CAPTAIN of the Queen’s College chess team Cecil Cox led the way for his team to reclaim the title in the recently concluded National Schools Chess Championship at the Guyana National Stadium.
Cox disclosed that team members Ashwant Satamand, Shane Rampertab, Vickram Pattiram and himself engaged in constant practice sessions numerous days leading up to the annual event.
According to Cox, himself a former National Junior Chess Champion, the school’s chess club meets regularly on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Of the seven matches played at the National Stadium last weekend, Queen’s College ‘A’ team scored five wins and drew in matches against West Demerara Secondary and Mackenzie High.
In the team category, West Demerara placed second Bishops’ High School grabbed third while Marian Academy copped fourth place. The Mae’s school team, after a promising start on the first day, spiralled downwards playing throughout the competition with one team member absent. 
Nearly 80 students from about 20 schools took part in the championship event sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport in collaboration with the Guyana Chess Federation.
The final scores of the top schools’ teams in the seven-round event are: Queen’s College ‘A’ 6 points; West Demerara Secondary ‘B’ – 5½ points, Bishops’ High ‘A’ – 5 points and Marian Academy ‘A’ 4½ points while Mackenzie High ‘B’, Diamond Secondary and West Demerara ‘A’ were all tied on four points each.
Meanwhile, Director of Sport Neil Kumar at the presentation ceremony immediately after the tournament declared his support for chess and urged the young players to continue playing the game, now a regular feature at the Inter-Guiana Games.