Kenyan chess is mourning the death of Hawi Kaloki, a 19-year-old chess champion who passed away on Monday morning.
His death was confirmed on Monday evening by Chess Kenya Federation president Andrew Owili, who described the loss as a setback to the entire chess fraternity.
“It’s with profound sadness and a heavy heart that we announce the untimely passing of our champion Hawi Kaloki, who passed away this morning,” Chess Kenya stated.
Owili described Hawi as a gifted player whose promising career was already yielding results.
Born in 2007, the multiple-time national champion rose through Kenya’s chess ranks to become one of the country’s strongest young players.
In 2024, he won the open section of the Kenya National Junior Chess Championship, earning an opportunity to represent Kenya at the 2025 World Junior Chess Championship in Montenegro.
Hawi was a member of both KCB Chess Club and Mavens Chess Club, where he competed extensively in national and international tournaments.
In November 2025, he won the Victoria East Africa U21 Open Chess Championship, scoring 7.5 points from eight rounds.
His most recent international assignment was at the Africa Individual Chess Championship in Botswana.
His death comes weeks before he was due to represent Kenya at the World Chess Olympiad in September this year.
His demise is an immense loss to his family, teammates and the wider chess fraternity.
“Hawi’s legacy will live on through the many lives he touched and the contribution he made to Kenyan chess,” Owili concluded.