Mfune ends Chipanga’s reign in Paul-Mike Chess
Petros ‘Razorblade’ Mfune successfully ended Chiletso Chipanga’s reign in the annual Paul-Mike Individual Chess Championships on Sunday to bag home the ultimate K130 000 winner’s purse, a trophy and a chess book.
He needed a single win during the last three encounters of the 12-game finals at the Sports Council in Blantyre to earn his first major trophy, but he did it with two triumphs to amass a total of 7.5 points while Chipanga finished with 4.5 points.
Nevertheless, his success came through hard work as he had a daunting task of analysing the games Chipanga has been playing for the past six years.
“Noting Chipanga’s tactical prowess, I knew I could only win the title if I went through all his best games he played since 2008 from the database. This helped me a lot because I was able to predict his moves and frustrate his attacks,” said the Lilongwe-based chess gladiator.
“I dedicate this victory to my wife Mercy who has been very supportive since the start of the tournament.”
On his part, Chipanga, who received K70 000 as runner-up, attributed his defeat to the unavailability of Mfune’s past records on the database.
“I had no clue about his style of play and it was tough for me to win. He analysed my games while I had no chance to take a look at his techniques because there is nothing about him on the database. All the same, I congratulate him for winning the trophy,” Chipanga said.
Co-sponsor of the competition Paul Nyirenda, who presented the prizes to the finalists alongside Chess Association of Malawi (Chessam) vice-president Mark Chikoko, said they are happy to be associated with the mental sport.
