Twenty teams (9 primary, 7 intermediate, and 4 secondary) battled it out on Sunday for the privilege of representing the Waikato Region at the National Schools’ Chess Competition in Palmerston North in September.
Hukanui “1” (on 15 points) came first in the primary division with Southwell “1” (14.5) and Southwell “2” (11) coming 2nd and 3rd respectively.
The intermediate division was won convincingly by Fairfield “1” on 19 points with Southwell “1” (14.5) and Fairfield “2” (11) taking silver and bronze.
The Secondary division was contested by two teams from St Pauls and Hamilton Boys High School. St Pauls “1” and HBHS “1” tied on 9.5 points apiece, and there was nothing to seperate the teams on tie break either. This lead to a “penalty shoot out” of sorts with the teams vying it out against each other in a deciding playoff with a resounding 4-0 win to HBHS “1” .
We wish all the teams success at the forthcoming national event. A complete crosstable is available here and these are some photos from the event.
The next rookies shield event will be held at Hamilton Girls High School on August 19th
Where
Hamilton Chess Centre, Room G1, Hamilton Girls High School, enter from Hill St Entry fees – cash only please – Juniors (and club members): $10, Adults: $15 * Game time 15 minutes each player
Program
11 Registration; Introduction
11.30 – 1 Rounds 1, 2 and 3
1 – 1.30 Lunch break
1.30 – 2.30 Rounds 4, 5
2.30 – 2.45 Snack break
2.45 – 3.45 Rounds 6, 7 (Final)
3.45 Awarding of prizes
Cash Prizes
for 1st and 2nd open, best U18, U14, U10
Prior registration required to allow planning
To avoid disappointment register now; don’t delay
**Entries are restricted to players under 1600 NZCF rapid rating as this is a Rookies event – which still includes 80% of rated chess players! **In case of tied scores a tiebreak count back will be used to allocate prizes. Only one prize per competitor **Age is based on the date of the tournament, not 1 Jan **Event will go ahead providing a minimum of 18 registrants indicate attendance
When the current rapid finishes we will be having a one night blitz tournament with a special guest …….
The results after round 2 are posted here. Next weeks draw will be
Hilton:Richard
Ian:Stefan
Craig:Michael
Murray:Benjamin
William:George
There are 10 contenders for the glory of Club Rapid Champion 2012. Round one is completed and the 25 + 5 tournament will run over the next four weeks. The crosstable is here. Next weeks draw will be:
Stefan — Michael
Benjamin — Richard
George — Craig
Murray — Ian
William — Hilton
The July NZCF ratings are out. Club members fared well: 9 made gains in their rapid rating (with 3 losing) and 6 made gains in their standard rating (with 2 losing).
The big winner was Michael Metham who improved his standard rating by 172 points. Other substantial gains went to Craig (+32 rapid), Stefan (+45 rapid) and Brett (+59 rapid). The club rating list has been updated, and the full NZCF list can be found here.
The Waikato Open is coming soon — register now for the opportunity to polish up your standard rating!!
“The Pin is mightier than the sword.”
– Fred Reinfeld
The 40th Chess Olympiad is scheduled to take place in the Turkish metropole of Istanbul, from August 27 to September 10th, 2012. The Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams from all over the world compete against each other, it can be seen as the unofficial world team championship. The event is organised by FIDE, which selects the host nation. The previous Olympiad was held in 2010 in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, the next will be in Tromsø, Norway. The first was held in Paris, France, in 1924, with 16 nations participating. The last Olympiad had 143 nations, 1294 competitors, and included no fewer than 254 grandmasters, 65 WGMs, 159 IMs, and 90 WIMs. This time the organisers are expecting even more.
We are pleased to report that two members of the Hamilton Chess Club will be attending this years Olympiad: Hilton Bennett as captain of the men’s team, and Peter Hulshof as captain of the Women’s team.
Open team (in possible board order):
FM Nic Croad, IM Russell Dive, IM Paul Garbett, FM Mike Steadman, Luke Li
Captain: Hilton Bennett
Women’s team (in board order):
wim Sue Maroroa, wfm Helen Milligan, Judy Gao, wfm Nicole Tsoi, wfm Natasha Fairley
Captain: Peter Hulshof
Hamilton Chess Club 