COMMENDABLE PERFORMANCES BY JUNIOR CHESS PLAYERS IN BARBADOS

Three young and talented chess players represented Guyana in the SITTU  Barbados Open Chess Competition, which lasted from February 20th to 24th,  2025, in Bridgetown, St. Michael, Barbados. National Junior Champion Ricardo  Narine, Candidate Master Sachin Pitamber, and Alek Ubaldo-Singh participated  in the five-day competition against highly rated players from Barbados and  around the Caribbean. Ubaldo-Singh won the fifth-place cash prize after he  ended with 5.5 points in the Group C category for ELO-rated players between  1400-1699.  

The young and emerging talent maintained his position in the top six during the  tournament, delivering stellar performances against Barbados’ rated players  Harewood (1637), Moore (1636), and Thompson (1669) in the first three rounds  with victories. Ubaldo-Singh suffered one loss against tournament champion  Aaron Jaikaran (1600) of Barbados and three draws for the remaining rounds  against Trinidad’s McLetchie (1566), Grenada’s Mendez (1596), and Noah Clark  (1654) from Barbados.  

Meanwhile, Narine and CM Pitamber, participating in the highly competitive  Group B Category (1700-2099), ended on 3 and 2.5 points, respectively. Narine  successfully defeated Rochester (1815) from Barbados and Shetty (1707) from  St. Vincent. Pitamber drew with Gilbert (1906) from Grenada and Enemchukwu  (1980) from St. Vincent. CM Pitamber drew with Lynch (1954) from Barbados,  Shetty from St. Vincent (1707), and Roachford (1827) from Barbados. He gained  his remaining point from his first round. St. Lucia’s CM Mathurin won the Group  B Category. 

President of the Guyana Chess Federation (GCF), Anand Raghunauth, is  delighted that these junior players had the opportunity to participate in a  tournament of this caliber, as this only strives to strengthen the players’ abilities  and skills as they face off against opponents of different skill levels outside of the  country. The GCF will continue to foster participation in these tournaments to  broaden the horizons of talented chess players. For more information about  upcoming activities and chess tournaments, visit guyanachess.gy.