The All Africa Pool Championships got under way on Wednesday at Suncoast Casino in Durban, South Africa, without a full Ugandan team on parade.
Organised by the South African Pool Union (SAPU), the continental showpiece runs until February 8, 2026 and features competitions in heyball, blackball and 10-ball. Teams from hosts South Africa, Nigeria, Mozambique, Kenya, Zambia, Namibia, Tanzania and Eswatini are taking part, alongside a handful of individual players.
Uganda is represented only by individuals, Caesar Chandiga, Rashid ‘Dog City’ Wagaba and Rashida Mutesi, after the national team failed to travel in time.
The late arrival proved costly for Chandiga, one of the country’s most decorated players, who forfeited his slot in the 10-ball singles event but remains eligible for heyball and blackball.
Chandiga shrugs off setback
Despite the disruption, Chandiga insists his focus remains firmly on the medals.
‘Missing the 10-ball was disappointing, but championships are about mental strength. I’m here to compete and to win. Heyball and blackball still give me a real chance to put Uganda on the podium, and that’s where my focus is,’ Chandiga said.
The championships return to South Africa for the first time since 2023, reinforcing the country’s central role in African pool administration, but Uganda’s absence as a team contrasts sharply with its recent continental performances.
Uganda salvaged pride at the inaugural Hawley Cup, a prestigious international blackball event held in honour of the late Peter Hawley, a founder of the All Africa Pool Association and former SAPU president. Despite arriving late and missing the main event in the last event in 2023, Ugandan players collected several medals, led by Ian Kazibwe and Rashida Mutesi, who finished second in the U23 doubles.
Mutesi later paired with her sister Rukia Naiga to win the women’s doubles, while youngster Kenneth Odong claimed the men’s U23 singles title after edging South Africa’s Kumeshen Nadasen in a decider. Joseph Kasozi and Chandiga won silver in the men’s doubles, losing the final to South Africa’s father-and-son pairing of Abduragham and Ifraan Williams.
Naiga also secured bronze in the women’s singles as Uganda finished runners-up in the women’s team event.
Pool Association of Uganda (PAU) chairman Bob Trubish attributed the failure to field a full team in Durban to financial constraints.
‘It’s painful because the players deserved to compete. But without adequate funding, we couldn’t facilitate timely travel. That’s a gap we must close if Uganda is to compete consistently at this level,’ Trubish said.
The disappointment comes despite Uganda’s encouraging showing last year at the non-sanctioned All Africa Ultimate Pool Championship in Mpumalanga, South Africa, where the men won silver and the women clinched gold.
Uganda at a glance
Event: All Africa Pool Championships
Venue: Suncoast Casino, Durban, South Africa
Dates: February 5-8, 2026
Disciplines: Heyball, Blackball, 10-ball
Uganda representatives (individuals):
Caesar Chandiga
Rashid ‘Dog City’ Wagaba
Rashida Mutesi