Roach and Herbert Lead Senior Games

After a couple of rounds of the Karl Sealy Memorial Senior Games Chess Championships, top seed Philip Roach and Allan Herbert are the two joint leaders having won both of their games so far.

In the first round Roach defeated Ernest King while in the second round he defeated the defending over 50 years champion, Cyprian La Touche. It was a tough match in which La Touche held the advantage late into the contest. However, a minor blunder by la Touche brought some confusion to the position and in the ensuing complications, La Touche lost on time.

Co leader Herbert has so far defeated a returning Heather Leslie in the first round, and in the second round won from the defending sixty-five plus champion Othneil Harewood.

Other victors in the last round included the likes of ace checkers player Michael Barker, and Travis Grant.

The next round will see a clash between the two leaders in what should be an exciting match.

The tournament is being played under the auspices of the Ministry of Empowerment and Elder Affairs as part of the Senior Games. The sections are thus ages forty plus, fifty plus and sixty- five plus. Due to the entries the tournament is being played in one large group with the persons receiving their separate age category prizes. The American Psychological Association has said that chess has been shown to improve cognitive function, memory, and analytical skills while decreasing anxiety and depression in aging adults. Its thus a sport that can benefit Barbados’s ageing population positively.