Summary

Part Three opens with the story of two Ugandan athletes who overcame the odds to become national heroes. John Akii-Bua is a 400-meter hurdler who wins Uganda's first Olympic gold medal in 1972. Dorcas Inzikuru is a champion of the 3000-meter steeplechase who wins gold at the World Championships in 2005. She is the first person to win an international gold medal for Uganda since Akii-Bua. Because of her, Ugandans "are no longer saying that sport is not a woman thing" (186).

Inzikuru motivates Phiona because she is a champion who has overcome similar challenges of birth and background. After returning from Russia, Phiona competes in Uganda's Rwabushenyi tournament and faces her Olympiad teammates. Phiona wins the tournament and becomes "the undisputed best women's chess player in all of Uganda" (190). More and more, Phiona matures and grows away from the aggressive child who first joined...