GUYANESE chess players battled against their strongest-ever opponent when they challenged English Grandmaster, Nigel Short, MBE, on Tuesday evening during a chess exhibition at State House.

The 20 players who battled represented the best U-30 players in the country, including the likes of Candidate Master Taffin Khan, Fide Master Anthony Drayton and WCM Sheriffa Ali.

Short was able to win all the games with ease, but he said that he was relatively impressed with the talent on display.

“I saw some good players today (Tuesday evening), I saw some players with quite promising talent.”

Short, who was once ranked third best in the world, a phenomenal achievement, said that the local players need opportunities and encouragement to advance.

“They need to understand that chess is an inherently difficult game, not something you can do on a Saturday afternoon and get away with…to become a good chess player you have to study and play”.

According to the Englishman, Guyana needs to continue focusing on nurturing its talent. He lauded the drive of the federation and said that its focus on youth development was the necessary route.

“I think it’s very good that the federation has a focus on young players and it’s the way forward.”

He said that with the talent that the country possesses and the strategies in place by the proactive federation, Guyana could become a regional powerhouse in the next few years.

He said that the country’s chess-playing population must increase to achieve this. There also needs to be more competition and an increase in the number of arbiters.
“I think there are not enough qualified arbiters. You can’t rely on two or three people, the pool has to increase.”

Overall, the grandmaster feels that Guyana is on the right path and he said some very positive things are happening.

“The wheels are turning.”

PRESIDENT ALI’S SUPPORT
Meanwhile, President Dr Irfaan Ali and Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley witnessed the chess exhibition.
Earlier in the day, the President met with the executives, while he made a sizeable donation to the federation.