Here is a link to a very nice Blog about US juniors attending chess school (similar to Australia's AusJCL Junior Development Squad (formerly the Ergas Junior Development Squad). Juniors the world over are similar and yet different. Some of these may be familiar to those who attended the World Youth in Vietnam last November. These juniors may also be at the World Youth in Turkey later this year in November.
Girls' Chess
Sixty girls did battle recently for the US Girls title. Here are some of their games.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
2009 ANU Open and Minor
After the NSW U12 and a night's rest, we left early on Saturday morning for Canberra. We left it a bit late and only managed to get to Canberra and Fenner Hall (ANU) on Northbourne Ave at 9:45 am before the scheduled 10 am start. It was quite a strong Open with a number of players clustered around the 2000-2400 level including IM Andras Toth and the elephant in the room, GM-elect David Smerdon at 2526. Full results are available at Shaun Press' blog here and at ChessChat here. There was only one NSW junior in the Open, Dylan Siow-Lee. He caused a slight sensation in the Round 1 by holding South Australian Mathew Juszczynski (1872) to a draw and being the last game to finish. Dylan was 2 pawns up but was outplayed and lost the pawns. But he defended resolutely in the endgame and got the draw. Dylan could not repeat his success of the first round and lost all his subsequent games except when he defeated unrated player, David Melandri. Dylan ended his first Open campaign with 2.5/7 (1 point from last round bye).
In the ANU Minor, there was also only one NSW junior, Santosh Krishnan (937). Santosh similarly came to ANU straight from the NSW juniors (he played in the U18) and also managed to get 2.5/7. Santosh also created an upset in Rd 3 by defeating ACT player, Nick Beare (1219).
For this blogger, I had a bit of a thrill when my services as a chessplayer was called upon in the first round and I had to play William Booth with Black. I essayed my beloved Hippopotamus and survived the opening. It was only in the middlegame when I allowed simplification that I lost since I was two pawns down. On checking my books later, I found out that I should have played more aggressively and move ...g4 and ...f5 attacking White's bishop which was played to g5. At my age, remembering lines and plans is getting more difficult. Interestingly, just as I was about to leave early to come back to Sydney (since Dylan had a last round bye), I saw William Booth's last round game with Joshua Bishop. William had two rooks on the h-file and a Queen and bishop aimed at the King. He calculated and calculated and finally played Bxg6 with trembling hands (excitement?!). He was very confident and winked at a spectator. I actually thought he missed the winning tactical exchange. Later, checking the result, I found he lost his game to Joshua Bishop. Hmmmmm! I wonder whether I was right or was it something else? In another game that I witnessed between Zhang YiJun-Megan Setiabudi. YiJUn made this audacious attack right into Black's 7th rank with a bishop. Another player turned spectator whispered to me saying that YiJun has miscalculated and that he will actually lose a piece. So I had a look and I had to take a bit of time to do so. I thought I saw the line where Megan will take YiJun's Queen with her knight and so on and she ends up with a piece up. So I walked away and got engrossed on another game. Later I remembered Megan's game when I saw her at the arbiter's table. Upon asking, I found she lost and on further clarification of the exchange I saw, she said no, she did not get a piece because there was a king check! She did not see it either and fell for the tactical trick! Arrrhhhhh! Speaking of which, Zhang YiJun was truly impressive and would probably have won the Minor. For some reason he did not play on the second day. But 4/4 from the first day!
In the ANU Minor, there was also only one NSW junior, Santosh Krishnan (937). Santosh similarly came to ANU straight from the NSW juniors (he played in the U18) and also managed to get 2.5/7. Santosh also created an upset in Rd 3 by defeating ACT player, Nick Beare (1219).
For this blogger, I had a bit of a thrill when my services as a chessplayer was called upon in the first round and I had to play William Booth with Black. I essayed my beloved Hippopotamus and survived the opening. It was only in the middlegame when I allowed simplification that I lost since I was two pawns down. On checking my books later, I found out that I should have played more aggressively and move ...g4 and ...f5 attacking White's bishop which was played to g5. At my age, remembering lines and plans is getting more difficult. Interestingly, just as I was about to leave early to come back to Sydney (since Dylan had a last round bye), I saw William Booth's last round game with Joshua Bishop. William had two rooks on the h-file and a Queen and bishop aimed at the King. He calculated and calculated and finally played Bxg6 with trembling hands (excitement?!). He was very confident and winked at a spectator. I actually thought he missed the winning tactical exchange. Later, checking the result, I found he lost his game to Joshua Bishop. Hmmmmm! I wonder whether I was right or was it something else? In another game that I witnessed between Zhang YiJun-Megan Setiabudi. YiJUn made this audacious attack right into Black's 7th rank with a bishop. Another player turned spectator whispered to me saying that YiJun has miscalculated and that he will actually lose a piece. So I had a look and I had to take a bit of time to do so. I thought I saw the line where Megan will take YiJun's Queen with her knight and so on and she ends up with a piece up. So I walked away and got engrossed on another game. Later I remembered Megan's game when I saw her at the arbiter's table. Upon asking, I found she lost and on further clarification of the exchange I saw, she said no, she did not get a piece because there was a king check! She did not see it either and fell for the tactical trick! Arrrhhhhh! Speaking of which, Zhang YiJun was truly impressive and would probably have won the Minor. For some reason he did not play on the second day. But 4/4 from the first day!
2009 NSW Junior U12 Chess Championship
Round 9
As foreshadowed, Vincent Chen played Clarise Koh while Shirley Gu played Calvin Wang. And Clarise managed to cause an upset by defeating Vincent Chen. That must have surely dented his hopes because Shirley Gu defeated Calvin and went a point clear. In another important game, Dylan Siow-Lee defeated Penelope Drastik. Meanwhile Cedric Koh defeated Kashish Christian.
Standings
Shirley Gu on 8/9.
Clarise Koh, Vincent Chen on 7/9.
Cedric Koh, Dylan Siow-Lee, on 6.5/9.
Clavin Wang, Penelope Drastik, on 5.5/9.
Final Round 10
Shirley Gu played Dylan Siow-Lee while Clarise Koh played Raymond Han and Vincent Chen Jasper Hong. If Dylan managed to defeat Shirley and Clarise and Vincent win their games, then there will be a three-way tie for first. But it was not to be (or rather it was Richard Gastineau-Hills luck day since he does not have to organise any play-off games). The day belonged to Shirley Gu as she defeated Dylan Siow-Lee. Even though Clarise and Vincent duly won their games, they could not catch her. So we had a clear winner of the NSW Junior U12 title (wonder if it is the first girl).
Final Standings
Shirley Gu 9/10 (undefeated)
Clarise Koh, Vincent Chen 8/10
Cedric Koh 7/10
Dylan Siow-Lee, Nicholas Sharp 6.5/10.
Full results can be found at the NSWJCL website here.
As foreshadowed, Vincent Chen played Clarise Koh while Shirley Gu played Calvin Wang. And Clarise managed to cause an upset by defeating Vincent Chen. That must have surely dented his hopes because Shirley Gu defeated Calvin and went a point clear. In another important game, Dylan Siow-Lee defeated Penelope Drastik. Meanwhile Cedric Koh defeated Kashish Christian.
Standings
Shirley Gu on 8/9.
Clarise Koh, Vincent Chen on 7/9.
Cedric Koh, Dylan Siow-Lee, on 6.5/9.
Clavin Wang, Penelope Drastik, on 5.5/9.
Final Round 10
Shirley Gu played Dylan Siow-Lee while Clarise Koh played Raymond Han and Vincent Chen Jasper Hong. If Dylan managed to defeat Shirley and Clarise and Vincent win their games, then there will be a three-way tie for first. But it was not to be (or rather it was Richard Gastineau-Hills luck day since he does not have to organise any play-off games). The day belonged to Shirley Gu as she defeated Dylan Siow-Lee. Even though Clarise and Vincent duly won their games, they could not catch her. So we had a clear winner of the NSW Junior U12 title (wonder if it is the first girl).
Final Standings
Shirley Gu 9/10 (undefeated)
Clarise Koh, Vincent Chen 8/10
Cedric Koh 7/10
Dylan Siow-Lee, Nicholas Sharp 6.5/10.
Full results can be found at the NSWJCL website here.
2009 NSW Junior U18 Chess Championship
Resuming transmission after a break caused by me being down in Canberra for the ANU Open (more on that later) ......
Final Round 9
As foreshadowed, the 4 co-leaders played each other in very long games (in fact they were the last games to finish). When the dust settled, Adrian Chau had defeated Joshua Lau. Adrian had a pawn advantage and that proved too much. Further, in post-game analysis with IM George Xie, Joshua played too passively in defence in the endgame. In the other game, Chen PengYu outwitted John Papantoniou. So we had two players tied for first place with 7/9. Richard Gastineau-Hills quickly organised a playoff for the next day and Chen PengYu emerged as the 2009 NSW Junior Champion at the ripe old age of 12 (have to check if he is the youngest ever junior champion in NSW). Congrats!
Jack Ruan was clear third when he defeated Benjamin Cheung and ended with 6.5/9. Five players shared 4th-8th with 6/9: John Papantoniou, Harry Ruan, Sean Gu, Joshua Lau and Clive Ng.
It augurs well for NSW junior chess that younger players like Chen PengYu, Jack Ruan, Joshua Lau, Harry Ruan, and Sean Gu are clearly able to play at U18 level.
Other results can be gathered from NSWJCL website here.
Final Round 9
As foreshadowed, the 4 co-leaders played each other in very long games (in fact they were the last games to finish). When the dust settled, Adrian Chau had defeated Joshua Lau. Adrian had a pawn advantage and that proved too much. Further, in post-game analysis with IM George Xie, Joshua played too passively in defence in the endgame. In the other game, Chen PengYu outwitted John Papantoniou. So we had two players tied for first place with 7/9. Richard Gastineau-Hills quickly organised a playoff for the next day and Chen PengYu emerged as the 2009 NSW Junior Champion at the ripe old age of 12 (have to check if he is the youngest ever junior champion in NSW). Congrats!
Jack Ruan was clear third when he defeated Benjamin Cheung and ended with 6.5/9. Five players shared 4th-8th with 6/9: John Papantoniou, Harry Ruan, Sean Gu, Joshua Lau and Clive Ng.
It augurs well for NSW junior chess that younger players like Chen PengYu, Jack Ruan, Joshua Lau, Harry Ruan, and Sean Gu are clearly able to play at U18 level.
Other results can be gathered from NSWJCL website here.
Friday, July 24, 2009
2009 NSW Junior U12 Chess Championship
As predicted Day Two brought about some top board clashes among the top seeds.
Round 5
Cedric Koh fought it out with Vincent Chen on Bd 1 whilst his sister, Clarise Koh did battle with Shirley Gu on Bd 2. Both the Kohs dropped a piece and their opponent duly converted the advantage for a win. Disaster struck Dylan Siow-Lee who lost to Jordan Sze Tho after yet again dropping a piece. There is a new girl talent in the making in the form of Penelope Drastik who defeated Jasper Hong. Calvin Wang defeated Paul Russell to charge to the front ranks. Raymond Han woes continued when he only split the point with Jimmy Shie.
Standings
Vincent Chen on 5/5.
Shirley Gu on 4.5/5.
Cedric Koh, Penelope Drastick, Calvin Wang, all on 4/5.
Round 6
It was Shirley Gu's turn to challenge Vincent Chen who looked comfortably on his way to the U12 title. Shirley managed to throw a spanner in the works by holding Vincent to a draw and remains a half-point behind. Cedric Koh defeated Jordan Sze Tho and Penelope Drastick defeated Paul Russell. Calvin only managed a draw with James Snow.
Standings
Vincent Chen on 5.5/6.
Shirley Gu, Cedric Koh, Penelope Drastick, all on 5/6.
Round 7
Now it was Penelope Drastik's turn to challenge Vincent Chen and a good effort it was since she forced Vincent to split the point. Shirley Gu inflicted further damage to Cedric Koh's hopes in defeating him but more importantly, she caught up with Vincent Chen. Calvin Wang won his game against Kashish Christian.
Standings
Shirley Gu, Vincent Chen on 6/7.
Penelope Drastick, Calvin Wang both on 5.5/7.
Clarise Koh, Cedric Koh, Dylan Siow-Lee all on 5/7.
Round 8
Then it was Shirley's turn to face off against Penelope Drastik and she won. Vincednt Chen defeated Calvin Wang. Clarise Koh defeated Jordan Sze Tho. Cedric Koh and Dylan Siow-Lee faced each other and both could only draw. Dylan Siow-Lee was worse being a piece down but then he embarked on the plan to trade off all the pawns into a drawn endgame with K+B+N vs K+B.
Standings
Shirley Gu, Vincent Chen on 7/8.
Clarise Koh on 6/8.
Cedric Koh, Penelope Drastick, Calvin Wang, Dylan Siow-Lee all on 5.5/8.
There are two more rounds and there is still a slim chance for the group on 5.5 points to either take the tile or tie for first but very unlikely. Shirley and Vincent is running out of opponents (all but one) who has a realistic chance to defeat them. It looks like Vincent will face off with Clarise while Shirley will play either Calvin/Dylan.
Not as tension-filled as the U18 but still enough drama to ensure an eventful Day Three coming up.
Round 5
Cedric Koh fought it out with Vincent Chen on Bd 1 whilst his sister, Clarise Koh did battle with Shirley Gu on Bd 2. Both the Kohs dropped a piece and their opponent duly converted the advantage for a win. Disaster struck Dylan Siow-Lee who lost to Jordan Sze Tho after yet again dropping a piece. There is a new girl talent in the making in the form of Penelope Drastik who defeated Jasper Hong. Calvin Wang defeated Paul Russell to charge to the front ranks. Raymond Han woes continued when he only split the point with Jimmy Shie.
Standings
Vincent Chen on 5/5.
Shirley Gu on 4.5/5.
Cedric Koh, Penelope Drastick, Calvin Wang, all on 4/5.
Round 6
It was Shirley Gu's turn to challenge Vincent Chen who looked comfortably on his way to the U12 title. Shirley managed to throw a spanner in the works by holding Vincent to a draw and remains a half-point behind. Cedric Koh defeated Jordan Sze Tho and Penelope Drastick defeated Paul Russell. Calvin only managed a draw with James Snow.
Standings
Vincent Chen on 5.5/6.
Shirley Gu, Cedric Koh, Penelope Drastick, all on 5/6.
Round 7
Now it was Penelope Drastik's turn to challenge Vincent Chen and a good effort it was since she forced Vincent to split the point. Shirley Gu inflicted further damage to Cedric Koh's hopes in defeating him but more importantly, she caught up with Vincent Chen. Calvin Wang won his game against Kashish Christian.
Standings
Shirley Gu, Vincent Chen on 6/7.
Penelope Drastick, Calvin Wang both on 5.5/7.
Clarise Koh, Cedric Koh, Dylan Siow-Lee all on 5/7.
Round 8
Then it was Shirley's turn to face off against Penelope Drastik and she won. Vincednt Chen defeated Calvin Wang. Clarise Koh defeated Jordan Sze Tho. Cedric Koh and Dylan Siow-Lee faced each other and both could only draw. Dylan Siow-Lee was worse being a piece down but then he embarked on the plan to trade off all the pawns into a drawn endgame with K+B+N vs K+B.
Standings
Shirley Gu, Vincent Chen on 7/8.
Clarise Koh on 6/8.
Cedric Koh, Penelope Drastick, Calvin Wang, Dylan Siow-Lee all on 5.5/8.
There are two more rounds and there is still a slim chance for the group on 5.5 points to either take the tile or tie for first but very unlikely. Shirley and Vincent is running out of opponents (all but one) who has a realistic chance to defeat them. It looks like Vincent will face off with Clarise while Shirley will play either Calvin/Dylan.
Not as tension-filled as the U18 but still enough drama to ensure an eventful Day Three coming up.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
2009 NSW Junior U18 Chess Championship
Today's Rounds 7 and 8 have produced some interesting results leading to a very exciting and tension-filled last round tomorrow.
Round 7
The overnight leader, Chen PengYu lost his game with Joshua Lau allowing Joshua and others to catch up and overtake him. John Papantoniou played Jack Ruan and won, thus taking himself into the joint lead with Joshua Lau and Harry Ruan who defeated Kinto Wan. The two Benjamins (Encel and Cheung) drew, so did Sean Gu with Clive Ng and William Cook with Jonathan Ren. However, Adrian Chau defeated Dawen Shi to get within half-a-point of the leaders.
Pasan Perera continued his slump losing to Nicholas Deen-Cowell while Erik Ostman and Jerry Xu defeated Bernard Chau and Alex Mehan respectively.
Standings
John Papantoniou, Joshua Lau, Harry Ruan, all on 5.5/7.
Chen PengYu, Adrian Chau, both on 5/7.
Jack Ruan, Sean Gu, Benjamin Cheung, Clive Ng, Benjamin Encel, Erik Ostman, Kinto Wan, William Cook, Nicholas Deen-Cowell, Jonathan Ren, Jerry Xu all on 4.5/7.
Round 8
In the top board clash, John Papantoniou drew with Joshua Lau, while Harry Ruan lost to Chen PengYu. (Chen PengYu has scored a remarkable 2.5/3 with white in a KIA-Sicilian opening.) Adrian Chau capped a truly remarkable recovery from early rounds disasters to become co-leader into the last round by defeating Kinto Wan. (His mother said that Adrian was very determined and showed resilience in the face of setbacks.) Similarly Joshua Lau has made a comeback after early setbacks.
Jack Ruan defeated Nicholas Deen-Cowell to stay in touch with the lead. It was a similar story with Sean Gu who defeated William Cook, Benjamin Cheung who defeated Jerry Xu, and Clive Ng who defeated Jonathan Ren. However, Ben Encel and Erik Ostman only drew with each other and remain a point adrift of the leaders and realistically has no chances of taking the title. Nonetheless it is a very good effort and performance from Erik Ostman in his first U18 campaign. He is already looking to next year's campaign and planning his strategy.
Standings
John Papantoniou (still undefeated), Chen PengYu, Joshua Lau, Adrian Chau, all on 6/8.
Jack Ruan, Sean Gu, Harry Ruan, Benjamin Cheung, Clive Ng, all on 5.5/8.
It looks like the top four will play each other while one of those on 5.5 will float down to play Ben Encel (who is on 5/8). It will be a very tense final round since the top four will be trying their best to win in order to win the title outright whilst those on 5.5 points will try to win to have the chance of tying first in the event that the top four draws with each other.
Do not go away. Transmission will resume when we have results.
Round 7
The overnight leader, Chen PengYu lost his game with Joshua Lau allowing Joshua and others to catch up and overtake him. John Papantoniou played Jack Ruan and won, thus taking himself into the joint lead with Joshua Lau and Harry Ruan who defeated Kinto Wan. The two Benjamins (Encel and Cheung) drew, so did Sean Gu with Clive Ng and William Cook with Jonathan Ren. However, Adrian Chau defeated Dawen Shi to get within half-a-point of the leaders.
Pasan Perera continued his slump losing to Nicholas Deen-Cowell while Erik Ostman and Jerry Xu defeated Bernard Chau and Alex Mehan respectively.
Standings
John Papantoniou, Joshua Lau, Harry Ruan, all on 5.5/7.
Chen PengYu, Adrian Chau, both on 5/7.
Jack Ruan, Sean Gu, Benjamin Cheung, Clive Ng, Benjamin Encel, Erik Ostman, Kinto Wan, William Cook, Nicholas Deen-Cowell, Jonathan Ren, Jerry Xu all on 4.5/7.
Round 8
In the top board clash, John Papantoniou drew with Joshua Lau, while Harry Ruan lost to Chen PengYu. (Chen PengYu has scored a remarkable 2.5/3 with white in a KIA-Sicilian opening.) Adrian Chau capped a truly remarkable recovery from early rounds disasters to become co-leader into the last round by defeating Kinto Wan. (His mother said that Adrian was very determined and showed resilience in the face of setbacks.) Similarly Joshua Lau has made a comeback after early setbacks.
Jack Ruan defeated Nicholas Deen-Cowell to stay in touch with the lead. It was a similar story with Sean Gu who defeated William Cook, Benjamin Cheung who defeated Jerry Xu, and Clive Ng who defeated Jonathan Ren. However, Ben Encel and Erik Ostman only drew with each other and remain a point adrift of the leaders and realistically has no chances of taking the title. Nonetheless it is a very good effort and performance from Erik Ostman in his first U18 campaign. He is already looking to next year's campaign and planning his strategy.
Standings
John Papantoniou (still undefeated), Chen PengYu, Joshua Lau, Adrian Chau, all on 6/8.
Jack Ruan, Sean Gu, Harry Ruan, Benjamin Cheung, Clive Ng, all on 5.5/8.
It looks like the top four will play each other while one of those on 5.5 will float down to play Ben Encel (who is on 5/8). It will be a very tense final round since the top four will be trying their best to win in order to win the title outright whilst those on 5.5 points will try to win to have the chance of tying first in the event that the top four draws with each other.
Do not go away. Transmission will resume when we have results.
2009 NSW Junior U12 Chess Championship
The NSW 2009 U12 started today with a much diminished field both in terms of total number of players (only 36 players) as well as the top seeds. As previewed on Monday's blog, there were a number of top U12 players who did not compete. In addition, Oscar Wang chose not to compete whilst my prediction of a dark horse, Joshua Behar was unable to compete. So that left Cedric Koh (878) and Vincent Chen (787) as top seeds.
Round 1
No upsets as the results were mainly according to pairings except Edmund Yu (643) lost to Christopher Liu (406) and Teresa Gu (582) lost to Nicholas Sharp (unrated).
Round 2
Again no upsets except Shirley Gu (3rd seed) (760) drew with Grace Alvares (598).
Round 3
Yet again everything mostly according to seeds/ratings except Teresa Gu lost to Caitlin O'Rourke (527).
Round 4
This was the round where the pairings were starting to produce more interesting match-ups. On top board, again the quirk of Swiss system, siblings, Cedric and Clarise (4th seed)(744) were matched together. Cedric duly defeated his older sister. Vincent Chen defeated Dylan Siow-Lee (5th seed) (706). Shirley Gu defeated Raymond Han (6th seed) (701).
Standings: Cedric Koh, Vincent Chen, both on 4/4.
Shirley Gu on 3.5/4.
Clarise Koh, Dylan Siow-Lee, Jasper Hong, Paul Russell, Calvin Wang, Penelope Drastik, James Snow, Jordan Sze Tho, all on 3/4.
I believe it is still anyone's game. Tomorrow should produce the top board clash, Cedric Koh vs Vincent Chen. Whoever wins will stand a very good chance of winning the title. If they draw, then the others will still have a chance.
Stay Tuned.
PS. On a Fun note, in the first round clash I saw this game where the players reached the following position. It is Black to move but facing mate in one.
Black played b5 (only move). White played Ra3# but it would have been prettier with cxb5#. What do you reckon?
Round 1
No upsets as the results were mainly according to pairings except Edmund Yu (643) lost to Christopher Liu (406) and Teresa Gu (582) lost to Nicholas Sharp (unrated).
Round 2
Again no upsets except Shirley Gu (3rd seed) (760) drew with Grace Alvares (598).
Round 3
Yet again everything mostly according to seeds/ratings except Teresa Gu lost to Caitlin O'Rourke (527).
Round 4
This was the round where the pairings were starting to produce more interesting match-ups. On top board, again the quirk of Swiss system, siblings, Cedric and Clarise (4th seed)(744) were matched together. Cedric duly defeated his older sister. Vincent Chen defeated Dylan Siow-Lee (5th seed) (706). Shirley Gu defeated Raymond Han (6th seed) (701).
Standings: Cedric Koh, Vincent Chen, both on 4/4.
Shirley Gu on 3.5/4.
Clarise Koh, Dylan Siow-Lee, Jasper Hong, Paul Russell, Calvin Wang, Penelope Drastik, James Snow, Jordan Sze Tho, all on 3/4.
I believe it is still anyone's game. Tomorrow should produce the top board clash, Cedric Koh vs Vincent Chen. Whoever wins will stand a very good chance of winning the title. If they draw, then the others will still have a chance.
Stay Tuned.
PS. On a Fun note, in the first round clash I saw this game where the players reached the following position. It is Black to move but facing mate in one.
Black played b5 (only move). White played Ra3# but it would have been prettier with cxb5#. What do you reckon?
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
2009 NSW Junior U18 Chess Championship
After a rest day, the NSW 2009 U18 Junior Championship resumed with 2 rounds.
Round 5
In a clash of top boards, John Papantoniou drew with Sean Gu. The co-leader after Rd 4, Pasan Perera, lost to Jack Ruan. Kinto Wan drew with Ben Encel. Harry Ruan defeated William Cook. Chen PengYu defeated John McMahon while Dawen Shi drew with Clive Ng. Same story in Erik Ostman vs Jonathan Ren clash. Joshua Lau defeated Peter Yang.
Upsets of the day: Young Andrew Tayeh defeated Jonathan Behne-Smith; Mark Lin defeated Caroline Shan
Standings: John Papantoniou, Jack Ruan, Sean Gu, Chen PengYu, Harry Ruan, all on 4/5.
Ben Encel, Dawen Shi, Joshua Lau, Jonathan Ren, Kinto Wan, Clive Ng, Pasan Perera, Erik Ostman, all on 3.5/5.
Adrian Chau, Bernard Chau, Kevin Tan, Nicholas Deen-Cowell, Benjamin Cheung, John McMahon, Alex Mehan, William Cook, all on 3/5.
Round 6
In one of those quirky pairings, the Ruan brothers were paired with each other on Board 1 and they drew. Same story with John Papntoniou's clash with Ben Encel. However, Chen PengYu defeated Sean Gu in an upset to take sole lead!
Dawen Shi drew with Jonathan Ren while Joshua Lau defeated Erik Ostman. Kinto Wan was also victorious over Pasan Perera. Clive Ng managed to hold Nicholas Deen-Cowell to a draw. Adrian Chau defeated John McMahon while his brother Bernard only managed a draw with Alex Mehan. Kevin Tan lost to William Cook Benjamin Cheung defeated Andrew Tayeh.
Upset of the day: Dover Dubosarky defeated Charles McMahon.
Standings: Chen PengYu on 5/6 (undefeated with +4 =2 -0).
John Papantoniou, Jack Ruan, Kinto Wan, Joshua Lau, Harry Ruan, all on 4.5/5.
Ben Encel, Sean Gu, Dawen Shi, Benjamin Cheung, William Cook, Jonathan Ren, Clive Ng, Adrian Chau, all on 4/5.
Pasan Perera, Erik Ostman, Alex Mehan, Nicholas Deen-Cowell, Jerry Xu, Bernard Chau, all on 3.5/5.
Round 5
In a clash of top boards, John Papantoniou drew with Sean Gu. The co-leader after Rd 4, Pasan Perera, lost to Jack Ruan. Kinto Wan drew with Ben Encel. Harry Ruan defeated William Cook. Chen PengYu defeated John McMahon while Dawen Shi drew with Clive Ng. Same story in Erik Ostman vs Jonathan Ren clash. Joshua Lau defeated Peter Yang.
Upsets of the day: Young Andrew Tayeh defeated Jonathan Behne-Smith; Mark Lin defeated Caroline Shan
Standings: John Papantoniou, Jack Ruan, Sean Gu, Chen PengYu, Harry Ruan, all on 4/5.
Ben Encel, Dawen Shi, Joshua Lau, Jonathan Ren, Kinto Wan, Clive Ng, Pasan Perera, Erik Ostman, all on 3.5/5.
Adrian Chau, Bernard Chau, Kevin Tan, Nicholas Deen-Cowell, Benjamin Cheung, John McMahon, Alex Mehan, William Cook, all on 3/5.
Round 6
In one of those quirky pairings, the Ruan brothers were paired with each other on Board 1 and they drew. Same story with John Papntoniou's clash with Ben Encel. However, Chen PengYu defeated Sean Gu in an upset to take sole lead!
Dawen Shi drew with Jonathan Ren while Joshua Lau defeated Erik Ostman. Kinto Wan was also victorious over Pasan Perera. Clive Ng managed to hold Nicholas Deen-Cowell to a draw. Adrian Chau defeated John McMahon while his brother Bernard only managed a draw with Alex Mehan. Kevin Tan lost to William Cook Benjamin Cheung defeated Andrew Tayeh.
Upset of the day: Dover Dubosarky defeated Charles McMahon.
Standings: Chen PengYu on 5/6 (undefeated with +4 =2 -0).
John Papantoniou, Jack Ruan, Kinto Wan, Joshua Lau, Harry Ruan, all on 4.5/5.
Ben Encel, Sean Gu, Dawen Shi, Benjamin Cheung, William Cook, Jonathan Ren, Clive Ng, Adrian Chau, all on 4/5.
Pasan Perera, Erik Ostman, Alex Mehan, Nicholas Deen-Cowell, Jerry Xu, Bernard Chau, all on 3.5/5.
Monday, July 20, 2009
2009 NSW Junior U18 Chess Championship
This afternoon I dropped in at the NSW U18 tournament at the end of Rd 4. There were 5 more games proceeding when I got there. GM Ian Rogers was busy conducting post-game analysis for both players. When I had a look at the number of entries, I was pleasant surprised, 48 entries, an increase over last year's 39 entries.
There was also another surprise with 10 year old Sean Gu (NSWJCL rating of 1002) opting to play in the U18 instead of the U12. Similarly, Harry Ruan (946), also age 10, is competing in the U18. Harry tied first with his older brother, Jack (1022), in the U12 last year but lost in the playoff. I guess, he decided the U12 title is not attractive enough to warrant another go.
It is still early days yet since it is only 4th round of a total of 9 rounds but the leaders are a bit of a surprise. The top seed is Adrian Chau (1074) but is only managing 50% with 2/4. His brother, Bernard (1033), also the joint 2nd seed is also on the same percentage result. It is the other joint 2nd seed, John Papantoniou (1033), who is one of the three co-leaders with 3.5/4. The other co-leaders going into round 5 on Wednesday (Tuesday is rest day) are Pasan Perera (899) and Sean Gu (1002).
In Rd 1, Aside from onw shock result, there were no other surprises except perhaps Sean Gu drawing with Ryan O'Rourke (745). The shock? Jonathan Behne-Smith (892) (joint winner of the Winter Two-Day Tournament last week) lost to Cimaine Hoang (538), as I understand it, to a blunder late in the game.
In Rd 2, Dawen Shi (996) lost to Pasan Perera (899) (Pasan lost playoff for the U12 title in 2007). Nicholas Deen-Cowell (948) lost to Erik Ostman (840). Tim Li (638) defeated Caroline Shan (810) (Caroline is the Australia U12 Girls Champion). Bernard Chau (1033 and joint second seed) lost to Benjamin Cheung (919). Aran Sandrasegaran (637) defeated Charles McMahon (815). Marat Nuriev (591) defeated Mark Lin (690). Novacastrian Alex Mehan (873) drew with Joshua Lau (985).
In Rd 3, Pasan continued his winning ways defeating Kevin Tan (1003). Leo Jiang (781) produced another upset defeating Bernard Chau (1033). Kinto Wan (927) lost to Alex Mehan (873). Thomas Zhou (533) defeated Shobana Bommireddipalli (643). Ben Encel (1008) dropped half-a-point drawing with Peter Yang (933). Similarly Chen PengYu (957) drew with his ATS team mate, Erik Ostman (840). Ryan O'Rourke (745) produced another good result, drawing with top seed, Adrian Chau (1074). Nicholas Deen-Cowell (948) dropped half-a-point drawing with Anthony Chan (717).
John Papantoniou (1033) had the chance to take clear first in his 4th round clash with co-leader (after 3 rounds), Pasan Perera (899), but could not convert his endgame advantage of a R and f-passed pawn. Pasan managed to push his connected passed a+b passed pawns down to 3rd and 4th rank and John could not neutralise the threat. The two agreed to a draw and was the last game to finish. There were quite a few draws in this round at the top boards. Sean Gu defeated Peter Yang to become co-leader after 4 rounds. Kevin Tan (1003)lost to John McMahon (903). Benjamin Cheung (919) lost to William Cook (819). Adrian Chau again only managed a draw with Anthony Chan (717). Nicholas Deen-Cowell (948) dropped yet another half-point drawing with Jerry Xu (887). Similarly. Caroline Shan (810) could only draw with Aran Sandrasegaran (637).
So, at the end of the 4th round:
1-3 John Papantniou, Pasan Perera, Sean Gu 3.5/4
4-14 Ben Encel, Chen PengYu, Jack Ruan, Erik Ostman, Kinto Wan, Dawen Shi, John
McMahon, Jonathan Ren, Harry Ruan, William Cook, Clive Ng 3/4
15-16 Peter Yang, Joshua Lau 2.5/4
NSW U12 Championship - Preview
Since the four of 10 strongest U12 players are not playing (Sean Gu and Harry Ruan are playing in U18; Andrew Pan is overseas), it is a bit more open-ended. Query whether Oscar Wang (999) will play. If not, Cedric Koh (878) is favourite to win based on ratings and form (Cedric came 3rd in the Winter One-Day Tournament). Others are Eric Pan (802), Vincent Chen (787), Shirley Gu (760), and Clarise Koh (744). But I am predicting a dark horse, Joshua Behar, newly arrived on the junior chess scene in Sydney from the US of A. Joshua was 2008 State of Washington U10 Champion. He also did very well in the recent 2009 NSW Open U1600. At a very long shot is my son who did quite well in last week's Winter Two-Day Tournament. If I am a betting man, I might just punt $5 since the odds are so very long.
PS. Just found out from Director of Play Richard Gastineau-Hills that IM George Xie will be conducting the traditional annual simultaneous against juniors on the last day, Friday 24th July.
There was also another surprise with 10 year old Sean Gu (NSWJCL rating of 1002) opting to play in the U18 instead of the U12. Similarly, Harry Ruan (946), also age 10, is competing in the U18. Harry tied first with his older brother, Jack (1022), in the U12 last year but lost in the playoff. I guess, he decided the U12 title is not attractive enough to warrant another go.
It is still early days yet since it is only 4th round of a total of 9 rounds but the leaders are a bit of a surprise. The top seed is Adrian Chau (1074) but is only managing 50% with 2/4. His brother, Bernard (1033), also the joint 2nd seed is also on the same percentage result. It is the other joint 2nd seed, John Papantoniou (1033), who is one of the three co-leaders with 3.5/4. The other co-leaders going into round 5 on Wednesday (Tuesday is rest day) are Pasan Perera (899) and Sean Gu (1002).
In Rd 1, Aside from onw shock result, there were no other surprises except perhaps Sean Gu drawing with Ryan O'Rourke (745). The shock? Jonathan Behne-Smith (892) (joint winner of the Winter Two-Day Tournament last week) lost to Cimaine Hoang (538), as I understand it, to a blunder late in the game.
In Rd 2, Dawen Shi (996) lost to Pasan Perera (899) (Pasan lost playoff for the U12 title in 2007). Nicholas Deen-Cowell (948) lost to Erik Ostman (840). Tim Li (638) defeated Caroline Shan (810) (Caroline is the Australia U12 Girls Champion). Bernard Chau (1033 and joint second seed) lost to Benjamin Cheung (919). Aran Sandrasegaran (637) defeated Charles McMahon (815). Marat Nuriev (591) defeated Mark Lin (690). Novacastrian Alex Mehan (873) drew with Joshua Lau (985).
In Rd 3, Pasan continued his winning ways defeating Kevin Tan (1003). Leo Jiang (781) produced another upset defeating Bernard Chau (1033). Kinto Wan (927) lost to Alex Mehan (873). Thomas Zhou (533) defeated Shobana Bommireddipalli (643). Ben Encel (1008) dropped half-a-point drawing with Peter Yang (933). Similarly Chen PengYu (957) drew with his ATS team mate, Erik Ostman (840). Ryan O'Rourke (745) produced another good result, drawing with top seed, Adrian Chau (1074). Nicholas Deen-Cowell (948) dropped half-a-point drawing with Anthony Chan (717).
John Papantoniou (1033) had the chance to take clear first in his 4th round clash with co-leader (after 3 rounds), Pasan Perera (899), but could not convert his endgame advantage of a R and f-passed pawn. Pasan managed to push his connected passed a+b passed pawns down to 3rd and 4th rank and John could not neutralise the threat. The two agreed to a draw and was the last game to finish. There were quite a few draws in this round at the top boards. Sean Gu defeated Peter Yang to become co-leader after 4 rounds. Kevin Tan (1003)lost to John McMahon (903). Benjamin Cheung (919) lost to William Cook (819). Adrian Chau again only managed a draw with Anthony Chan (717). Nicholas Deen-Cowell (948) dropped yet another half-point drawing with Jerry Xu (887). Similarly. Caroline Shan (810) could only draw with Aran Sandrasegaran (637).
So, at the end of the 4th round:
1-3 John Papantniou, Pasan Perera, Sean Gu 3.5/4
4-14 Ben Encel, Chen PengYu, Jack Ruan, Erik Ostman, Kinto Wan, Dawen Shi, John
McMahon, Jonathan Ren, Harry Ruan, William Cook, Clive Ng 3/4
15-16 Peter Yang, Joshua Lau 2.5/4
NSW U12 Championship - Preview
Since the four of 10 strongest U12 players are not playing (Sean Gu and Harry Ruan are playing in U18; Andrew Pan is overseas), it is a bit more open-ended. Query whether Oscar Wang (999) will play. If not, Cedric Koh (878) is favourite to win based on ratings and form (Cedric came 3rd in the Winter One-Day Tournament). Others are Eric Pan (802), Vincent Chen (787), Shirley Gu (760), and Clarise Koh (744). But I am predicting a dark horse, Joshua Behar, newly arrived on the junior chess scene in Sydney from the US of A. Joshua was 2008 State of Washington U10 Champion. He also did very well in the recent 2009 NSW Open U1600. At a very long shot is my son who did quite well in last week's Winter Two-Day Tournament. If I am a betting man, I might just punt $5 since the odds are so very long.
PS. Just found out from Director of Play Richard Gastineau-Hills that IM George Xie will be conducting the traditional annual simultaneous against juniors on the last day, Friday 24th July.
Greek Youth Championships
I had wanted to drop in on the NSW U18 Chess Championship but developed this debilitating headache in the morning and spent the whole afternoon sleeping it off. I will see if I can get to Lidcombe tomorrow to find out what is happening. The U12 begins on Wednesday. In the meantime, I came across this Chessbase report on the Greek Youth Championships. Nothing unusual, just a bunch of names of winners but when I got to the photographs (everyone who has been following Chessbase knows about their photographs!), I was a bit surprised. Have a look yourself here and see if you do not agree with me that those are very matured-looking 12, 14 and 16 year old girls as well as 14 and 16 year old boys (with facial hair no less!!)!
Friday, July 17, 2009
2009 US Junior Closed Chess Championship
A 14-year old junior has become the 2009 US Junior champion (U20). IM Ray Robson (see previous blog here, here, here, and here) has won the 2009 US Junior Closed Chess Championship with a score of 6/7 and no defeats, only two draws. Great achievement.
This year in the NSW Junior U18 Championship, there are a number of pre-teen juniors competing on the U18. Will any of them be able to emulate Ray Robson and win the NSW Junior title?
This year in the NSW Junior U18 Championship, there are a number of pre-teen juniors competing on the U18. Will any of them be able to emulate Ray Robson and win the NSW Junior title?
A Miniature Between Two Scottish Juniors at the 2009 Scottish Chess Championship
J. Hookham - A. Green, A magnificent game by one of Scotland's juniors in the classical, sacrificial style of the old masters.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Chess Training: What it is all about? Straight from the horses' mouth ......
For some juniors and parents, one of the most difficult question concerns chess training/coaching. When should the junior begin receiving coaching? Is group coaching adequate or is individual one-to-one coaching better? How do you find a good trainer/coach? What is a good trainer/coach?
I don't have all the answers but this interview on Chessbase with GM Adrian Bogdanovich Mikhalchishin (or Mihalcisin or Mihalčišin) should provide a few answers. In his yoiht, he was a strong GM together with three other GMs, Oleg Romanishin, Aleksandr Beliavsky, Iossif Dorfman. (The Four Chessketeers)? He then worked as a player cum trainer with many individuals (including former World Champion GM Anatoly Karpov, the Polgar sisters) and national teams (including the Polish youth team, Dutch youth and Women's teams, and now the Turkish Women's team), as well as authoring many chess books.
Here are some extracts form the interview:
Check out also the official FIDE website: http://getchesstraining.com/
I don't have all the answers but this interview on Chessbase with GM Adrian Bogdanovich Mikhalchishin (or Mihalcisin or Mihalčišin) should provide a few answers. In his yoiht, he was a strong GM together with three other GMs, Oleg Romanishin, Aleksandr Beliavsky, Iossif Dorfman. (The Four Chessketeers)? He then worked as a player cum trainer with many individuals (including former World Champion GM Anatoly Karpov, the Polgar sisters) and national teams (including the Polish youth team, Dutch youth and Women's teams, and now the Turkish Women's team), as well as authoring many chess books.
Here are some extracts form the interview:
Coaching during a tournament is also very important, though underestimated in general. The preparation before and during tournaments is a cornerstone of chess training. Ability to analyze the games of the pupils is a distinguishing feature of a good trainer. In the former Soviet Chess School, great importance was given to the elimination of mistakes, by analysis of pupils’ games. Evaluation of results is lacking in chess training.
What do you think are the basic qualities of a good trainer?
Of course, certain chess understanding is necessary, but, more importantly, pedagogical ability and knowledge are essential. A third thing would be an education in sports and child psychology. Another very crucial aspect is the ability to develop an individualistic approach for every pupil. Group work is nice, but trainers need to devote some specific time to each pupil. This demands more energy, but individual training is more useful for each student. Trainers are generally lazy about it, analyzing the games of the students with just the computer. This is the greatest sin because the pupil might not be able to improve without his hands making the moves. There is a similar thing in tennis, where if you develop a hand, you have a greater tendency to make the right move, as if intuitively.
Analysis of your own games is key for improving your chess.
Check out also the official FIDE website: http://getchesstraining.com/
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
2009 US Junior Championship
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
WA 2009 State Junior Championships
After posting results of the ACT U12, Vic U18 & U12 as well as Qld U18 & U12 juniors championships, I realise I should post results from other states and territories as well.
This year’s Western Australia Junior Championships were held at the Mt Lawley Senior High School on 16th, 17th, 23rd and 24th of May. Chris Boni (1542) is the WA 2009 Junior Champion while Amy Brown (1348) is the WA 2009 Girls Champion as well as the WA U16 champion and U16 Girls champion and achieving 2nd placing in U18 championship. Tayla Wood (1270) scored a double by winning both the WA 2009 U12 title (separate tournament) as well as the 2009 Girls U12 title. William Williams (1519) won the U14 title (ran as a separate tournament). There was a three-way tie for first on the U10 (ran as separate tournament) and same result after playoffs. So, Patrick Olofsson (957), David Stebbins (970), and Tristan Tan (940) were joint 2009 U10 champions. Congrats to all!
Full results can be found here.
South Australia will hold its junior championships from 16th-17th July, New South Wales from 19th-24th July, and Tasmania's junior championship from October 3rd-4th.
This year’s Western Australia Junior Championships were held at the Mt Lawley Senior High School on 16th, 17th, 23rd and 24th of May. Chris Boni (1542) is the WA 2009 Junior Champion while Amy Brown (1348) is the WA 2009 Girls Champion as well as the WA U16 champion and U16 Girls champion and achieving 2nd placing in U18 championship. Tayla Wood (1270) scored a double by winning both the WA 2009 U12 title (separate tournament) as well as the 2009 Girls U12 title. William Williams (1519) won the U14 title (ran as a separate tournament). There was a three-way tie for first on the U10 (ran as separate tournament) and same result after playoffs. So, Patrick Olofsson (957), David Stebbins (970), and Tristan Tan (940) were joint 2009 U10 champions. Congrats to all!
Full results can be found here.
South Australia will hold its junior championships from 16th-17th July, New South Wales from 19th-24th July, and Tasmania's junior championship from October 3rd-4th.
International Juniors_Hungary and Canada
Reading Chessbase, I cam across another report by Diana Mihajlova on Hungarian chess, only this time it is the Zalakaros Chess Festival at the health resort of Zalakaros. There were two divisions and Division A had quite a few GMs and IMs participating. Here are two Hungarian juniors who participated in the "A" Group and the opportunity of playing against GMs and IMs.
Aron Amstadt, (13 years, 2219) and Tibor Kende Antal, (11 years, 2103) were the youngest players to face GMs and IMs in the A group.
Here are two other juniors who participated in the "B" Group.
Balazs Csonka (HUN), FIDE 2062 and Bence Korpa (HUN), FIDE 2087, who shared second place in the B group (6.5/9), with their proud teacher GM Jozsef Horvat.
What was intersting was this snippet about the chess school:
Some more grist to the mill of thought ......
And then there is the 2009 Canadian Open Chess Championship (July 11th-July 19th) (report from Chessbase here) where some juniors played as well. Here are two of them:
Alberta's top junior (and champion) FM Eric Hansen, 2423
Canadian youth Tanraj Sohal, rated 2072
You can follow the games but it is on Monroi and you need to register first
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| From Searching for Magnus Carlsen/Hou YiFan |
Here are two other juniors who participated in the "B" Group.
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| From Searching for Magnus Carlsen/Hou YiFan |
What was intersting was this snippet about the chess school:
The Maroczy Chess School bears the name of Hungarian chess legend, Grandmaster Geza Maroczy. Initiated in 2006 by Mr. Peter Kunos, President of the Hungarian Chess Federation, and GM Gabor Kallai. The school is generously subsided by the Hungarian Ministry for Sport. Every month, students meet for a full week of study, while receiving instruction via the Internet during the remainder of the month. Students are also given homework: to prepare analysis of games from important chess tournaments, such as Wijk-aan-Zee, and to solve chess problems.
To date, the school has produced IM Peter Prohaska, the former Under 14 Boys European Champion. Promising stars also include FM Richard Rapport, FIDE 2400, FM Norbert Lorand, FIDE 2334, and FM Andras Csirik, FIDE 2281.
Some more grist to the mill of thought ......
And then there is the 2009 Canadian Open Chess Championship (July 11th-July 19th) (report from Chessbase here) where some juniors played as well. Here are two of them:
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| From Searching for Magnus Carlsen/Hou YiFan |
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| From Searching for Magnus Carlsen/Hou YiFan |
You can follow the games but it is on Monroi and you need to register first
Friday, July 10, 2009
A US ex-junior shares his Uni experience ......
On ChessCafe, there is a column written by Steve Goldberg called Scholastic Chess focusing on junior chess in the US. This month's column has a write-up on FM Elliot Liu, a 19 year old freshman at Stanford University. Elliot speaks of maintaining his passion for chess combined with university studies:
Steve also wrote a lengthier article about Elliot back in 2006 here and here. The first part is interesting for Elliot's experience playing in the 2006 Pan-American U18 Championship in Ecuador which he won. It is a tale of freezing conditions, 4-star accommodation which turned out to be 1-star, cheating attempts. (Spare a thought for the long-suffering mother who accompanied him.)
In the second part, extracts:
[Elliot drew with GM Alex Yermolinski in Rd 1 and also GM Gregory
Kaidanov in Rd 2 and ended the 2006 U.S. Championship with 3.5/9.]
Regarding his future in chess, Liu said “I do not have any specific goals as far as chess is concerned for the next few years. I still enjoy the game very much, and I think it will be a lifelong love and a nice hobby. I plan on trying to have as much fun as possible with it and take any progress that comes my way in stride. My goals are to improve, to play in tournaments in cool locations (before I can no longer compete freely when I grow up and start working during the summer – I feel old saying that), and to meet as many interesting people as possible (and we know that it’s not too hard to meet ‘interesting’ chess players). I also want to spread my knowledge about this great game to as many people as possible by continuing to teach both in San Diego and now in the Bay Area at my new home up north – individuals privately, camps, schools, etc. I love teaching others.”
Steve also wrote a lengthier article about Elliot back in 2006 here and here. The first part is interesting for Elliot's experience playing in the 2006 Pan-American U18 Championship in Ecuador which he won. It is a tale of freezing conditions, 4-star accommodation which turned out to be 1-star, cheating attempts. (Spare a thought for the long-suffering mother who accompanied him.)
In the second part, extracts:
[Elliot] began to play in various scholastic events, but before too long he came to the conclusion that he preferred open tournaments. “I stopped playing in national kid tournaments when I was around 9 because I didn’t like them. Unless it is a prestigious invitational like the Cadet, I normally won’t play. So I primarily play in adult tourneys. So many people (especially kids) care excessively about ratings. I just cared about getting better – the rating will catch up eventually.
I asked Elliott if he had any suggestions about making chess more interesting to kids and he responded bluntly. “It is flat out hard to ‘spice up’ chess. I mean it is so complex, and if a game is longer than 10 minutes (which still might be too long) then who would tune into ESPN 8 to watch it? Even I wouldn’t. In order to make chess interesting to younger kids and a valuable experience, rewards need to be given for a child’s participation. For example, everyone gets a trophy or some sort of bribe like that. Honestly, one just has to be passionate for the game and have the right type of problem solving, logical mind to enjoy chess. I do think chess promotes good qualities for one’s character. If you don’t take it so seriously and loosen up one can make chess fun, and that is what’s inviting about it. There’s always that mystery of what’s going to happen since no game is ever the same. Also, I’ve found that the ability to think ahead on the chessboard has translated directly to skill on the football gridiron as a safety trying to read the quarterback.”
He advises other players who would like to improve to “get a coach and ChessBase as first steps. Play as much as possible (not using me as an example!) since practice makes better (not perfect of course). Study if you don’t have too much attention deficit disorder.”
As for his own chess and 2300 rated, Liu hopes to “just keep it up. I
can’t play again until December anyway because of school and football, so I just hope I don’t get too rusty. Chess is just a hobby for me anyway, and hopefully it’ll help me get into college. I might play more in college too, but afterwards of course I’ll look for a real job and keep chess in the back seat for a hobby. I hope my rating goes up, maybe pick up two more IM norms here and there and see where the wave I ride takes me.”
He notes the difficulty a student faces trying to combine schoolwork with major chess tournaments. “Catching up is a nightmare, especially at the school that I go to. That’s why I give a lot of credit to my wonderful teachers who understand my situation and have helped me to gradually catch up for the past few years. Have my grades suffered because of it? Yes they have in some areas, so I have to be careful, but luckily there have been no disasters. Time is precious. For those of you reading this who find that you are similar to me, manage your time well since it will never come back to you. Cherish every experience you get.”
For the 2006 U.S. Championship, for example, Elliott said “I attended school until the day of the opening ceremony, slipped on my nice suit, and went. No prep until a few hours before my first game, whereas the majority had been prepping months in advance. Of course this is the clear cut difference between a professional chess player and a 16-year old adolescent.”
[Elliot drew with GM Alex Yermolinski in Rd 1 and also GM Gregory
Kaidanov in Rd 2 and ended the 2006 U.S. Championship with 3.5/9.]
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
A Different Kind of Training/Approach to Juniors
I have previously written about Canadian GM Kevin Spraggett and his advice for parents and juniors (here). There is also this other blog he wrote about his Portugese godchild who he thinks is a very gifted chess player, in fact, in his opinion, even stronger than GM Alexy Shirov or the late GM Tony Miles. I won't give the link to the full blog but extracts:
There is also this innovative approach to tournaments:
PS: Please note that GM Spraggett's webblog is rated MA15+/R18 containing nudity and adult humour.
Then when Miguel was nine years old, I came up with an idea of how to train him. A very novel idea, using general concepts and ideas (as opposed to moves, openings and checkmates) and it has been quite successful. Today, while Miguel still does not know much about any opening , and we hardly play any complete games, he is quickly becoming an expert on endings and strategy.
(I suppose that is how Capablanca was trained when he was young)
There is also this innovative approach to tournaments:
I have decided not to let Miguel play in any national sub championships (for his age) until he is 12 years old, since I feel that he must be prepared psychologically (ie, be tough enough) to handle the parents of his opponents! It is well known how cruel and manipulating parents can be in chess.
[......]
Two years from now , Miguel will play in the Portuguese National Championships (of his age division). I have no doubt that he will qualify for the World Championships, and two years from now Miguel will already be a very strong player.
PS: Please note that GM Spraggett's webblog is rated MA15+/R18 containing nudity and adult humour.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
A Different Kind of League (Team Competition) .....
Here is a League (Team) Chess Competition with a difference, one involving men, women, juniors, boys and girls. Chessdom has a brief write up here. There was a similar competition last year as well.
It looks like a good model for Australia. Either we have privately sponsored teams or state-based teams with addition of Barbarians teams.
Now we only need a sponsor with buckets of money either to help with transport for interstate travel or to set up for Internet play (see the ongoing South African Chess Open and explanation here and here). Does anyone know of a computer industry-based company (hardware?, software?, ISPs?) willing to sponsor to either showcase their technology or technological services?
Once set up, the same can be used to create a national league of men comp, women comp, junior comps, senior comp et al. The possibilities are endless!
The Turkish Super League is a unique event sponsored by the Turkey Is Bank, that brings together the top 16 teams of the country. The championship is played in a round robin system, on two different occasions: the first 7 matches were fought this year in February, in Antalya, while the last 8 rounds were held in Uludag, Bursa, from 25 June to 2 July 2009.
Each team consists of 10 boards: 4 men boards, a woman board, a junior, an U16 boy, an U16 girl, an U14 boy and an U14 girl board.
It looks like a good model for Australia. Either we have privately sponsored teams or state-based teams with addition of Barbarians teams.
Now we only need a sponsor with buckets of money either to help with transport for interstate travel or to set up for Internet play (see the ongoing South African Chess Open and explanation here and here). Does anyone know of a computer industry-based company (hardware?, software?, ISPs?) willing to sponsor to either showcase their technology or technological services?
Once set up, the same can be used to create a national league of men comp, women comp, junior comps, senior comp et al. The possibilities are endless!
Monday, July 6, 2009
2009 NSW Junior Championships
Calling all juniors in NSW ...... The NSW Junior U18 and U12 Championships are coming up in less than a fortnight. Check out NSWJCL webpage for further details here.
Emulating the US Juniors ......
Reading Chess Life Online and came across this story:
A few things can be said about this:
Pretty strong field of juniors, eh? In fact, the very very latest update is that IM Alex Lenderman achieved his 3rd GM norm at the just-concluded World Open in Philadelphia and since he is already rated over 2500, he is US newest GM.
A round-robin of the strongest juniors is a very good idea.
Tickets to the US Championship and the World Juniors are very good prize incentives.
Earlier, I read this on ChessChat, a post by our latest IM-elect, james Morris:
It would be fantastic if AusJCL can run similar tournament for the top Aus juniors, ie similar to the US Junior Closed. Oh, yes, I know (before someone points out), we have the annual Young Masters series ...... perhaps it can be revived and reinvigorated? As a prize, perhaps a ticket to the Australian Masters? We need to offer incentives to the juniors beside titles. Perhaps all expenses and entry paid to overseas Junior events? Besides the usual international juniors events. What about Gibraltar Open? Mainz Rapid? One of the Scandinavian Opens? What say you juniors? You need to agitate and get the adults to do something!
The dates and field for a very strong U.S. Junior Closed are set. The eight-player round robin will take place from July 13-16th in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with the following participants:
Players:
1.IM Alex Lenderman (2654)
2.IM Sam Shankland (2564)
3.IM Ray Robson (2553)
4.IM Salvijus Bercys (2503)
5.FM Elliott Liu (2405)
6.FM Joel Banawa (2392)
7.FM Michael Lee (2384)
8.Maxx Coleman (2182, winner of the 2008 Junior Open)
At stake are spots in the World Junior and the 2010 U.S. Championship. This tournament is right after the U.S. Junior Open , also in Milwaukee (July 10-12), which is divided into three sections: Under 21, Under 15 and Under 11.
Frank Berry will act as chief arbiter. Time control is G/90+30sec/move increment. The games will be broadcast on the Internet Chess Club and CLO coverage will include players bios and reports from Alex Betaneli.
A few things can be said about this:
Pretty strong field of juniors, eh? In fact, the very very latest update is that IM Alex Lenderman achieved his 3rd GM norm at the just-concluded World Open in Philadelphia and since he is already rated over 2500, he is US newest GM.
A round-robin of the strongest juniors is a very good idea.
Tickets to the US Championship and the World Juniors are very good prize incentives.
Earlier, I read this on ChessChat, a post by our latest IM-elect, james Morris:
I think the reason that a lot of top juniors aren't playing is the fact that no other top juniors are playing, if you get what I mean. If we could get the countries top juniors all playing, it would be an incredible tournament. In the past, however, the junior tourney was held at the same time as the Aus Open/Champs. Not this time. Tasmania is a lovely place with lovely people, and I would be happy to play if I knew top juniors were also participating.
JM
__________________
IM the Morris; IM TheRealDeal!
It would be fantastic if AusJCL can run similar tournament for the top Aus juniors, ie similar to the US Junior Closed. Oh, yes, I know (before someone points out), we have the annual Young Masters series ...... perhaps it can be revived and reinvigorated? As a prize, perhaps a ticket to the Australian Masters? We need to offer incentives to the juniors beside titles. Perhaps all expenses and entry paid to overseas Junior events? Besides the usual international juniors events. What about Gibraltar Open? Mainz Rapid? One of the Scandinavian Opens? What say you juniors? You need to agitate and get the adults to do something!
GM Speaks: Advice for Juniors and Parents
Part III, (final part) of the interview with GM David Smerdon on ChessChat:
Extract:
Extract:
You are a very popular personality, especially amongst young Chess players… What’s a general advice for them?
Play chess because you love it, and for no other reason. If you get sick of it, take a break for a while. I enjoy games the most against people who are passionate about the game, no matter what their strength. And the interesting chess moves usually follow.
Being more specific, please suggest some books for them!
Openings for Juniors, by J. Walker
Attacking the King, by J. Walker
Chess Endings: Essential Knowledge, by Averbahk
Simple Chess, by M. Stean
And what about coaching? Do you suggest systematic, thorough coaching by professionals as a good approach to a youngster’s improvement?
Yes, coaching is very important, but so are different coaching styles. Know what you want when you want coaching, and target coaches accordingly. Also, ask coaches what your weaknesses are, and how you can improve outside of the sessions.
What would you suggest to Chess parents so they can better help their youngsters on the road to improvement?
Give your child freedom, encouragement, and devotion. If they want to quit, present them with all the arguments, but allow them the freedom to know it's their choice. Encourage them to work at their chess, but don't be over-pressuring them. Most of all, nurture their love for the game, choosing coaches and chess friends who display passion for chess themselves.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
International Juniors_Hungary
Cane across this in my surfing of chess blogs et al. This is the 25th Spring Chess Festival in Budapest (courtesy of Chessbase and results and games are here.
Chessbase highlighted these 4 juniors:
Don Ngo Tan (VIE), 11 years old, lives in Budapest and speaks very good Hungarian. He is brave with English and is making a rapid climb-up in his chess career. He made 5/9 points with a 2101 performance. Don now plays under the Hungarian flag.
Zsuzsanna Kabai (HUN) made 5.5 and 2232 performance. At 14 years she has joined the young Hungarian chess force only very recently but has already firmly secured her position among the promising young talents. She is playing at as many tournaments as possible, including the First Saturday, and her rating calculations are announcing a change of whopping +107 Elo points, which will bring her rating to just over 2000.
15-year-old Bence Szabo is keeping a steady place among the Hungarian young elite. His 6/9 result could have been still better, but together with his overall result at other tournaments he is about to add a healthy 23 elo to his 2229 rating.
WFM Anna Styazhkina (RUS) is the world champion in her age group. She is twelve years old. Anna could not remain unnoticed, not only because of her fragile, pretty frame but also because of her excellent performance. She came accompanied by her father as a trainer and will take away 48 Elo points after her 5/9 and some remarkable wins against much higher rated opponents.
Chessbase highlighted these 4 juniors:
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| From Searching for Magnus Carlsen/Hou YiFan |
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| From Searching for Magnus Carlsen/Hou YiFan |
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| From Searching for Magnus Carlsen/Hou YiFan |
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| From Searching for Magnus Carlsen/Hou YiFan |
GM Speaks: Promising juniors in Australia and state and national juniors title
David Smerdon has been interviewed (by email, I think) on ChessChat (Part 1 with more to come) and this is what he has to say on the following:
The rest of the Interview Pt 1 has some tidbits about growing up with chess etc. Again, the very important element of parental support and encouragement is a huge factor.
Name three of Australia’s most promising young players?
Bobby Cheng, Emma Guo, Anton Smirnov
Soft FM titles! What’s your view about this controversial topic?
Australia is at a huge disadvantage in nurturing chess talents, not just from a financial level, but also geographical. It's virtually impossible for us to get titles without playing overseas, and most of us don't have these resources nor the time. The 'soft' titles are really more of an equaliser for what is an uneven global playing field.
Now for another controversial topic: While I am sending you these questions, the Vic Junior Championships take place. Of what we have witnessed, clearly some of the best junior players of the State, do not participate. Does that diminish the value of the title?
Yes, very much so. I think top juniors should play; they are role models in themselves, and need to take that responsibility in setting an example for their peers and the younger generation.
The rest of the Interview Pt 1 has some tidbits about growing up with chess etc. Again, the very important element of parental support and encouragement is a huge factor.
Queensland U18, U16, U14, U12, U10 Junior Championships
The results of the Queensland U18, U16, U14, U12, U10 Junior Championships can be viewed here.
Congrats to the following:
Gene Nakauchi U18 champion (7/8 with just one loss)
Sam Grigg U16 champion (6.5/8 with one draw and a loss)
Martin Jack and Kenji Nakauchi joint U12 champions (7/8 with one loss each)
Daniel Lapitan U10 champion with picket-fence score!!! (8/8)
Note: I am not sure about U14 title since Emma Guo, Alexander Stahnke and Oliver McCarthy are all on 4.5/8. But is Emma now based in Queensland? (She is listed as an U14 contestant.)
Great to see that there was enough entries to justify a separate U12 and U10 tournaments. This can only be good for Queensland chess and Australian chess for the future.
Congrats to the following:
Gene Nakauchi U18 champion (7/8 with just one loss)
Sam Grigg U16 champion (6.5/8 with one draw and a loss)
Martin Jack and Kenji Nakauchi joint U12 champions (7/8 with one loss each)
Daniel Lapitan U10 champion with picket-fence score!!! (8/8)
Note: I am not sure about U14 title since Emma Guo, Alexander Stahnke and Oliver McCarthy are all on 4.5/8. But is Emma now based in Queensland? (She is listed as an U14 contestant.)
Great to see that there was enough entries to justify a separate U12 and U10 tournaments. This can only be good for Queensland chess and Australian chess for the future.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Victorian Junior U14, U16, U18 Championships
The Victorian Junior U14, U16, U18 Championships finished yesterday and the last round was full of drama. After drawing with each other in Rd 4, top seed Bobby Cheng, and 2nd seed Jason Tang, had been tied on equal points in every round. In Rd 9 (last round), Bobby faced Thomas Feng, a very good junior while Jason played Isaac Ng, another very good junior. And big upset! Bobby lost to Thomas while Jason managed to defeat Issac. So, Jason is the U18 Champion (8.5/9) while Bobby is the U16 Champion (7.5/9). And that would make Thomas the U14 Champion (6.5/9) (he had to win as he was tied with Nicholas Liu on 5.5 in the penultimate round). Congrats! The full results are here.
PSS: U18 Girls Champion is Stephanie Gu; U16 Girls Champion is Savithri Narenthran; U14 Girls Champion is Charlotte Dilnutt.
I suppose Bobby has lots of years to get the U18 title seeing as he is only U14 this year. And good news for Australia, it has been confirmed on ChessChat that Bobby is now playing for Australia. Good day for Australian Chess!!!
PS I have been remiss in reporting on the full results of the Vic U8, U10 and U12 Championships. The results in full can be found here. In addition to Ari Dale winning the U12 title and Joshua Devarajh the U10 title, David Cannon won the U8 title, Chelsea Xu the U12 Girls title, Stephanie Gu the U10 Girls title and Phoebe Fan the U8 Girls title. Congrats to all.
PSS: U18 Girls Champion is Stephanie Gu; U16 Girls Champion is Savithri Narenthran; U14 Girls Champion is Charlotte Dilnutt.
I suppose Bobby has lots of years to get the U18 title seeing as he is only U14 this year. And good news for Australia, it has been confirmed on ChessChat that Bobby is now playing for Australia. Good day for Australian Chess!!!
PS I have been remiss in reporting on the full results of the Vic U8, U10 and U12 Championships. The results in full can be found here. In addition to Ari Dale winning the U12 title and Joshua Devarajh the U10 title, David Cannon won the U8 title, Chelsea Xu the U12 Girls title, Stephanie Gu the U10 Girls title and Phoebe Fan the U8 Girls title. Congrats to all.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Do's and Don'ts for Parents and Etiquette for players
From Susan Polgar's column on ChessCafe:
Any comments? Readers?
Here are some of the most important basic things that you should know:
* Once the game has started, you may not interrupt, interfere, or talk to your opponent.
* You may never directly assist any player during a game. If a player raises a hand for assistance, you should immediately summon a tournament director.
* If you witness an illegal move or position, say nothing. It is the responsibility of the players to bring any complaint to the attention of a tournament director.
* You are not permitted to say anything if a player oversteps the time limit on his clock. Only the players themselves can claim a win on time.
* When a player loses a game, you must refrain from getting upset or angry or showing negative emotions. Young players need support and encouragement more than ever after a loss. They do not need scolding. Help your player stay calm and relaxed for the rest of the tournament.
* You may help your player find their correct table and board before each round.
* You should supervise your player between rounds. It is not the responsibility of the tournament director or organizer to mind your children between rounds.
* You should keep your player from distracting other players during and between rounds.
* Players should try to conserve their energy between rounds so they can be fresh for the next game.
* You should always encourage young players to practice good sportsmanship at all times, especially after losing a game.
* Official tournaments are smoke free.
* You should view your players’ game only from behind them or in the aisle to avoid eye contact with them.
* Keep a distance between yourself and your player. In some large tournaments, you may not even be allowed in the playing room during a game.
* If you see a player or a team playing the wrong opponent, you should notify the tournament director right away.
* Only tournament officials can record information on the wall charts. Parents, coaches, and players should never write on them. However, players may record their results on the pairing charts. If you notice an error on the wall chart, bring it to the attention of a tournament director.
* You should make sure that your players’ results are reported in a timely manner.
* If you detect that a prize has been erroneously awarded after the end of a tournament, bring this to the attention of a tournament director.
The following are generally accepted rules of etiquette that are observed by most chess players:
* It is considered rude and inappropriate for a player to eat or have a meal at the playing table.
* Basic refreshment such as water is OK.
* If you chew gum, chew quietly. Don’t annoy your opponent by chewing loudly or blowing bubbles.
* Smoking at the playing table is prohibited.
* Refrain from singing while playing. You may think you’re Josh Groban, but do not perform while playing chess.
* There should be no communication with your opponent until after the game, except to resign, offer a draw, or announce J’adoube (adjusting your pieces).
* Don’t make a draw offer to your opponent after every move once it is refused or rejected.
* Don’t listen to an MP3 player during the game.
Although the following are not rules, it is recommended to do the following:
* Try to show up to your game in a timely manner. It is considered rude to be tardy.
* Don’t adjust the chess pieces with each move. It is quite annoying for your opponent.
* It may sound too basic to even mention, but don’t cough or sneeze at your opponent.
* Shake hands before and after the game. It is customary.
* Have you ever seen the sign: “No shirt, no shoes, no service”? The same rule holds true in chess. Proper attire should be worn while playing.
* Don’t whistle while you are playing. It is annoying and distracting to your opponent.
* No trash talking before, during, or after the game. Be courteous.
* Don’t do anything to annoy your opponent or other players who may be sitting next to you.
Any comments? Readers?
2009 Queensland Junior Championship
This is indeed the season for state junior championships. Queensland U8 Championship has already been decided and the results are here. It is played at 15'+10" Fischer originally over 7 rounds but ended up with 9 rounds. Champion James Kay (880) posted a picket-fence score (yet another one!) with 9/9 with Kevin Song (843) and Kodi Durden (644) joint second with 7.5/9 (both lost to James and drew with each other). Congrats.
The U18, U16, U14 started yesterday and continues to Friday. Interestingly there are a few non-Queenslanders playing. Gene Nakauchi (2071) and Sam Grigg (1855) are leading with 2/2 together with two non-Queenslanders, Emma Guo (ACT) and Ben Encel (NSW). It looks like Ben Encel (1719) scored an upset over higher-rated Andrew Brown (2106) (ACT) in Rd 2 and now faces ACT's Emma Guo (1864) in Rd 3. Results to date are here.
The U12, U10 begins today.
The U18, U16, U14 started yesterday and continues to Friday. Interestingly there are a few non-Queenslanders playing. Gene Nakauchi (2071) and Sam Grigg (1855) are leading with 2/2 together with two non-Queenslanders, Emma Guo (ACT) and Ben Encel (NSW). It looks like Ben Encel (1719) scored an upset over higher-rated Andrew Brown (2106) (ACT) in Rd 2 and now faces ACT's Emma Guo (1864) in Rd 3. Results to date are here.
The U12, U10 begins today.
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