Following two weekends of intense competition at the David Rose Special School, CM Sachin Pitamber and Ciel Clement emerged as champions of the I CEE-sponsored Grand Prix 3 in their respective categories. Concluding on February 1st, 2026, the tournament saw Pitamber dominate the Open Category to secure vital Grand Prix points, while Clement clinched the top spot in the Female Category.
CM Pitamber finished the eight-round tournament unbeaten, scoring an impressive 7.5 points. He once again showcased his tactical brilliance, most notably securing a victory over FM Anthony Drayton in the fifth round. His draw against Alexander Zhang in the sixth round prevented a perfect score.
FM Anthony Drayton finished in second place with 6.5 points. He demonstrated his experience and knowledge of the game throughout the tournament. He only lost in the fifth round against CM Pitamber, while he drew his third-round game against Keron Sandiford.
In third place was Alexander Zhang, who finished with a solid 6 points. Despite his second-round loss against FM Drayton, he showed his talent and resilience in the remaining rounds by drawing his games against top seeds CM Pitamber in the sixth round and Kyle Couchman in the final round of the tournament. Zhang’s win against the formidable Sandiford in the seventh round secured his top spot victory.
In the Open division, Couchman’s talent shone through as he tallied 5.5 points. He was followed closely by Sandiford with 5 points, and a determined Gilbert Williams, who rounded out the top group with 4.5.
In the Female category, Clement scored 6.5 points, showcasing her years of experience and disciplined training over the chessboard. Clement secured draws against WCM Jessica Callendar in the third round, WCM Sasha Shariff in the fifth round, and Treskolé Archibald in the seventh round.
Former Women’s Champion WCM Shariff also finished with 6.5 points, but due to the tiebreaker, she finished in second place. Her only loss came against WCM Callendar in the second round, while she drew the fifth round with Clement.
WCM Callendar, Former Women’s Champion, secured third place with 5.5 points after a shocking loss to young Amaya Sharma in the seventh round, along with three drawn games throughout the tournament.
Notable performances in the female category include Archibald, who impressed with a strong 5.5 points; Kataleya Sam, demonstrating consistency and skills to finish with 4.5 points, and Sharma, who made a mark with 4 points, including a stunning victory over WCM Callendar.
The top three winners in each category were presented with cash prizes totaling $100,000.
The Grand Prix 3 is part of a series of qualifying tournaments to select players for the Guyana Team for the 2026 Chess Olympiad, which will be held in Uzbekistan in September 2026.
The FIDE-rated tournament was overseen by FIDE Arbiter John Lee, who live streamed the top twelve boards for viewers at home. Results were published on chess-results.com.
The Guyana Chess Federation would like to extend its gratitude to I-CEE for its continued support of Chess in Guyana and to the David Rose Special School for generously providing the venue for the tournament.
For persons interested in chess, they can follow GCF on Facebook and Instagram. All information about chess clubs and registration can be found on guyanachess.gy.
