The last and equally glamorous event in the scrabble calendar of Mind Game Incorporated (MGI) the Grand Slam begins today at the Golfview Suites and Conference Centre, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos with 30 top players in attendance.
The list is made up of six players who have won the African Scrabble Championship and one of them is a former world champion. The cast also include current American national champion and a host of multiple National Championship winners.
The current African Scrabble Champion and double 2023 National Championship winner, Enoch Nwali. The player fondly called the Drummer boy is student of University of Lagos. Two time African King and World Champion who is the defending champion, Wellington Jighere will be seeking to strike the second time.
Nsikak Etim, the current national number one and a former African Champion who wants to add this prize to his Toke Aka national championship crown is in alongside two time African Scrabble Championship winner Dennis Ikekeregor who is very hungry for another major title, Moses Peter, the super picker who has also ruled the continent will be in attendance with Femi Awowade who conquered Africa some 27 years ago.
UK base Awowade, a sporting and scrabble legend who helped in shaping the sport in Nigeria and Africa is in Lagos to ruffle some feathers and also throw some scrabble tigers under the bus.
Another household name in the mindgame that will be searching for the right tiles at the Grand Slam is Sammy Okosagah who represented America at the last WESPA Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA in July this year. The Edo State born, Sammy Okosagah, current America national champion is a contender for the top prize of one million naira.
Old timer, Azu Ogbogu, five time Kano Open champion Segun Durojaye, 2023 South West Closed winner Cyril Umebiye, 2022 National Sports Festival gold medalist and a member of the all conquering Hurricane SC, Jimoh Abdulmumin, James Ewruje winner of the maiden edition of Lekki Scrabble Classics and the 2022 MGI Patrons Cup and Doko Timilehin the West Africa Scrabble University Games champion who is also a key member of Hurricane SC are ready for the rough jamming and challenging scrabble battle this weekend.
A report on First Zealmediacast Blog says that only one female player, Bukunmi Afolayan, Africa’s number two scrabble amazon will be in the mix when hostilities starts on Friday at the Golfview Suites & Conference Centre.
NSF President Olobatoke Aka, Technical Director John Curtis, Chukwudi Ehibudu, Enai Doubra, John Aiyedun, Sunday Oshodi, Hakeem Olaribigbe, Tega Okiemute, Squiz Ewarah, Lukeman Owolabi wearing the colours of Ireland, Samuel Adebola, Ojior Osikhena, David Ojih, Lester Morris of Liberia, Ayotunde Adeyeri of America and Adeyemi Adeosun, semi finalist at the PANASA President’s Cup and the winner of the first edition of the South West Closed Championship completes the roll call.
Young, dynamic, skillful and equally experienced Khaleel Adedeji is serving as tournament director for the competition that will be powered by TSH.
It’s a 24 rounds of games event with the top two players going for the best of 5 games final round to determine the winner of the MGI Scrabble Grand Slam for 2023 that has the seal and rating points of Nigeria Scrabble Federation (NSF), World English Scrabble Players Association (WESPA) and Mindgame Incorporated (MGI).
Over N2 million will be doled out as prize money and the top 15 players are covered in the prize money pool.
Khaleel Adedeji, the Grand Slam tournament director, who is still celebrating his team’s promotion into the MGI Scrabble Premier League, says all necessary and needed logistics for a hitch free event have been put in place.
