This revelation was made at a press conference held at The Gambia National Olympic Committee (GNOC) Secretariat on Thursday 16th June, 2022, where they said 10 members of the GCF would be attending the 44th Olympiad this year.
Mass Jeng, 1st Vice President of the Federation stated that efforts are on course to organise regional and national qualification rounds in a bid to select participants for global competitions, adding that five male and five female players including a team captain and a delegate will be representing The Gambia in the upcoming world event.
Jeng disclosed that The Gambian delegation will be participating in voting at the FIDE Congress as well as the Commonwealth Chess Congress and African Chess Confederation Congress, adding that the Federation is prepared to participate fully and is determined to achieve glory for the country.
"We have now decentralised Chess to involve all regions of The Gambia where each region is to form their own committees. Chairmen of the regional committees will also be co-opted into the Gambia Chess Federation executive body," he stated.
He added: "Since we took over, we have organised regional tournaments for the first time in Basse, concluded an online training with Alliance Franchise for players to partake in the upcoming global competition and held discussions with the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education (MoBSE) in a bid to reintroduce Chess in schools."
Pascal Pereira, Public Relations Officer (PRO) for the Federation, highlighted the importance of reintroducing Chess to Gambian schools, noting that playing Chess sharpens the intelligence of children and help them perform better in school.
He called on The Gambia Government, organisations, institutions and philanthropists to support The Gambia Chess Federation to ensure they are able to participate in the upcoming regional and global congresses.
