Alan Falconer RIP

It is with great sadness that we have heard that Alan Falconer passed away on 6th January.

Alan originally played for Swansea University in West Wales during the 1970s and then Rhyddings for many years. 

He will be sadly missed by his many friends.

Alan’s cremation will be on Friday 9th February at Morriston Crematorium at 3pm.

Welsh Juniors 12 years + training weekend

 
February 3rd & 4th Welsh juniors 12 years+ training weekend
 
Open to all Welsh juniors 12 years and over all ability levels to signup for a weekend of chess training by FIDE Masters.
 
FM Jonathan Blackburn & FM Ioan Rees covering a range of topics with the main focus on Endgames
 
Venue: St. Peter’s School, Southey Street, Roath, Cardiff, CF 23 4SP
 
Saturday 11am -4.30pm
Sunday 9.30am – 4.30pm
£30 for a day or £50 for the weekend.
 
To sign up contact Ian Eustis ianrhos@hotmail.com
Or Jonathan Blackburn at jonathan.blackburn1985@gmail.com (to pay by bank transfer contact Jonathan)
 

Former Barry player has life saved while playing chess

Former Barry player Richard Hanscombe had his life saved recently while playing chess.

Further details here.

Adult Player development programme – January to April 2024

The Welsh Chess Union has obtained some funding from FIDE to run an adult player development programme in the period January to April 2024. 

This programme will be taken by one of several coaches and will involve six two hour online sessions during the 4 month period.  The coaching will be structured for players of different standards from those seeking selection for next year’s Olympiad to club players.  Groups will be put together of similar standard players to work with a specific coach for the period. 

Dependant on the level of interest the costs of these sessions will be subsidised by the funding received.  If you are interested in being involved in this programme can you please get in touch with Jason Garcia on 07543545734 by
12-1-24 at the latest.  Once we have an idea of the level of interest we will be able to better structure and cost the programme and provide individuals with more information.

Castell Nedd Christmas Party

Article

 

 

2023 World Senior Championship Italy

Recently the 2023 FIDE World Senior Championships took place in Terrasini, Italy between 24th October and 6th November.

Wales were represented by Peter Varley in the Over 65 Open and was seeded 77/150.

He finished on 6/11 and finished in 60th place.

Very well played!

Castell Nedd Junior Pizza Party

The Castell Nedd Chess Club pizza party was a booming success as numerous juniors came along for gaming and snacks. Throughout the evening, kids battled against computer operated chess sets, solved puzzles on Fire Tablets, and played games against new friends and faces. Accompanied by Domino’s pizza, it was a delicious treat for all who attended.

Backed by The National Lottery Community Fund, it is one of the stages of a project set up by Castell Nedd Chess Club’s latest scheme to draw children into the over-the-board game, using the newfound chess enthusiasm in society to allow the numbers in Neath Port Talbot to grow. It is just the first in many stages that will hopefully bring a rewarding experience to the local community.

Castell Nedd Chess Club has run for 45 years, its fundamentally aims directed at supporting junior chess in the Neath Port Talbot area. Rather than a club to invest in winning tournaments and titles, it has concentrated on the socialising and entertainment aspects that the game can provide for youngsters, even those with financial hardships or special requirements. The National Lottery has now helped to take this to another level.

Blaendulais, Blaengwrach, Cefn Saeson, Cymmer Afan, Cwmnedd, Gnoll Primary, Llangatwg and Crymlyn Primary all took part, sending pupils along who were interested in the game. Interacting with local schools is an essential part of spreading the chess word amongst kids, and it is because of establishments such as these that success in this area can be achieved.

Much as many believe that chess is a game of silence, it can be a time to get to know new people and make new friends. Eight-year-old Annabelle summed this up when she stated, “I really enjoyed getting to know people and playing against new players”, though another junior’s words, “I love playing chess and eating pizza. I’d come back next week.”  does show that a slice of Italian cuisine helps!

With aid from organisations such as The National Lottery, Castell Nedd will be able to have more successful events and provide the community interaction that is ever needed in today’s trying world.

 

 

 

2023 West Wales Congress Results

Open

1st Alexis M Harakis 4.5/5

=2nd Daniel Wells, Allan Pleasants and Tim Kett 3.5/5

Major

1st Scott Hammett 4.5/5

2nd Lef Zografos 4/5

=3rd Yaroslav Sharhorodsky, Emma Zihan Kong , Joshua McKenna, Graham Ashcroft and Mark Thomas

Minor

Govind Anandkumar 4.5/5

=2nd David Belochkin and Kedar Walke 

 

1982 European Championship remembered

A Hungarian chess publication discusses this event in which Wales competed.

The original article can be found here.

The translation is below.

This match was played as part of the European Team Championship that year. A three way semi-final comprised of Wales, France and Hungary.

Hungary—Wales 13:3

As a consequence of the group draw of the European Championship semi-finals we have to compete against the national teams of France and Wales in order to qualify for the final. Contrary to tradition, the matches will not be decided at one location, but the eight-member teams of the participating countries will play two-round matches in pairs at different times.
The first meeting of our group took place between May 1 and 5 in Cardiff, the seat of Wales. Of course, the Hungarian national team travelled with its strongest available team. Attila Csupan Grospeter would have had a place in the team but he was competing in the Soviet Union at the same time. Instead, I (Tompa Janos) stepped into the role of technical leader and reserve. Lajos Portisch joined the team in England right after the Grandmaster tournament in London. The delegation was led by Zoltan Gabor, vice president of the Hungarian Chess Federation.

After a pleasant trip, we arrived in Cardiff, where the opposing team consisted of players we were mostly unfamiliar with. To this point we had only played a match against Wales once: at the Olympics in Nice in 1974 and we won with a score of 3.5:0.5. From that Welsh team, Williams and Hutchings also took part in this match. The other Welsh players were selected mostly from representatives of the younger generation. The venue was the National Sports Center of Wales, where our accommodation was also.

The first round took place on May 2. Our team started the match with confidence, but not overconfidence. However, the tension of the first round had an effect on some of the games today. This resulted in two relatively quick draws: first Pinter and then Ribli drew with their opponents. In the other games, except for Lukacs, we were clearly more advantageous. Lukacs played an extremely complicated line, which for a long time was unclear. However, the very talented Welsh player (Cunningham) proved his clear superiority with simple but effective moves and consequently he won.

This match was played as part of the European Team Championship that year. A three way semi-final comprised of Wales, France and Hungary.

Except for Lukacs, we were clearly more advantageous. Lukacs played an extremely complicated line, which for a long time was unclear. However, the very talented Welsh player (Cunningham) proved his clear superiority with simple but effective moves and consequently he won.

 

UK Open Blitz Qualifiers Bridgend Results

Open: Bao Nghia Dong (14.5) and Daniel Kozusek (14.5)
Women’s: Bodhana Sivanandan (8) and Emma Kong (5.5)

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