THE 2014 Berbice Inter-School Chess Championships (BISCC) held in Region 6 (East Berbice/Corentyne) saw forty-four students from eight schools participate and players from New Amsterdam Multilateral School (NAMS) wallop their competitors to win three of the six prizes in the team and individual categories.Public Relations Officer of the BISCC Krishnanand Raghunandan disclosed that NAMS wrested the first and second prizes of the three prizes in the Team category, then the number one prize of the three prizes in the Individual category.
The winning NAMS players for the first prize Team category were Kemo Daniels, Devon Kissoon, Shamar Hooper and Stefan Peters.
Berbice High School (BHS) had to accept third place in the Team category.
Junior Seepersaud of NAMS who was second in the Individual category last year to Darwin London of Berbice Educational Institute (BEI) outwitted his arch-rival this year.
London had to ‘humble’ for the second prize in the Individual category while first-timer New Amsterdam Special Needs School (NASNS) Rabin Munilall, a member of the Deaf Chess Guyana, battled spectacularly to win the third prize.
Munilall was accompanied by his interpreter Dr Michael Morgan, a Peace Corps Volunteer attached to the NASNS.
The 2014 Championships of the BISCC was the fifth Championship since the inaugural games in 2010.
Wendell Meusa, current National Chess champion and National Chess coach directed the tournament, which was held at NAMS earlier this month, with able assistance from former University of Guyana Berbice Campus (UGBC) student Steve Leung and teachers of some of the participating schools namely Dane Grimmond, Mr Bowry and Wayne De France.
At the closing ceremony Meusa said that he had seen great talent and potential among the Berbicians in this year’s competition, notably among them, ten-year-old Christopher Tobin of Eversham Primary who placed fourth in the Individual category and Jayshree Carpen from J C Chandisingh.
Jayshree, he observed, lost none of her games, winning two and drawing two despite the fact that she had learnt to play chess less than two months before the competition.
He felt that this player could be a role model for girls to take up chess.
Trophies were donated by the Department of Education in Region 6, by Dr Walter Singh and family, by Deonarine Balram aka Shane of Rose Hall Town and by Bibi’s Travel Service also of Rose Hall town.
Krishnanand Raghunandan who is also an Executive member of the Guyana Chess Federation and was the organiser-coordinator of the tournament loudly and fervently praised the Department of Education of Region 6 for its consistent and enthusiastic support for the fifth annual championships held to date.

(By Clifford Stanley)