The incident was unprecedented in the history of the tournament, which has dealt with cases of age cheating before, but never this type of fraud. The women’s event ultimately saw 99 entrants and was won by German grandmaster Josefine Heinemann, while over 400 players from 22 countries participated in the entire tournament.
According to Chess Kenya President Bernard Wanjala, Omondi’s deceit was not immediately apparent as wearing a hijab is normal. However, they noticed red flags along the way, such as the more masculine shoes he was wearing, and the fact that he was not talking to his opponents, which is customary during a game of chess. Wanjala emphasized that chess is not a war, but rather a friendly game that involves communication between players.
