FM Johnson, Muradali among winners

SOME 120 junior chess players from across the country challenged the inaugural Open Rapid Play Tournament, hosted by the Kings and Queens Chess Club of Arima, at the UTT O’Meara Campus, on Saturday.

The divisions, ranging from Novice to Under-20, saw some of the best junior players in action, including national under-8 champion, Kyan Muradali, who dominated and won the Under-10 division, and FIDE Master (FM) Joshua Johnson–also a national junior champion– who dominated the Under-20 division.

Zidane Boodoo, another rising player, won the Under-18 division.

Education Minister Anthony Garcia attended the tournament and mingled with the players and parents.

Addressing the audience, Garcia encouraged the victors to win with grace, something he described as an important element of winnings.

He also encouraged the young players to continue learning the game, and said there were no losers yet, as the overall benefit of such events is the learning components.

President of the Kings and Queen’s Chess Club FM Quinn Cabralis said the objective of the tournament was to give the players a level of exposure that would prepare them for the international chess stage.

The players were assigned assigned a FIDE (World Chess Federation) ID and rating.

Category winners

Under-20

Winner: FM Joshua Johnson

Under-18

Winner: Zidane Boodoo

Under-16

Winner: Keira Samuel Bisnath

Runner-up: Kayla Martin

Under-14

Winner: Tristan Lackhai

Runner-up: Tristan Soodeo

Third: Peter Chin

Under-12

Winner: Kelon Brathwaite

Runner-up: Joshua Medina

Third: Javed Maharaj

Under-10

Winner: Kyan Muradali

Runner-up: Luke Gillette

Thid: Zachary Murray

Novices

Winner: Noah Nesbit

Runner-up: Aidan La Rode

Third: Kimora Da Costa

Fourth: Ciel Le Gendre

Fifth: Nyila Peters