said Hwede.
Male category Under 17 gold medalist from Temeraire High in Masvingo district Ignatius Mhaka said the tournament was tough but he won at the end.
“The tournament was a bit tough but I scooped a gold medal. I finished the tournament with a score of 6,5/7, which was slightly below my expectations. I had a solid start, winning first three games against weak players.
“In the middle of the tournament, I struggled to find my rhythm, drawing one game against a strong player. The tournament was a valuable learning experience. I had no exposure of playing with strong opponents and had opportunity to test my skills in a competitive tournament,” said Mhaka.
Mucheke High School coach and Zimbabwe Chess Federation Masvingo Province Secretary General Zvishamiso Mushamainza said the tournament was stiff but the best were chosen to represent the province at national tournament and the sport proved to be inclusive as it had a learner with disability.
“The competition was stiff and the outstanding players were selected to represent Masvingo at national level where last year we had some of our players winning gold medals at such a level.
“Among our players we had Providence Ndebele from Morgenster High who is deaf and dumb. Ndebele played very well and won a bronze medal. All coaches learnt and accepted that disability does not mean inability. All students were educated on how to accommodate one another despite them having disabilities,” said Mushamainza.
“We encourage the blind, deaf, dumb and everyone to participate in chess games since chess brings all people together and has become an inclusive game. I hope those who are proceeding to the nationals will represent the province well and go to as far as international level,” she added.
The provincial tournament was a follow up of the chess district tournament which was held at Zimuto High School on February 28,2025.
