Historic moment as Kenyan player claims bronze at Chess Olympiad
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Reading Time: 2min | Tue. 28.10.25. | 15:43
Her victory marks a historic milestone not only for Kenya but for Africa, as she was the only African woman medalist in the event
Kenya’s Persons With Disabilities (PWD) chess team made history by bagging a bronze medal at the World Chess Olympiad for Persons With Disabilities, which concluded over the weekend in Astana, Kazakhstan.
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In a landmark achievement, Mercy Cherono became the only woman in the entire tournament to win a medal and the first-ever Kenyan to achieve a podium finish at any Chess Olympiad.
Cherono, rated 1678, finished tied on 5/6 points with Salamon Julia (1976) of Poland and Ali Mohamed (1984) of Egypt on Board 4, ultimately ranking third on tiebreak to secure the bronze medal.
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Her victory marks a historic milestone not only for Kenya but for Africa, as she was the only African woman medalist in the event.
Cherono scored impressive wins against Yegembayeva Yenlik (Panama), Parkhomovich Iryna (Russia), Munoz Rodriguez Alba Cristal (Panama), Arsova Marija (North Macedonia), and Belal Alshehh Hamad (UAE).
She is the reigning 2024 African PWD Women’s Champion and the 2025 Kenya National PWD Champion, cementing her place among Kenya’s top female chess players.
Kenya entered four players in the six-day event. Apart from Cherono, other players who represented the country were Ronny Otieno (Visually Impaired – VI), Clinton Munene Muriithi (Visually Impaired – VI) and Chomu Pius Clement (Physically Handicapped – PH).
The team was accompanied by Daphne Mwikali, who chairs the Chess Kenya PWD & Special Needs Committee, and KCB official Isaac Babu.
As part of Chess Kenya’s recognition for her outstanding performance, Cherono has received full sponsorship to represent Kenya at the 2025 Commonwealth Chess Championships in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from Saturday, 8 to Monday, 17 November 2025.
Elsewhere, local action resumes this weekend with the Bungoma Open Chess Championships to be held at Tourist Hotel.
Former champion Mehul Gohil is among the top names who have registered for the two-day event that has a cash prize of Ksh150,000.
The open winner will pocket an impressive Ksh40,000, with the runner up walking away with Ksh20,000, and the third-placed player earning Ksh10,000.
There will also be special prizes for the best Bungoma player.
The Bungoma Open is among the two events leading to this year’s Kenya National Chess Championships to be held at the end of December.
After Bungoma, action will move to Nakuru for the Nakuru Open that has been moved to Saturday, 15 and Sunday, 16, November.
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