Congo’s Mashala Kabamwanishi shines at Olympiad
The Chess Olympiad is chock full of inspirational stories that become part of the event’s history. The Olympiad in Batumi had more than 180 nations participating so there was no shortage of them. In fact, ChessBase India did the best job in capturing the essence of wide experiences among the players. The story of Dr. Saba Al-Qamachi of Iraq comes to mind. However, there was a bright light coming out of Africa in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
At the end of the Olympiad proceedings one player amassed the win highest percentage among all players. Playing in his first international event, Congolese Mashala Kabamwanishi scored a sterling 9.5/10 and while he did not earn a medal, he honored his nation proudly.
Back in 2010, The Chess Drum ran an article about the DRC and collaborative efforts with the Spanish Chess Federation and its Embassy in Kinshasha (link). The Congelese national team first suited up in 2016 in Baku, Azerbaijan. It was a break though since in 2012 and 2014, the federation registered, but was unable to send a team.
Congo sent a team to Batumi, Georgia with the modest ambitions of a fairly new federation. They sent three players to Baku and were led by Willy Kutesa Mimbasa who got 7/10 and was awarded the FM title. In that tournament, they scored draws with Bermuda and Togo, and closed out the tournament with a win over Swaziland. Of course these were the highlights of the tournament.
In Batumi, Mimbasa was on the top board, but the star performer was Kabamwanishi. Congo brought four players to improve on their team record. After missing the first round due to delays, they earned draws with Djibouti, Somalia, Tanzania and the Gambia. They handed the Bahamas a surprising 4-0 thrashing. While they lost the other matches, they never gave up a 3½-½ or 4-0 score.
(Democratic Republic of the Congo)  |
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.jpg "Djibouti vs. Democratic Republic of Congo") |
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| # | Player | ELO | Nation |
Flag
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Result
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| 2 | Ntagasigumwami, Deo | 1720 | Burundi |
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1
|
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| 3 | Theko, Khanyapa | 1644 | Lesotho |
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1
|
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| 4 | Mohamed Ali, Dima | 1576 | Djibouti |
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1
|
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| 5 | Abdikani Nor, Mohamed | 1517 | Somalia |
 |
1
|
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| 6 | Small, Byron | 1721 | Bahamas |
 |
1
|
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| 7 | Diaz, Brian | 1737 | Aruba |
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½
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| 8 | Diaz Montes, Edwin | 2034 | Puerto Rico |
 |
1
|
9 | Lobe Belhe, Prosper | 0 | Cameroon |
 |
1
|
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| 10 | Hassuji, Nurdin | 1766 | Tanzania |
 |
1
|
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| 11 | Jallow, Jalamang | 0 | Gambia |
 |
1
|
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Here are the games of Marshala Kabamwanishi.
In essence, Kabamwanishi’s performance may appear to pale compared to professional players, but his performance was far above his expectations as an unrated player. Ding Liren of China who won the individual gold medal on board one, got a 2873 performance while toting a rating of 2804. Kabamwanishi ended with a performance of 2043 which is wonderful for a player in his first international event. His performance will help to build the DRC chess culture and provide grounds for continued sponsorship and investment in the country.
