Husbands retains National Rapid title in dramatic fashion

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Aaron Haynes (left) and Adam Roachford were two of the three players who shared the prize for the best player with a rating of under 1400.

Husbands retains National Rapid title in dramatic fashion

Barbados’ top chess player Orlando Husbands retained the National Rapid title in dramatic fashion over the weekend.

The 23-year-old International Master claimed his second national title for the year after winning a decisive play-off against top seed Justin Blackman when the two-day Championship climaxed on Sunday night at the Chess Centre on Exmouth Gap, Brandons, St. Michael.

Contested as an online event, the Championship was decided by a play-off after both Husbands and Blackman finished with six-and-a-half out of a maximum seven points – they played to a draw when they faced off in the fourth round.

The play-off was battled as an over-the-board match-up and Husbands, who won the National Open title in October, triumphed after Blackman’s time on the clock expired.

With the victory, Husbands is in a position to repeat the unprecedented national treble he achieved in 2018 by also claiming the National Blitz Championship which is scheduled for Sunday as an online event.

Husbands and Blackman, 29, winner of the Caribbean Blitz Online Tournament last August were well clear of their rivals but there was a keen contest for third place as four players finished on four-and-a-half points.

Justin Parsons took third place on the tie-break ahead of Nitin Mahtani, Cleveston Ifill and Emar Edwards.

Kyle Sandiford, who placed seventh with four points, won the prize for the best player with a rating of under 1600, while Louis Wilson, Aaron Haynes and Adam Roachford, who each finished with four points to complete the top ten, shared the prize for the best player with a rating of under 1400.

Hannah Wilson and Azaria Johnson, who each collected three-and-a-half points, shared the prize for the Best Female.

Husbands started last Saturday’s opening day with a victory against Kiarra Eversley and also won against Edwards and Ifill before drawing with Blackman. In the final three rounds on Sunday, he defeated Mahtani, Parsons and Sandiford.

Blackman won against Haynes, Johnson and Parsons on the first day before defeating Sandiford, Mahtani and Louis Wilson on the second day.

The Championship, which attracted 25 players, also served as preparation for a 14-member Barbados team competing in the inaugural FIDE Online World Cadets and Youth Rapid Chess Championships. (BCF)

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Azaria Johnson was one of two players to share the prize for the Best Female.
BCF-Aaron-Haynes-and-Adam-Roachford-1030x773
Aaron Haynes (left) and Adam Roachford were two of the three players who shared the prize for the best player with a rating of under 1400.

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Teenager Greenidge wins Ladies National chess title

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Fifteen-year-old Vanessa Greenidge is the second youngest Ladies National chess champion. (BCF Pictures.)

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)

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Tight battle for National Ladies Chess Championship

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Top seed Vanessa Greenidge (left) and Hannah Wilson are battling it out for the Ladies National Chess Championship.

Tight battle for National Ladies Chess title

A tight battle has developed among three players in the Barbados Chess Federation’s 2020 Ladies National Chess Championship.

With five of seven rounds completed, a mere half-point separates the youthful front-running trio of Vanessa Greenidge, Hannah Wilson and Gaybrianna Moore.

The 15-year-old Greenidge, the top seed in the absence of five-time champion Katrina Blackman and 2018 winner Julissa Figueroa, leads the eight-player field with four-and-a-half points.

Wilson, 11, and Moore, who turns 16 next week, follow with four points to set the stage for an exciting finish over the final two rounds of games as a first-time champion will be crowned.

Greenidge, one of three reigning joint national Under-16 female champions, defeated Wilson in the opening round before she was surprisingly held to a draw against no. 6 seed Chanon Reifer-Belle in the second round of games at the Chess Centre on Exmouth Gap, Brandons, St. Michael.

A hat-trick of wins against Erin Mahon, Kiarra Eversley and Sierra Austin has given Greenidge a narrow lead ahead of Wednesday’s sixth round contest against no. 2 seed Moore, who is also a reigning joint national Under-16 female champion.

Wilson, the no. 4 seed and the current national Under-14 and Under-12 female champion, followed up her loss in the first round to register four successive wins, defeating Alesha Lovell, Reifer-Belle, Erin Mahon and no. 3 seed Eversley.

Moore lost to Eversley in the third round, but has kept on the heels of the leader with victories against Reifer-Belle, Mahon, Austin and Lovell.

Reifer-Belle holds fourth position with two-and-a-half points to complete the top half of the table of the round-robin event in a field that has attracted only junior (Under-20) players.

In the VEXX Tournament, which is being played simultaneously, six-time national champion, FIDE Master Martyn Del Castilho, veteran Cyprian La Touche and Cleveston Ifill share the lead with four points.

Del Castilho, the only player with a 100 per cent winning record, however, has the benefit of a rescheduled game in hand.

The VEXX Tournament, which is restricted to players who did not qualify for the National Championship, has also attracted eight players and will continue with the penultimate round on Wednesday with the  final round set for Saturday. (BCF)

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Husbands completes hat-trick of national titles

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Husbands completes hat-trick of national titles

Barbados’ top rated chess player Orlando Husbands achieved a hat-trick of national tiles in grand style by completing a clean sweep of the boards in the 2020 National Championship.

The 23-year-old International Master claimed his fourth national Open title by winning a top-of-the-table clash against Nitin Mahtani to romp to a ninth successive victory when the Championship climaxed on Tuesday night at the Chess Centre on Exmouth Gap, Brandons, St. Michael.

There was an air of anticipation ahead of the final round as Mahtani came into the contest one point behind Husbands with the knowledge that an upset win against the top seed would have forced a play-off to decide the title.

Husbands, however, ensured that there was no drama and duly won to become the fifth player to secure a hat-trick of national Open titles in the past 45 years.  The others were Philip Corbin (1975-1977), Ron Buckmire (1983-1986), Kevin Denny (1991-1996) and Martyn Del Castilho (2009-2012).

“Winning nationals was super important to me for a number of reasons. I wanted to add by name to the list of persons who had won a hat-trick of national titles.  The most important reason is I really value consistency. It is very important for me to prove to myself year after year that I can do this again and again and again at will,” Husbands said while revealing his ultimate aim is to match Kevin Denny’s record 14 national titles.

“The last game was always going to be the most critical game. The tournament standings was not a factor. In my mind, each game was a must win. The tensions were high. It was a very interesting game. This year’s nationals were challenging.”

With the triumph, which followed previous titles in 2013, 2018 and 2019, Husbands earned $1 000 and a trophy.

Husbands’ winning streak also included victories over Emar Edwards and Kyle Sandiford in the sixth and seventh rounds respectively last Saturday and over no. 2 seed Akeem Cox in the penultimate round the following day.

With some of the island’s top players opting out of the Championship, the youthful pair of Mahtani and Sandiford took the opportunity to further show their mettle and both outplayed more seasoned opponents to finish on seven points.

Mahtani, 20, Barbados’ captain at the 2018 and 2019 CARIFTA Championships and a Barbados Exhibition winner last year, took second place on the tie-break ahead of the 18-year-old Sandiford, the Under-16 Open silver medallist at the 2018 CARIFTA Championships.

The top half of the ten-player field was completed by Edwards, who finished fourth with five and a half points with Cox fifth on five points.

The Barbados Chess Federation’s calendar will continue this weekend with the start of the Ladies National Championship and the VEXX Tournament – the latter is restricted to players who did not qualify for the National Championship. Both events start on Saturday at the Chess Centre and will be played over seven rounds. (BCF)

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Husbands leads National Championship at the half-way point

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Defending champion Orlando Husbands (left) defeated Mark Lowe in the fifth round to maintain his 100 per cent winning record. (BCF Pictures)

Husbands leads National Championship at half-way point

Two-time defending champion Orlando Husbands has reeled off a perfect record to hold a narrow lead in the Barbados Chess Federation’s 2020 National Championship at the half-way stage.

Aiming to become the fifth player to achieve a hat-trick of national titles in the last 45 years, the 23-year-old top seed has a maximum five points in the nine-round event which pushed off last weekend at the Chess Centre on Exmouth Gap, Brandons, St. Michael.

Two youthful players are close on Husbands’ heels with 20-year-old no. 5 seed Nitin Mahtani holding second place with four and a half points and 18-year-old no. 3 seed Kyle Sandiford occupying third place on four points.

Emar Edwards is in fourth place on three points and is followed by three players – Justin Parsons, Akeem Cox and Othneil Harewood – on two points.

Husbands, one of only four International Masters Barbados has produced, benefitted from  a default win against Parsons in the first round before beating Louis Wilson in the second round last Saturday.

The defending champion defeated Adam Roachford in the third round last Sunday and maintained his winning form with victories over Harewood in the fourth round on Tuesday and over Mark Lowe in the fifth round on Thursday.

Husbands will face off against Edwards in the sixth round on Saturday morning before clashing with Sandiford in the seventh round in the evening.

In the absence of some of the island’s leading players, Mahtani and Sandiford have grabbed the chance to show their mettle and both defeated no. 2  seed Cox.

Mahtani, captain of the Barbados team at the 2018 and 2019 CARIFTA Championships, also won against Harewood, Lowe and Edwards while playing to a draw against Sandiford in the fourth round.

Sandiford’s victories were against Cox, Roachford and Parsons and he also drew with Edwards.

Ten players are competing in the Championship which is being played on a round-robin format – all the players face off against each other. They are battling for a top prize of $1 000 and a trophy with the second place finisher earning $600 and a trophy and third place $400 and a trophy.

After Saturday’s two rounds of games, the action will continue on Sunday at 5 p.m. with the final round set for Tuesday at 6 p.m. (BCF)

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Husbands takes aim at hat-trick of national titles

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Orlando Husbands is aiming to achieve a hat-trick of national titles. (BCF Picture)

Husbands takes aim at hat-trick of national titles

Barbados’ top rated chess player Orlando Husbands starts his quest to complete a hat-trick of titles when the Barbados Chess Federation’s 2020 National Championship pushes off on Saturday.

The 23-year-old International Master is the favourite to win the nine-round event given the absence of some of the island’s top players who opted out of the three qualifiers this year.

While Husbands boasts of a FIDE rating of 2324, the no. 2 seed Akeem Cox is more than 500 points behind with a rating of 1819. The list of top five seeds is completed by Kyle Sandiford (1807), Justin Parsons (1754) and Nitin Mahtani (1729) and ten ten-player field is rounded off by Emar Edwards (1705), Mark Lowe (1653), Othneil Harewood (1603), Louis Wilson (1499) and Adam Roachford (1369).

In Saturday’s first round, which starts at 10 a.m. at the Chess Centre on Exmouth Gap, Brandons, St. Michael, Husbands faces Parsons before coming up against Wilson in the second round at 5 p.m.

Husbands, who won last year’s title with a 100 per cent record and captured the 2018 championship by scoring ten and a half out of a maximum 11 points, is seeking to join four other players to achieve a hat-trick of national titles in the past 45 years.

Philip Corbin claimed a hat-trick from 1975 to 1977; Ron Buckmire won four successive national titles from 1983 to 1986; Kevin Denny achieved a record six straight championships from 1991 to 1996 and Martyn Del Castilho won four in a row from 2009 to 2012.

FIDE Master Del Castilho, the second highest rated player in the island, is among some of the leading players who did not complete in any of the three qualifiers which were won by Sandiford, Harewood and Wilson. Others opting out included International Master Terry Farley, FIDE Master Justin Blackman and Candidate Master Bryan Prescod.

The Championship, which will be played in a round-robin format – all the players face off against each other  – is offering a top prize of $1 000 and a trophy with the second place finisher earning $600 and a trophy and third place $400 and a trophy. It will continue with the third round of games on Sunday with the remaining days set for October 13, 15, 17, 18 and 20.

Under the COVID-19 protocols for over the board tournaments, players will be required to compete in masks and no spectators will be allowed at the venue. (BCF)

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