The Chess Olympiad in Dresden, Germany has come to a close with a marked improvement in the performance of Botswana though there was no medal.

Compared to the 2006 event, Botswana did very well at team and individual levels.

Perhaps the most significant improvement came from Botswana men's team board four player, Barileng Gaealashwe, who in 2006 managed only one point out of a possible 13.

This time he returned with six points from two draws and four victories - a 54 percent performance.

This is a remarkable improvement from the seven percent he got in 2006.

The men's board two player, Phemelo Khetho improved from his 38 percent showing in 2006 to an impressive 68 percent.

He could have done well had fatigue not taken its toll on him. With three rounds remaining, Khetho had won 83 percent of his games.

He rested in round nine and team manager, Chaza Bontsi replaced him and lost. Khetho then lost in round 10 and drew his last game, dropping his performance record to 68 percent. He finished the tournament in the top 100.

The men's board three player, Tebogo Pitlagano who had 34 percent in the last event improved slightly, scoring four points in 11 games to finish with 36 percent.

Board one player Ignatius Njobvu got 50 percent score, which in 2006 was the best in the team. Taking into account that the Botswana team was not drilled by a reputable instructor ahead of the games, the performance was very good.

On the women's side, Tshepiso Lopang, who managed just one point in 2006 got 5.5 points or 50 percent.

Fide Master (FM) Boikhutso Mudongo will feel disappointed with his overall performance, which dropped from 50 percent to 36 percent.

The board two player, gathered steam as the Olympiad went on. Ontiretse Sabure is this year's top women performer, scoring seven points out of 11 or 63 percent.

Sabure and Khetho's performances should see them crowned International Masters (IM). This is because they have scored well over 50 percent and beat some highly rated opponents.

With three points from her first Olympiad, Gorata Sebetso would feel she has achieved something, taking into account the record of some of Botswana's established players at the 2006 Olympiad.

Overall, the women's team finished in a respectable sixth position in category E, behind medalists, Qatar, Chinese Taipei, Angola, Tunisia and Yemen. The category is made up of 10 countries. The Botswana women finished in style beating Afghanistan 4-0 in the last round.

The men's team did not finish near the medal winners in its category D though by round nine it was on course to win silver.

Armenia, Israel, USA, Ukraine and Russia finished tops at the Olympiad.