Takaud, a specialist provider of pensions, savings and investment solutions for the Mena region, has announced that its senior investment analyst Akshay Bhandarkar has won the World Scrabble Championship.

Bhandarkar, an Indian national and life-long resident of Bahrain, won the grand prize of $20,000 at the semi-annual World English Scrabble Players' Association (WESPA) Championship 2017, held from November 6 to 12 in Nairobi, Kenya.

Bhandarkar battled from 117^th place to the top in four days, besting 300 players who had successfully competed to qualify to enter the tournament and who represented more than 50 countries. Each player competed in a total of 32 games leading to the championship final.

Bhandarkar led the entire group, prevailing in 23 of his 32 games and completing the initial competitive rounds in first place by winning all of his 8 games on the final day of preliminary play. He then played best-of-seven championship games against the second-place finisher. He triumphed in the seventh and final game.

Takaud sponsored Bhandarkar’s participation in the event as a demonstration of the company’s belief in the training, dedication and preparation required for such a challenge, and the benefits that follow from high-level international competition, the company said. - TradeArabia News Service