THE Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) held its final chess competition for the year, and it was well received.  Dozens of chess players battled virtually on the tornelo.com chess platform in three divisions on Saturday afternoon in the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) Region Four-sponsored Youth in Chess tournament. On Monday, the winners of the Blitz U-20, the Blitz U-16 and the Rapid U-12 divisions received their prizes from the RDC’s head office in Triumph. In the oldest age group, Keron Sandiford prevailed, with Johnathan Stephney finishing second and Jessica Calender third.  In the U-16 section, from a field of 17 players, Queens College’s 15-year-old student, Kishun Puran, ended in the top position. He emerged ahead of Saint Stanislaus’s Italy Ton Chung and fellow QC player, Aniyah Couchman, who both secured five points. The tie-breaker determined the final standing.

The U-12 Division was the largest category with some 30 participants battling. In the end, national U-12 champion, Kyle Couchman, emerged victorious.
The Marian Academy player finished with six wins and a draw (against Nicholas Zhang), which handed him 6.5 points.
Queen’s College player, Maliha Rajkumar, finished second with six wins and a loss in her seven games, while Zhang ended with five wins and a draw for 5.5 points.
Couchman said that he was happy to have claimed another victory. “I’m very satisfied with my performance as I continue to better my skills. Chess is a game I love.”
According to information from the federation, the Region’s Youth and Sport councilor, Brian Nobrega, was instrumental in helping to organise the event.