GEORGETOWN, GUYANA —  Barbados’ national chess team is on the brink of a podium finish at the 2025 CARICOM Classic Team Chess Championships after delivering two emphatic victories in Rounds 6 and 7 against Guyana Juniors and St. Lucia.

Round 6: A Perfect Sweep

In their most dominant performance yet, the Bajans swept Guyana Juniors 4–0, with wins from Emar Edwards on Board 1, Kemp Lynch on Board 2, Woman Candidate Master Channon Reifer-Belle on Board 3 and Leshay Springer on Board 4.

Their opponents—Ricardo Narine, Kishan Puran, Italy Ton-Chung, and Anaya Lall—were outmaneuvered in a clinical display of tactical precision.

Round 7: Commanding Win Over St. Lucia

Barbados followed up with a 3–1 victory over St. Lucia. Lynch, Reifer-Belle, and Springer secured wins against Candidate Master Kaieem Elizee, Woman Candidate Master Chelsea Wahid, and Kiara Lambert. Edwards, locked in a tense bishop-versus-knight endgame, blundered late against Sixtus Gabriel, denying Barbados another clean sweep.

Team Standings Heat Up

With just two rounds remaining, the race for the podium is razor-thin with Trinidad & Tobago in 1^st with 13 match points, Jamaica 2^nd with 12 match points, Suriname   3^rd with 11 match points and 20½ game points, Barbados 4^th with 11 macth points 19 game points and Guyana A 5^th with 10 match points.

Junior Showdown: Barbados Still in the Hunt

In the individual junior competition, Mileke Sinckler leads with 5½ points after drawing with Suriname’s Thie-Yen Fung and Barbados’ Noah Clarke in Rounds 6 and 7. Clarke also sits on 5½ points but trails on tie-breaks.

Aaron Jaikaran, previously undefeated, suffered his first loss to Guyana’s Alexander Zhang and now sits in 5th place with 5 points. Zhang and Fung are in 3rd and 4th, respectively, based on tie-breaks.

Meanwhile, Sameera Jaikaran, Barbados’ Under-10 Female Champion, surged to 14th place with back-to-back wins over Tharisha Montes de Oca and Rafael Park, bringing her total to 4½ points.

What’s Next?

The final rounds promise fireworks with Barbados vs Jamaica in a podium-deciding clash in the team event. Trinidad & Tobago vs Guyana A and Suriname vs Cayman Islands in matches that could also reshape the leaderboard.

In the junior division, Sinckler and Clarke face Guyana’s Zhang and Micaiah Enoe, while Aaron Jaikaran takes on Alek Ubaldo-Singh. Sameera Jaikaran meets Suriname’s Ky-Mani Wijnhard.