Adegbesan Backs Nigeria To Retain African Scrabble Crown

Pan African Scrabble Association (PANASA) President Adekoyejo Adegbesan is confident Nigeria will retain its African Scrabble Championship title when the 16th edition of the continental competition holds in Monrovia, Liberia, from October 22 to 25.

Adegbesan, popularly known as Sheikh, believes Nigeria has sufficient quality to maintain its dominance despite losing several players who have relocated abroad.

Nigeria has won 14 of the last 15 editions of the African Scrabble Championship, making it the continent’s most successful nation in the competition.

‘Even though we’ve lost a lot of our players who have relocated outside the country, I still think we have enough to win in Africa,’ Adegbesan said.

However, the PANASA president warned that Nigeria should not underestimate Uganda and Kenya, identifying the two countries as the leading challengers to its continental supremacy.

‘I think it’s between those three countries, but Nigeria will still have more than enough to retain their title,’ he said.

Adegbesan also expressed confidence in Liberia’s preparations for the championship, praising the support provided by the country’s Ministry of Sports to its national Scrabble association.

He said the ministry’s involvement, including assistance with preparations and the redesign of the championship banner, had strengthened his belief that Liberia would deliver a successful tournament.

‘Liberia is ready to host, and I think we’ll have the best tournament yet,’ he declared.

Adegbesan, who has been involved in Scrabble since the 1990s, is also chairman of Gateway Scrabble Club in Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, and immediate past chairman of the Ogun State Scrabble Association.