Daniel Machanje, an Assistant Lecturer at Strathmore’s Faculty of Information Technology (FIT), recently won 2^nd place in a game of scrabble where he represented the Kenyan team.

 

Daniel, who is pursuing his PhD in a collaboration between Strathmore University and Pierre and Marie Curie University, in Paris France, drew a passion for Scrabble while in primary school, in 1998. The game was a family affair where through observation and interest, he picked up the skills and has since pursued it to a professional level.  

 

Participating in the African Championship competition, which took place towards the end of 2016 in Accra, Ghana, Daniel states that he enjoyed an experience of a lifetime and learnt a lot. “This was the first time I was playing for the African Championship. I was very excited to be part of the team, as we competed from qualifications until the end where we came 2^nd after Nigeria – the top scrabble players in Africa,” Daniel exclaimed.

 

Daniel initiated the start of a Scrabble team at Strathmore University where he recruited a good number of students interested in the game. The passionate player hopes to introduce strategic skills learnt from playing for the national team, which the Strathmore scrabble team can adapt to improve their game. One of his major tasks is to encourage the Strathmore team players to read widely so that they know their words well.

 

In the near future, as an individual Daniel hopes to take part in the world championship games, a competition set to take place in Kenya; first time in Africa and in Kenya. To be eligible for the championship, Daniel is required to qualify for a series of qualifiers that include the East, Central and Southern Africa Scrabble championship where he has already qualified.

With the Strathmore team, Daniel desires to see a majority of the students participate in the national tournaments to expose the students to the serious competitions that take place outside of the university. The Strathmore team is set to attend more tournaments this year.

 

Interested Scrabble players keen on joining the Kenyan team, can request to join the team through sending a request to the teams Facebook page – Scrabble Kenya.

 

Congratulations Daniel on your great achievement!  

 

Daniel was interviewed by K24 sports hub. Watch interview below;