The battle for the last 16 of the local events in the ongoing International Pool Carnival in Eldoret kicked off in earnest on Thursday.

Round one of the Timba-XO International Pool Carnival, a race to 7 competitions, were hotly contested, with local pool stars stamping authority as they got ready for rounds three and four last evening ahead of today’s last 16 games.

In the men’s Shujaa games, local players displayed their cue stick tactics and savoured strong wins in the race to 7 face-offs.

A number of international players also competed in the local events.

Ezekiel Taigut taught Terrence Williams a pool lesson, winning 7-0 in round one as Gilbert Otieno lost to Patrick Maina.

Steve Mann of England defeated Samuel Mbugua of Kenya 7-1 as South Sudan’s Chol Riak won 7-4 against Billy Njoroge in a tough contest at the Timba-XO club.

Chol Riak (South Sudan) continued his winning streak yesterday, hammering Joshua Obaigwa (Kenya) 7-0 in round two.

More than 300 local billiard players and 200 global stars are in Eldoret for the local and international open tournament.

As the men battled for spots in the final 16, women were getting ready to steady the cue sticks in the Shujaa Ladies events kicking off today.

Ann Kamau and Daisy Chepkoech will start off the Shujaa Ladies Race to 5 battle, followed by Gloria Kemboi v Martha Macharia and Samantha Delphine v Mercy Kiyeng.

But focus will also be on the first rounds of the International Open that will feature multiple African champion, Aden Joseph from South Africa highlighting the showpiece.

A big number of Kenyan pool players are set to showcase their billiards prowess.

Edwin Kikwai of Kenya will be up against Tanzanian Hamadi Rashidi in the International Open.

Daniel Nganda will be playing against Ugandan John Nakabaale while Evans Kiprotich will be facing Eric Mugabo also from Uganda, in the opening Race to 9 round.

At stake in the Eldoret showdown is a Sh1 million winning prize for the men’s local events and Sh3.5 million for the International Open champion.

Kikwai said he was well prepared to compete with counterparts from South Africa, Malawi and Uganda among other nations, at home.

“I have prepared and played for many years, and I hope the game will take me far. I am hopeful of performing well in the International Open, and may the best player win,” Kikwai told Standard Sport ahead of the international open contest.

Kikwai said the colossal prize money for the Eldoret tournament motivated huge numbers of pool players, compared to weekend games, to participate.

“The rich prize money has attracted a big number of players from Kenya and other countries. We have tournaments every other week in Nairobi, Nakuru, Kakamega and the coastal region, among other venues, but the prize money has been small, and it is a huge motivation. I have never seen a tournament where 256 international pool players converge at a time,” he said.

Aden Joseph, the South African sensation, will be playing against Royd Kabwe of Zambia in the International Round one tomorrow morning.

Kenyan pool stars taking part in the Eldoret show will be looking to impress the Kenya Pool and Billiard Federation (KPBF) which is identifying players to be invited to the national selection for the 2025 African Pool Championships set for October.