Delta State’s Emmanuel Umujose rolled back the years to win the Elite Division of the 5th Emmanuel Egbele Annual Scrabble Tournament (EEAST) while Bukunmi Afolayan and Frank Ishekwene grabbed the Challenger, and the Sage categories respectively.
Umujose defeated Bayelsa State’s Enai Doubra 3-2 in a thrilling ‘Best of 5’ final encounter to claim the title.
Earlier in the semi-final, Umujose had turned back Timi Olaitan who finished third with a 2-1 result while Doubra pushed aside Ben Quickpen with a 3-0 result after a ‘Best of 3’ to set-up a testy final affair with the eventual winner.
Set in a secluded room, both players quickly settled in for an exciting ‘Best of 5’ final encounter streamed to a live audience.
It was Doubra who drew the first blood, closing Game 1, 494-434 in his favour but his rival had other plans.
Umujose rallied back to even the score with a 448 -319 in Game 2 and then took it a notch higher as he claimed Game 3 with 499-438.
Realising the stark reality of missing out on the title, the Bayelsan launched a fight-back in Game 4 to even score at 2-2 with a 428-423 and take the game to the wire.
But it was Umujose who confirmed his superiority as he beat Doubrai 531-377 in the final game to earn the prestigious EEAST Jacket and a cash prize of 700,000 naira.
He was delighted to win the title ahead of the World English Speaking Scrabble Players Association Championship in Ghana.
He said: “It’s been a long time coming. I haven’t won a title in a long time and winning this EEAST title is a sign of better things to come. Moreso, it’s going to put me in a good mood ahead of the World English Speaking Scrabble Players Association Championship (WESPAC) in Accra, Ghana in November.
“Sharing the same first name with the convener Emmanuel Egbele and winning this title for the first time means we have come together to do good things.
“I want to appreciate Engr. Egbele and his team for giving us a good tournament at a place like Eko Hotel.”
In the Challenger Division, Afolayan excelled over Sunday Ituah in the ‘Best of 3’ final with a commanding 3-zat to win a cash prize of 350,000 naira and created a history as the first woman ever to win a major category in the tournament.
Ishekwene picked the Sage division designed for the veterans.
At the colourful and well-attended Gala Night, Femi Awowade was voted as the winner of the EEAST Legacy Award while other deserving individuals and corporate organizations were recognized.
Emmanuel Egbele in his remark appreciated every participant as he called on every stakeholder to give back to the game as a way of taking it beyond its present level.
One of the founding fathers Gen. Gold Eburu (red) was full of commendation for Egbele and his team for bringing their dreams to life.
Players from 10 states consisting of Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Kwara, Bayelsa, Delta, Rivers, Ondo, and Ekiti as well as players from Uganda and Ghana participated at the annual tournament.
