Team Guyana wrapped up its performance at the 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, following two weeks of intense competition. Across eleven gruelling rounds, the team delivered a strong effort, highlighted by three newly earned conditional chess titles. Kyle Couchman and Keron Sandiford both reached the requirements for the Candidate Master (CM) title, while Ciel Clement earned the Woman Candidate Master (WCM) title, pending official FIDE confirmation.
The Open Team (seed 137) placed 132nd out of 206 participating teams, beating its seeding by 5 places and ranked 4th of 23 Caribbean teams, ahead of Suriname, Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Trinidad & Tobago. The Open team won all 5 matches against lower-seeded teams and lost all 6 against higher-seeded teams.
Standout individuals were CM Sachin Pitamber, who scored 4.5 points out of 9, with a Tournament Performance Rating (TPR) of 2150 and a +58.8 rating. Pitamber’s shining moment came after he drew with Grandmaster Kelires (2532) against Cyprus in Round 3. FIDE Master (FM) Anthony Drayton finished with 4.5 points out of 8, and a TPR of 2150, gaining 28 rating points. Kyle Couchman finished with 4.5 points out of 9, gaining 5.6 points, while CM Taffin Khan gained 2.5 points out of 8 and Keron Sandiford gained 3.5 points out of 9 rounds.
The Women’s team placed 152nd out of 189 participating teams, making for a stable performance. The Women’s team beat four lower-seeded teams convincingly (St Vincent & the Grenadines, Somalia, Mali, and San Marino) but lost to Laos (seed 166), the one match against a lower seed. Against higher seeds, it lost all six, including 0–4 defeats by Hong Kong and Guam and a 1–3 loss to Bahamas in the final round. The only close match was 1½–2½ against Japan.
Summary of Rounds
In Round 1, the Open Team suffered a 0-4 defeat to Slovenia, with Kyle Couchman unable to play due to flight delays. The team bounced back in Round 2 with a 3:1 victory over New Caledonia, anchored by wins from CM Pitamber, FM Drayton and Sandiford. In Round 3, Guyana fell 0.5 to 3.5 to a higher-rated Cyprus team, though CM Pitamber secured a draw on Board one.
In Round 4, the Open Team delivered a dominant 3.5–0.5 victory over Macau, China. Board 1 set the tone with a solid draw from CM Pitamber, while Kyle
Couchman, FM Anthony Drayton, and Keron Sandiford secured decisive wins on their respective boards. Guyana Open team faced tough opposition in Rounds 5 and 6, falling 1-3 to both Luxembourg and Wales. Against Luxembourg, Couchman and FM Drayton secured draws on Boards 2 and 3, while against Wales FM Drayton earned the sole win on Board 4.
The team rebounded strongly in Round 7 with a 3-1 victory over Togo, with wins from CM Pitamber and Couchman, alongside draws by Khan and Sandiford on Boards 3 and 4. The team had a setback in Round 8, losing against Nigeria 0.5- 3.5, with FM Drayton securing a draw on Board 3. Guyana Open team posted an impressive 3-1 win over Mali in Round 9, with victories from Couchman, Khan and Sandiford.
In a closely fought Round 10, Guyana went down 1.5 to 2.5 to their Caribbean counterparts, Jamaica. Pitamber won on Board 1, and FM Drayton secured a draw on Board 3. In round 11, the team concluded the tournament on a high note by defeating Jersey 2.5 to 1.5 with wins from Couchman and Drayton and a draw from Pitamber.
Competing on Board 1, CM Sachin Pitamber (1991) delivered a strong performance, scoring 4.5 points across 9 rounds. Pitamber earned victories over New Caledonia’s Nicholas Douyere (1818), Togo’s Yakini Tchouka (2012), and Jamaica’s FM Joshua Christie (2216). He also secured impressive draws against higher-rated opponents, including GM Andreas Kelires of Cyprus (2532), CM Tong Kuan Mak of Macau, China, and CM Jem Gurner of Jersey (2108).
Making his Chess Olympiad debut on Boards 1 and 2, Kyle Couchman (2003) delivered an outstanding performance, earning the coveted Candidate Master title despite missing the opening round due to travel delays. Couchman secured 4.5 points across 10 games. His tournament highlights were victories over Macau China’s CM Seak Hin Leong (1914), Togo’s Kokou Ballebako (1820), Mali’s Oumar Keita (1892), and Jersey’s Paul Carpenter (1858), as well as a credible draw against Luxembourg’s FM Philippe Linster (2230).
CM Taffin Khan (2005), playing on Boards 2 and 3, secured 2.5 points over 8 games. Khan secured wins against Macau, China’s De V R Joao Car Bartilotti (1545), and Mali’s Baba Moulaye Abdalla Maiga rated 1845, as well as a draw against Togo’s Lumen Paco Semeko (1744).
FM Anthony Drayton (2003), playing on Boards 3 and 4 across 8 rounds, secured 4.5 points as one of the Open team’s most successful players. FM Anthony
Drayton delivered a strong individual performance, securing wins over New Caledonia’s Titouan Bellier Pontais (1657), Wales’ CM Alex Bullen (2096), and Jersey’s Gary Clarke (1831). He also earned solid draws against higher-rated opponents, including Luxembourg’s Christian Jeitz (2155), Nigeria’s Bartholomew Okhipo (2246), and Jamaica’s FM Raheem Glaves (2127).
Rounding out the Open team, Keron Sandiford (1874) scored 3.5 points across 9 rounds, earning him the prestigious Candidate Master title. Sandiford recorded victories against Christian Brotons of New Caledonia, David Sun (1591) of Macau, China, and Niare Youssouf of Mali (1729), while securing a draw in round 7 against Togo’s CM Mikhail Strovskiy, rated 1760.
The Guyana Women’s Team posted a stable performance in the tournament, gaining valuable experience and insight along the way. In Round 1, the team lost 0-4 to Colombia. Boards 1 and 2 were forfeited because Kataleya Sam and Ciel Clement arrived late due to flight delays. In the second round, they lost 1-3 to a higher-rated Andorra team, with WCM Aditi Joshi winning on Board 1.
In the third round, the team bounced back with a 3.5 -0.5 victory over their Caribbean counterparts, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, with WCM Joshi, Clement, and WCM Shariff securing wins while Sam secured a draw. The team fell 0:4 in Round 4 against a higher-rated, more experienced Hong Kong, China team.
Round 5 saw the team bounce back against Somalia, winning 3.5 to 0.5, with WCM Joshi, Clement and WCM Callender winning their games while WCM Shariff drew on Board 3. In Round 6, the Women’s Team put up a strong fight against a higher-rated team from Japan before narrowly falling 1.5–2.5. Highlights included WCM Shariff’s impressive victory over Kanako Kinoshita (1783) and a valuable draw earned by WCM Callender.
In Round 7, the team lost 1-3 to Laos, with WCM Shariff recording the team’s only win on Board 4. In Round 8, Guyana completed a 4:0 sweep of Mali by winning on all four boards. In a challenging ninth round, the team fell 0-4 to Guam. In Round 10, the team bounced back with a strong 3-1 victory against San Marino. In the final round, the team fell 1-3 to their Caribbean counterparts, The Bahamas, with WCM Shariff securing the team’s only win.
WCM Aditi Joshi secured four wins in ten rounds on Board 1, defeating Andorra’s Andrea Henderson De La Fuente (rated 1982), St Vincent and the Grenadines’
Ronnia Durham Balcombe (rated 1601), Somalia’s Mohamed Ali Sabrin (rated 1519), and Mali’s Adama Diakite (rated 1673).
Playing in her first Chess Olympiad, thirteen-year-old Kataleya Sam(1525) secured 3.5 points across 10 rounds on Boards 1 and 2, after missing the opening round due to flight delays. She recorded victories against Japan’s Kanako Kinoshita (1783), Mali’s Bintou Diallo (1575), and San Marino’s Mariane Biodri, along with a draw against Stacy Baptiste King from St Vincent and the Grenadines.
Playing on Boards 2 and 3, Ciel Clement secured four wins from eight rounds of play after missing the opening round due to flight delays, earning the title of Woman Candidate Master in the process. She won against Molissa Ashton of St Vincent and the Grenadines, Mohamed Ali Samiro (1504) of Somalia, Terena Diallo of Mali and Cristina Giannini of San Marino.
Competing across Boards 3 and 4, WCM Sasha Shariff earned 3.5 points in seven rounds. She won against St. Vincent’s Kazene Pierre, Laos’s Bouavone Kessouvanh, and Bahamian WCM Daijah Johnson (1607), while holding Somalia’s Ali Jimale Mariya to a draw.
Competing on Board 4, WCM Jessica Callender delivered a dependable performance, scoring 3.5 points over nine rounds. She claimed victories against Somalia’s Mohamed Ali Ramla, Mali’s Fatim Maiga, and San Marino’s Dorina Capicchioni (1447), while also securing an impressive draw against Japan’s higher-rated Ami Kato (1755).
Official title certificates and recognitions are finalized and published in the subsequent FIDE (International Chess Federation) rating and title lists following administrative processing. Serbian Grandmaster Aleksa Strikovic served as captain for the Open Team, while Slovenian Grandmaster Georg Mohr captained the Women’s Team.
The Guyana Chess Federation is proud of the achievements of our national players and extends its warmest wishes for their safe journey home. We express our sincere gratitude to Mrs. Tanya Warren-Clement for her dedication as Head of Delegation, as well as to our valued sponsors: Enet and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport for their unwavering support.
