The Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) I-CEE sponsored Grand Prix 2 Chess Tournament got underway last weekend at the School of the Nations, setting the stage for a dramatic final weekend of play. After four intense rounds in classical style play, Keron Sandiford has established a decisive early lead in the Open Category, while Woman Candidate Master (WCM) Aditi Joshi heads the Female Category.
In the Open Category, from among 30 players, Sandiford continued his winning streak midway through the tournament after his match with Gilbert Williams last Sunday. Sandiford overwhelmed his fourth opponent with two unstoppable centre pawns, which were a major threat, forcing Williams to resign.
In the second and third positions are FIDE Masters (FMs) Anthony Drayton and newcomer Rawle Allicock, who are tied on 3.5 points. They were engaged in a fierce battle in the Fourth Round. Both opponents mobilised their Rooks, Pawns, and Queens within striking distance to attack each other’s King. Faced with severe loss of material and on the verge of losing, Drayton held on tenaciously and courageously fought back. He advanced his active queen and rooks to threaten Allicock’s King with checkmate. In a dramatic twist, Drayton offered his opponent a draw by perpetual check (continuously attacking Allicock’s King without obtaining checkmate) and Allicock accepted. The two opponents shook hands and signed the truce after just over 40 moves.
Former Junior Champion Joshua Gopaul defeated reigning Junior Champion Kyle Couchman in Round Two in a marathon encounter. Gopaul gained a decisive edge with his stronger Rook dominating Couchman’s weaker Bishop in an exciting endgame. Gopaul’s Rook created mayhem, although Couchman stubbornly resisted. The former junior champion eventually scored a breakthrough, trading his Rook in exchange for Couchman’s Bishop and introduced a new Queen to checkmate Couchman’s King and secure victory.
In the same Round, Sachin Pitamber went down to Prince Dunn in a surprise defeat. Dunn’s passed pawn, about to be promoted to a Queen, sealed his win against Pitamber on move 46. Dunn’s much stronger position left his opponent without many options, and he secured the win.
Following closely on the points table are Kyle Couchman, Joshua Gopaul, CM Sachin Pitamber, Leslie Campbell, and Micaiah Enoe, all on three points. Finishing off the top 10 are Shiv Nandalall and Kim Shing Chong, both with two and a half points.
On the distaff side, reigning Women’s Champion WCM Aditi Joshi defeated three of her opponents and drew her match with promising young player Kataleya Sam. Joshi also defeated Ciel Clement, her fourth opponent on Sunday, in a gruelling endgame battle with both Kings and a Bishop each in battle mode to target the remaining pawns. With two extra pawns, the WCM consolidated her position to regain a powerful Queen and a won position. Knowing the outcome, Clement conceded to her opponent on move 43.
In the Female Category with seventeen females, Joshi leads with 3.5 points, but faces serious competition from young star Kataleya Sam, who secured an impressive draw against Joshi to land in second place with three points. Treskolé Archibald and Ciel Clement are also tied on three points. WCMs Jessica Callendar and Sasha Shariff are both tied on two and a half points, along with Italy Ton-Chung. Maliha Rajkumar, Parnita Kishun, Chelsea Harrison, and Saura Ruplall follow up with 2 points each.
The tournament, which boasts a total cash prize fund of $100,000, is set to conclude this coming weekend. The remaining four rounds are scheduled for Saturday, November 29th, and Sunday, November 30th, at the School of the Nations.
The top eight boards of the open category and top four of the female category are live-streamed on lichess.org by John Lee, FIDE Arbiter and Technical Director of the GCF. Full results and pairings can be viewed on Chess-results.com.
The Guyana Chess Federation expresses its gratitude to its dedicated sponsor, I CEE, for its continued support of chess development in Guyana, and to the School of the Nations for providing the venue.
