Chess players vie for World Cup spots at Subzone 2.3.3 Champs

OVER 100 participants from 16 Caribbean countries will test their wits and skills at the Cascadia Hotel and Conference Centre in Port of Spain when the 2025 Subzone 2.3.3 Open and Women’s Chess Championships are contested from April 12-17.

The event, which is being hosted by the Trinidad and Tobago Chess Association (TTCA), in collaboration with the Confederacion de Ajedrez de America (CCA)/FIDE America, will serve as one of the qualifying events for the 2025 FIDE Chess World Cup, a March 31 TTCA release said.

The winners of both the open and women’s categories will book their spots at the World Cup.

The TTCA release said the Subzone Championships will allow players to vie for a World Cup spot on Caribbean soil for the first time. The release said FM FIDE Master Joshua Johnson, the national open champion, will be among those vying for top honours alongside the national women’s champ, WCM Ysvett Hermoso Rodriguez.

Over 50 TT players have registered for the tournament in total, including prominent young players such as Zara La Fleur, Joshua Medina and Kael Samuel Bisnath.

“This Championship is a significant milestone for Caribbean chess,” the release said. “The event highlights the nation’s growing chess talent and positions TT as a leader in chess development in the region.”

The Caribbean countries expected to feature at the championships are: Antigua and Barbuda; Aruba; Bahamas; Barbados; British Virgin Islands; Curacao; Cayman Islands; Dominica; Grenada; Guyana; Haiti; Jamaica; St Kitts and Nevis; St Lucia; Suriname and host nation TT.

TTCA president Sonja Johnson is ready to give the Caribbean a spectacle.

“This will be an epic event as we also intend to broadcast and have commentary for the top games,” Johnson said.

“We’re honoured to be given the opportunity to host such an important event where the winner gets to participate in the FIDE World Cup – a first for the region. My team and I have been working hard since the beginning of the year on this event and our visitors can expect a remarkable experience.”

The TTCA extended its thanks to the Sport and Culture Fund at the Office of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Sport and Community Development, the FIDE Development Fund and First Citizens for helping to put the event together.