Banele Mhango

Banele Fortune Mhango (born 3 May 2003) is a chess player and coach from South Africa. Mhango was awarded the FIDE title of FIDE Master in 2020 (and Candidate Master in 2018). He was named sportsman of the year after representing South Africa in competitions in Egypt and Kenya.

Early life and career Born on 3 May 2003 in Mpumalanga, South Africa, Banele Fortune Mhango is a South African chess player also known by his online screen name, Banelevich.

In 2017, he won the under 16 open category at The South African Junior Closed Championship. In 2018, Mhango competed in Kenya where he placed third, won bronze medal and earned the Candidate Master title. Following the victory in Kenya, he went on to compete in Egypt where he was awarded the FIDE Master title in 2020, He was named sportsman of the year after representing the South Africa in competitions in Egypt and Kenya. In 2022 he competed in the World Team Chess Championship where he was partnered with the likes of Grandmaster Kenny Solomon and International Master Daniel Cawdery going against Grandmasters Anish Giri, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Nihal Sarin and Hans Niemann.