Teenager Greenidge wins Ladies National chess title

Vanessa Greenidge continued her meteoric rise on the chess boards by becoming the second youngest player to win the Barbados Chess Federation’s Ladies National Championship last weekend

The decorated 15-year-old justified her billing as the top seed by clinching the title with an almost perfect record when the Championship concluded on Saturday at the Chess Centre on Exmouth Gap, Brandons, St. Michael.

Greenidge finished with six-and-a-half out of a maximum seven points to claim the title ahead of 11-year-old Hannah Wilson who also performed impressively to take second place with six points.

In the process, Greenidge became the second youngest person to win the Championship – the youngest was Rashaana Blenman, who was 14 when she was crowned champion in 1993.

It was another cap in the feather for Greenidge, a double CARIFTA Championships silver medallist who at the age of 13, was the youngest person to represent Barbados at a world chess Olympiad in 2018.

Greenidge won a crucial sixth round game against no. 2 seed and fellow joint reigning national Under-16 Female champion Gaybrianna Moore last Thursday and was confirmed as champion two days later after winning by default against Alesha Lovell in the final round.

Wilson, the National Under-14 and Under-12 Female champion, kept on the leader’s heels by defeating Sierra Austin in the penultimate round and also won against Moore in the final round.

National Under-20 champion Kiarra Eversley, who scored victories against Chanon Reifer-Belle and Erin Mahon in the last two rounds, finished third with four points, the same as Moore who had to settle for fourth place on the tie-break. Eight players competed in the Championship.

In the VEXX Tournament, which was played simultaneously, six-time national champion Martyn Del Castilho was the winner with a perfect seven points.

Del Castilho, the top seed, earned enough rating points that will take him past 2300 in the FIDE (World Chess Federation) ratings for the first time, joining five other Barbadians to have achieved the mark – Kevin Denny, Orlando Husbands, Ron Buckmire, Philip Corbin and Terry Farley.

Cleveston Ifill, making a return to competitive chess after more than ten years’ absence, finished second with five-and-a-half points. Travis Grant took third place on the tie-break ahead of Cyprian La Touche after both players ended with four-and-a-half points. (BCF)