Two time Africa Scrabble Championships (ASC) champions Wellington Jighere will lead the Nigerian contingent for the 13th edition of the continental championships set for this weekend at Destination Hotel in Kirinyaga County.
But World number 8 ranked scrabble player guided Nigeria to lift the ASC title held in Ghana in 2016 in the bi-annual event.
Since ASC inception in 1994, Nigeria and Nigerians have dominated the championships and will be defending the 2016 title.
The 2015 world champion Jighere anchored Nigerian to lift the World English Scrabble Players Championships (WESPAC) title.
The 2016 winner Saidu Ayorinde is the team for this year’s tournament that will be hosted in Kenya’s Kirinyaga County after arriving in the country on Thursday morning ahead of the Saturday kick off.
Others on board for the title defence include world number 9 player Eta Karo, Moses Peter (14), Dennis Ikekeregor (22), Olatunde Oduwole (42), Nsikan Etim (50), Curtis John (102), Raymond Gbaraba (123), Oyebola Alli (143), Osikhena Ojior (188) and Oyeleke Oluwaseun (299).
Philip Mugisha, after trouncing kenyan players during the Kisumu tournament early this month, will lead Uganda who are the WESPAC bronze medallists popularly called Word Cranes.
Past ASC Winners
- 1994 (Kenya) Ifeanyi Onyeonwu NGR.
- 1996 (Nigeria) Femi Awowade NGR
- 1998 (South Africa) Jimoh Saheed NGR
- 2000 (Ghana) Moshood Sanni NGR
- 2002 (Kenya) Trevor Hovelmeier SA
- 2004 (Tanzania) Dennis Ikekeregor NGR
- 2006 (Nigeria) Dennis Ikekeregor NGR
- 2008 (Kenya) Jighere Wellington NGR
- 2010 (Ghana) Jighere Wellington NGR
- 2012 (Zambia) Ogbakpa Rex NGR
- 2014 (South Africa) Nsikak Etin NGR
- 2016 (Ghana) Saidu Ayorinde NGR
- 2018 (Kenya)…..