Home Chess News GM Fawzy & WIM Nassr win 2023 African Individual Chess Championship

GM Fawzy & WIM Nassr win 2023 African Individual Chess Championship

May 22, 2023

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GM Adham Fawzy & WIM Lina Nassr win 2023 African Individual Chess Championship

GM Adham Fawzy of Egypt & WIM Lina Nassr of Algeria are the winners of the 2023 African Individual Chess Championships Open & Ladies’ sections, respectively. The nine-round event in Cairo, Egypt, ended on 13th May 2023.

GM Adham Fawzy scored 8 points out of nine rounds, grabbing a coveted World Cup slot and his maiden African Individual title. He took home USD 5,000 as the first prize. It is interesting to note that Egypt has maintained a virtual stranglehold on the continental title since 2015. Kenyan chess players got a chance to meet GM Adham Fawzy when he participated in the 2023 Kenya Open held during the Easter break in Nairobi.

On the other hand, WIM Lina Nassr scored 7.5 points out of nine rounds to grab her maiden African Individual Chess Champion title and a slot for the forthcoming World Cup. She went home with USD 2,000.

GM Bilel Bellahcene of Algeria won the silver with 7.5 points, while GM Bassem Amin of Egypt won the bronze with the same points but a lower tie-break.

WGM Mona Khaled of Egypt grabbed the silver in the Ladies’ Section with 7 points, while WIM Sabrina Latreche of Algeria took the bronze with 6.5 points.

GM Adly Ahmed of Egypt in the red jacket in action. — GM Adly Ahmed of Egypt in the red jacket in action against IM Sobh Amrou of Egypt.

GM Bilel Bellahcene v GM Adham Fawzy

FM Djabri Massinas of Algeria (left) taking on GM Amin Bassem.

GM Adham Fawzy v GM Kenny Solomon

GM Bassem Amin v GM Kenny Solomon

WIM Jesse February of South Africa taking on WGM Shroof Wafa.

WCM Joyce Nyaruai v WIM Lina Nassr

Interesting facts about WIM Lina Nassr

Twenty year old WIM Lina Nassr comes from a chess playing family with five siblings with her father Nacer Nassr who is their coach. Both brothers Ali Nassr and Ahmed Nassr are International Masters while one of her sisters Rania Nassr is a FIDE Master. Her other sisters Manel & Ryma are Candidate Masters in their own right.

WIM Lina Nassr is a student in the Faculty of Medicine at The University of “Mouloud Mammeri” in Tizi-Ouzou, Algeria. She is one of the top players in Algeria having won the African Junior Championship a record three times (2017, 2021 & 2022).

Other accolades include winning the Arab Youth Chess Champion (2015, 2016 & 2018) and the African Youth Chess Championship from 2014 to 2019. Her other prestigious title includes winning the Ladies’ section of the 2022 Arab Individuals Chess Championship held earlier in the year in Khartoum, Sudan.

Kenyan stars

Robert Mcligeyo scored a respectable 4.5 points, while WCM Joyce Nyaruai obtained 5 points to end up in 9th place. In round one Robert Mcligeyo held FM Sameh Sadeck of Egypt who is rated 2255 to an exciting draw.