The Entebbe 2024 FISU World University Championship Mind Sports has concluded in central Uganda. The event, which included competition in both chess and bridge, welcomed participants from 16 countries. This was Entebbe’s second time hosting a FISU event, having held the FISU Championship Cross Country in 2014.
In bridge competition, France, by way of their defeat of Chinese Taipei in the semi-final, took on Poland, which beat Germany in its semi-final. In the final, with a score of 15.30, Poland took the gold medal over France. This gave the country back-to-back gold medals, having prevailed in Antwerp in 2022, and its third in the last five FISU Championships as it won on home soil in 2016 in Lodz. The 3rd place playoff saw Germany take bronze with a score of 42.28.
Poland also had a strong chess tournament taking three out of four individual titles. In the women’s blitz event it was a clean sweep for Poland. Julia Antolak took the gold medal with 7.5 points, and fellow countrywomen Liwia Jarocka and Anna Kubicka claimed silver and bronze respectively. For Kubicka, this bronze medal matches hers from the classic tournament two years ago in Antwerp, Belgium.
Aakanksha Hagawane of India won the women’s classic gold medal in a very tight competition. A four-way tie materialized with Hagawane coming out on top due to tie breaks. Fellow Indian Saina Salonika finished in second place, while Poland’s Alicja Sliwicka won bronze. Sliwicka was the defending champion in blitz chess from the FISU Championship in 2022.
On the men’s side, Milosz Szpar of Poland held off two Frenchmen to win the gold medal in the classic tournament. His score of 7.5 was enough to give him top spot, while Yovann Gatineau and Benjamin Defromont ended up second and third respectively.
With a score of 7.5, Poland’s Igor Janik won the men’s blitz chess event. He’s a veteran in FISU podium finishes having taken silver in Antwerp in 2022 in both the classic and blitz events. Just behind Janik, tied at 7 points each, were Richard Mladek of Czechia and Richard Turcan of Slovakia, with Mladek claiming silver on the tie break.
Poland rounded out their stellar week in Entebbe by taking gold in the chess team blitz competition. Their team of Julia Antolak, Igor Janik, and Alicja Sliwicka took top spot, followed by Slovakia with silver, and France the bronze.
Written by Doug McLean
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