As the second edition of the SITTU Barbados Open chess tournament came to conclusion over the weekend at the Barbados Beach Club, Maxwell, Christ Church there were winners from at least three countries in the four sections, as overseas players made a heavy impact on the event.

The tournament consisted of over 100 players representing 10 countries, competing in four sections with three of the four sections being dominated by one player, while the other section saw an exciting four -ways tie, which had to use a tiebreaker to separate the players.

In Section A, Canadian grandmaster Shawn Rodrigue-Lemieux, won the event comfortably with 7 ½ points from his 9 games in the 10- player, all play all event. Rodrigue-Lemieux was consistent throughout the event, winning 6 games and drawing the other three. His last round victory over Trinidadian Fide master Ryan Harper showed the kind of form he is in.

Finishing in second and third position were fellow Canadians international masters Mark Plotkin and Aaron Reeve Mendez. Both players scored 6 ½ points with Plotnik edging out Mendez on the tie-break.

The top local finisher in this section was current national champion FIDE master Martyn Del Castilho who finished with 4 ½ points. He finished off the event with a victory over candidate master Darren McKennis of Jamaica.

In section B, FIDE master Jose Mora Moron of Venezuela won with an impressive 7 wins fron 7 games. Mora Moron was the class of the field and by round 6, he had already captured the event. He celebrated his victory with a crushing victory over the Barbados female champion, woman FIDE master Hannah Wison in their final round match to finish an impressive outing.

Local ace tennis player Emar Edwards finished in clear second on 5 points following his last round over Jerimiah Farley and with a draw between Justin Parsons and Guyanese Taffin Khan, Edwards was able to secure second position alone. Khan, Wilson and Parsons finished joint 3rd to 5th in that order all on 4 ½ points in the 18-player field.

In Section C, Loki Clarke dominated the event to win with 7 points from his 7 games. By round 6, Clarke had already won the event but kept his foot on the gas in the last round by defeating woman candidate master, Kiarra Eversley to ensure a perfect score.

Savion Little finished in clear second with 5 ½ points following his last round draw with Allan Herbert, while Aaron Jaikaran clinched third spot with a last round win over veteran Cyprian LaTouche. Eversley, Herbert along with Charis Stuart finished joint 4th – 6th on 4 ½ points in the 26-player field.

The most competitive section of the event was the Novice Section D. Here four players ended on 6 points after a dramatic last round. Going into the final round, young Nathan Simmon-Patterson was in the sole lead with his six wins, however tragedy struck and Simmons-Patterson fell to defeat against Conrad Grits, along with this, Derick Boyce and Harry Shepherd also secured victories which also allowed them to climb up to 6 points as well.

Thus, a four-way tie had occurred, and it was the winner Harry Shepherd who edged out the three others by the slimmest margin on tie-break. Jaekeb Barrow, Rene Lashley, Gabriel Canterbury, Ernest King and Savinos Minas of Canada brought up positions 5 – 9 in this 50-player field.

It was 5 days of exhilarating  chess in the sun and the chess community will be eagerly looking forward to next year’s edition.

The 2026 edition of the SITTU Barbados Open chess event began on Wednesday night at the Barbados Beach Club Maxwell Coast Road in Christ Church.

The tournament is structured into four sections, with the top Section A being for players rated ELO 2100+, Section B for ELO 1700 – 2099, Section C for ELO 1400 – 1699 and Section D being for unrated or novice players. The players in Section A will play 9 games while the others will play 7.

This year’s event has attracted just over 100 players with participation from at least 9 foreign countries including as far flung as Canada in the north, Guyana from the south and Panama to the west.

Section A of the event began a day earlier than the other sections and will see a strong 10 player event with each participant  having to play the other in a round -robin format.

Canadians Start Well

Last year’s Section A champion, Grand master Shawn Rodrigue-Lemieux of Canada began the defense of his title with an impressive victory over his fellow countryman international master Mark Plotkin. The top-rated Rodrigue-Lemieux showed why he will be considered the favorite in the event as he controlled the game from the opening and took no risk in defeating his opponent.

Another Canadian player also started with a win as young international master Aaron Reeve Mendes won from international master Felix Yjonosa of Venezuela.

Bajans Struggle

While the Canadians started with a bang, the local players in the top section all fell to defeat in their opening matches.

The top-rated local player international master Orlando Husbands lost to young candidate master Darren McKennis of Jamaica. Husbands seemed to have everything under control but came out the worst in a tactical melee that allowed McKennis to gain an advantage from which he was able to convert the game.

Current local national chess champion, FIDE master Martyn Del Castilho also lost his game against FIDE master Joshua Johnson of Trinidad and Tobago. Del Castilho seemed to confuse himself in the early middle game and his position quickly unraveled.

Finally, to complete a blank night for the Bajans, international master Terry Farley fell into a mate and lost against FIDE master Ryan Harper of Trinidad. Harper could consider himself lucky as he was several pieces down and Farley seemed to be cruising to victory. However, as, in most things in life, it’s never over until it is, and Farley blundered badly to allow Harper to win.

The chess action will continue at the Barbados Beach Club over the next three days with games at 10.00 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. with all four sections beginning their play.