Wellington Jighere

Nigerian Scrabble player (born c. 1982)

Wellington Jighere
Born	c. 1982 (age 41–42) Umolo-Olomu, Delta State, Nigeria
Other names	"The Cat in the Hat"
Occupation	Scrabble player
Years active	2002–present
Known for	Scrabble World Champion (2015)

Wellington Jighere (born c. 1982^[1]) is a Nigerian Scrabble player. He won the World Scrabble Championship 2015, the first win for an African nation.^[2] He defeated Lewis MacKay in four straight wins.^[3]^[4]

Jighere is nicknamed "The Cat in the Hat" for his quiet personality and fondness for hats.^[5]

Career

Jighere began playing Scrabble tournaments in 2002, after winning games versus friends in the tournament scene.^[6] He was the winner of the 2015 Scrabble World Championship, the first win for an African nation.^[7] After winning, he received a congratulatory phone call from president Muhammadu Buhari.^[6]

He intended to appear in the World Scrabble Championship 2016, but the French government denied his passport, along with every other member of the Nigerian Scrabble team.^[8]

In 2020, he announced his retirement from tournament Scrabble, due to not being paid prize money.^[9] He unretired in 2023, making an appearance in the year's World Scrabble Championship.

Achievements

World Scrabble Championships^[10]

2007 – 3rd place
2009 – 11th place
2015 – winner
2017 – 4th place
2023 – 4th place

North American Scrabble Players Championship

2023 32nd National Championship Finals (CSW) – winner^[11]

African Scrabble Championship / Pan African Championship^[12]

2006 – 7th place
2008 – winner
2010 – winner
2014 – 20th place
2016 – 11th place
2022 – 2nd place

West African Scrabble Championship

2022 – 3rd place^[13]

Nigerian National Scrabble Tournament

2019 – winner^[14]

Asaf Zadok Nigerian National Championship^[12]

2017 – 14th place

MGI (Mind Games Incorporated) Scrabble Grand Slam

2022 – winner^[15]

Scrabble In The Jungle Nigeria

2022 – winner^[16]

Lekki scrabble classic championship

2023 – 2nd place^[17]

Wellington Classics, Nigeria^[12]

2017 – winner

References

^ Paquette, Danielle (2021-03-30). "He was Nigeria's biggest Scrabble star. The pandemic spelled identity crisis". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
^ Wahlquist, Calla (9 November 2015). "Nigeria's Wellington Jighere almost lost for words after Scrabble world title triumph". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
^ Wang, Yanan (10 November 2015). "With the word 'felty,' for 36 points, Wellington Jighere becomes the first African world Scrabble champion". The Washington Post. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
^ "Nigerian man becomes first African to win the English-Language World Scrabble Championships". The Daily Telegraph. 9 November 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
^ Quist-Arcton, Ofeibea (27 August 2016). "And The No. 1 Scrabble Nation In The World Is ..." NPR. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
^ ^a ^b Quist-Arcton, Ofeibea (27 August 2016). "And The No. 1 Scrabble Nation In The World Is ..." WBUR. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
^ "Nigeria celebrates Africa's first English-language Scrabble win". BBC News. 2015-11-09. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
^ Babatunde, Mark (2016-08-30). "Nigerian World Scrabble Champion Denied Visa by French Embassy". Face2Face Africa. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
^ Abankula (3 December 2020). "Wellington Jighere, world scrabble champion quits over unpaid prizes". P.M. News.
^ "Wellington Jighere". WESPA. World English Language Scrabble® Players Association. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
^ "SPC 2023: Finals". scrabbleplayers.org. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Wellington Jighere". wespa.org. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
^ Ohanusi, Chinedum. "Eta Karo crowned King of West Africa Scrabble". Radio Nigeria. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
^ "National Champions". Nigeria Scrabble Federation. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
^ "MGI Grand Slam Finals (2022-10-16)". WESPA.org. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
^ Monye, Alex (1 September 2022). "Jighere wins maiden Scrabble In the Jungle Championship". The Guardian (Nigeria). Retrieved 13 December 2023.
^ Monye, Alex (3 October 2023). "Enoch Nwali wins Lekki scrabble classic championship". The Guardian (Nigeria). Retrieved 13 December 2023.