Guyana’s Candidate Master (CM) Taffin Khan, the reigning National Chess Champion, and Woman Candidate Master (WCM) Jessica Callender, 2024’s National Women Champion, have returned home following their participation in the 2025 Subzone 2.3.3 Absolute and Women Chess Championships, hosted by the Trinidad and Tobago Chess Association from April 11th to April 18th, 2025.
In the Absolute category, International Master Orlando Husbands (2291) of Barbados emerged as the overall champion, finishing with an impressive 7.5 points out of a maximum of 9. Representing Guyana, CM Khan delivered a commendable performance, securing 5.5 points and finishing in 15th place among a competitive field of international players.
While entering with an ELO rating of 2023, Khan experienced two setbacks, losing to Trinidad’s Vassell (1664) in the opening round and to strong contender FM Ryan Harper (2125) in round eight. Nevertheless, he demonstrated his strength with wins over Trinidad’s Sookraj (1586) and Jamaican players Mckoy (1729), Stephenson (1861), and Belinfante (1898). He drew games with his Trinidadian opponent Bisnath (1891), Jain (1910) from Jamaica, and FM Moncur from the Bahamas.
Barbadian WFM Hannah Willson (1847) delivered a stellar performance in the Women’s category, dominating the field and clinching the championship with a commanding 8 points out of a possible 9.
WCM Jessica Callender (1568) finished in 14th place with a total of 4.5 points, which included two wins and five draws with only two losses. After losing her first round against WCM Reifer-Belle (1816) from Barbados, Callender secured victories against Grenada’s Flanders and WCM Wahid (1588) from St. Lucia. Callender drew with Aruba’s Moreno Mora (1678), Trinidad’s Dolly (1596), Duffrin (1558) and Ali, and WCM Zara Majid (1576) from the Cayman Islands. Neighboring Suriname’s WCM Kaslan (1740) won against Callender in the eighth round.
Callender described her first Sub Zone tournament as an incredible experience, highlighting the opportunity to compete against top players from eight nations. She expressed her excitement at losing only two games, noting that her toughest match
was in the first round against eventual runner-up, Barbadian WCM Chanon Reifer Belle.
Khan commented that the nature of the games was of a high standard and quite challenging. He welcomed the experience of playing against other talented chess players from other countries.
The tournament featured top players from across the region, including representatives from Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Netherlands Antilles, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The tournament champions of each tournament will automatically earn the right to participate in the next FIDE World Cup.
The Guyana Chess Federation congratulates Khan and Callender on their achievements and continues to champion the growth of local players as they compete internationally.
