NEWS BULLETIN March 18, 2016

This week's articles:

- Quebec team at the New York State Scholastic Chess Championship
- Manitoba Chess Challenge
- Newfoundland and Labrador Chess Challenge

NEW YORK STATE SCHOLASTIC CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP

Sixteen young Quebecers travelled to Saratoga Springs on March 12-13 for the 49th annual New York State Scholastic Chess Championship. The trip was organized by the Chess'n Math Association, with CMA coach Thierry Libersan accompanying the players. The six round event, which was divided into ten sections by grade and rating, attracted a total of 940 participants.

Congratulations to the Quebec delegation. Nine players brought home trophies, including first place in the K-6 championship for Shawn Rodrigue-Lemieux. Maili-Jade Ouellet (high school) and Kevin Zhong (K-3) did almost as well, placing second in their sections. Fourth place finishes were turned in by Qiuyu Huang (K-6), Ananda Saha (junior high), and Olivier Kenta Chiku-Ratté (high school). Francis Durette (K-6) came fifth and Prince Guipi Bopala (K-3) eighth. Tyler Taira Tanaka (K-6) tied for seventh but placed fourteenth on tiebreak.

Here is a list of the Quebec players with a positive score:

A few words from the coach:

“The Saratoga tournament ended on a very positive note. Our delegation had an excellent performance. No less than nine players placed among the top fifteen in their section, winning very nice trophies! Congratulations to all the players for their great spirit as well as to the parents for their patience and good company! We are looking forward to another memorable tournament in 2017. There is no doubt among our American neighbours about our reputation: Chess is strong in Quebec!”  

Here is the link for the complete results of the tournament: Saratoga Springs 2016

Manitoba Chess Challenge

The Manitoba Chess Challenge was held in the Great Hall at the University of Manitoba on March 13th. Seventy-one players battled for the championship in their grade and a spot on the provincial team travelling to Regina over Victoria Day weekend. Have you ever made the 6 hour drive from Winnipeg? 

Here are this year’s champs and runners-up. Players with an asterisk after their name were champion last year as well.

Grade 1
1. Elazar Schwartz
2. Ido Lamwertz
3. Catherine Gasnikova
Grade 2
1. Aidan Krak
2. Zachary Piche
3. Mohammad AlJafari
Grade 3
1. Martin Riquelme*
2. Noam Lamwertz
3. Alex Korenbaum
Grade 4
1. Inti Nemoga-Stout
2. Tyler Huston-Earle
3. Zostrianos Gross
Grade 5
1. Max Russo**
2. Nicolas Riquelme
Grade 6
1. Carter Marshall
2. Joshua Huston-Earle
3. Francez Razy Villafuerte
Grade 7
1. Amirkhan Mukhamedshin
2. Ethan Eckert
3. Daniel Markuza
Grade 8
1. Derek Ma
2. Theo Wolchock
3. Leah Schwartz
Grade 9
1. Ethan Lin*
2. Darian Chakhmouradian
3. Dawson Reynolds
Grade 10
1. Brock Beach*
2. Victor Gasnikov
3. Kenny Le
Grade 11
1. Davin Holmberg
2. River Tavares
Grade 12
1. Ryne Swift***
2. Andy Jiang
3. Mitchell Moulson

There are plenty of new faces on the team. Noteworthy is Derek Ma’s victory in grade 8 over the 2015 national grade 7 champion Theo Wolchok. 

Team Manitoba finished 6th last year at the nationals in Quebec City. They’re hoping to move back into the top five this year for the first time since 2012.

2016 Manitoba Provincial Champions

Zachary Piche, grade 2. A winning endgame.

Derek Ma vs. Theo Wolchok. The decisive game in grade 8.

For complete results, see Manitoba Scholastic Provincials. Or visit the Manitoba Scholastic Chess Association webpage at scholasticchess.mb.ca

For more photos:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/endoagain/sets/72157663556674824

Newfoundland and Labrador Chess Challenge

The Newfoundland and Labrador Chess Challenge took place at Hatcher House on the campus of Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John’s on Saturday, March 12. Eighty-one players took part in the five round tournament. The time control was 25 minutes with a 5 second delay, the same as at the national finals.

The top three players in each grade are listed here.

Grade 1
1. Jacob Komiak  
2. Uriah Cull 
Grade 2
1. Jacob Sheppard
2. Riley Griffiths
3. Julia Yang  
Grade 3
1. Thomas Pan 
2. Evan Fang 
3. Alex Merrigan
Grade 4
1. Sebastian Locke
2. Jacob Brockerville
3. Evan Ralph 
Grade 5
1. Mark Russell
2. Peter Dormody
3. Colin Kennedy
Grade 6
1. Norman Chen
2. Harrison Hefferton
3. Lauchlann Goodall 
Grade 7
1. Brett Russell
2. Zivaan Somers
3. Skyler May 
Grade 8
1. Daley Merrigan
2. Xingbo Huang 
3. Daniel Gosse
Grade 9
1. Benjamin Chislett
2. Ryan Pickard
3. Stefan Boon-Petersen
Grade 10
1. Gary McKeown 
2. Hendrik Van-Heerden
3. Matthew Connors
Grade 11
1. Andrew Dawson
2. Noah Oldford
3. Liam Gregory
Grade 12
1. Arrick Chaulk
2. Brody McKeown 
3. Kevin Butler

The Newfoundland and Labrador School Chess Association has worked hard for many years to promote chess across their province, not just around St. John’s, which is the only large metropolitan area. The result of their efforts can be clearly seen this year. Sebastian Locke and Daley Merrigan, the grade 4 and 8 champions, are both from Corner Brook. Arrick Chaulk, the grade 12 champion, is from Grand Falls. There were also six other players from Gander, Grand Falls, and Corner Brook among the prize winners. A truly “provincial championship”. 

A good game always starts with a handshake.