… Queensway donates $500,000 to cover expenses

THE National Chess team is scheduled to arrive today in Chennai, India for the 2022 FIDE Chess Olympiad which gets underway from tomorrow (July 28) and runs until August 10.

The players, who will do battle with about 200 other nations at the 44th edition of the Games, were given a boost to their travels just before they left, by Guyanese-owned Queensway Group of Companies (QGC) to the tune of $500 000.

In a release, Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) noted that it was elated with the support.

“The Guyana Chess Federation wishes to express its sincere gratitude to Queensway for the generous contribution towards the team’s travel expenses.”

The 10-member team at this year’s Olympiad will comprise an up-and-coming female squad, which includes Guyana’s youngest-ever National Women’s Champion, 14-year-old Pooja Lam as well as former Women’s Champion Sasha Shariff, 2018 Olympiad participant Nellisha Johnson along with Jessica Callender, who competed in the last two FIDE online Olympiads.

The side also includes 12-year-old Anaya Lall, who is the only deaf chess player to ever represent Guyana in an international event. The men’s team features Candidate Master Taffin Khan and FIDE Master Anthony Drayton who are no strangers to this event and will be aiming for higher chess titles this time around.

Also in the line-up is seasoned player Loris Nathoo, the ever-improving Roberto Neto and the up-and-coming Ethan Lee, who is one of the top junior players in the country.