In third place in the Open section was Iceland. Iceland is said to have the highest number of grandmasters per population. Chess is very popular. They had three grandmasters playing on the top three boards. They were GM Helgi Olafsson, GM Margeir Petursson and GM Jon Arnason. All these grandmasters have tremendous international experience. They only lost to Italy. Iceland clinched third third place on tiebreak.
Category: Uncategorized
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Albania Reflections Nine – by Dr Lyndon Bouah
Spain beat SA 3 to 1. On board one IM LA Casa beat CM Lyndon in a positional battle. On Board two FM Bhawoodien lost to his opponent in a tactical melee when he essayed the Schielemann variation. On Board three Anton Goosen drew his game after pushing hard. On Board 4 Andre Schutte continued his fine form by scoring a draw in the last round and ending with 6/9. A great performance by Schutte, who also was our technical person, checking on everything related to the opposing teams!
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Albania Reflections Eight – by Dr Lyndon Bouah
SA beat Guernsy by 2.5 to 1.5. On board one CM Lyndon Bouah had his KID dismantled by his opponent. It was a 9. Bayonet variation. 2. On Board 2 FM Shabier Bhawoodien outplayed his opponent with the white pieces. 3. On Board 3 Anton Goosen drew his game against his CM opponent. They had mutual time trouble. 4. On Board four Andre Schutte continued his excellent form by sacrificing his knight on the kingside up a winning attack. This is the second match victory in a row and the third overall. We have now won 3 matches, lost 3 matches and drew 2.
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Albania Reflections Seven – by Dr Lyndon Bouah
SA Beat the home country Albania. On top Board CM Lyndon Bouah beat his opponent 2196 Lorenx Rama in a well-played game. The game transposed into a King’s Indian Defence. This is Bouah’ first win and he now has three points. On board two FM Shabir Bhawoodien defeated his opponent by dominating the dark squares after sacrificing a pawn. On Board three CM Anton Goosen trapped his opponents knight in the middle if the board. This secured a 3-nil lead at the time of going to the press. On Board four Andre Shutte scored a victory in a well-played endgame. SA won 4 nil.
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Albania Reflections Six – by Dr Lyndon Bouah
We lost to England by 2.5 to 1.5.
On Board one CM Lyndyn Bouah drew with England board one Daniel Lindner (2196). It was a tough game but as captain Lyndon defended the honour of the black pieces. Dr Bhawoodien pushed for a win on board 2 but lost in the end. On board three Anton Goosen drew with his opponent after the queens came off early. On board four Andre Schutte played his heart out and drew with his higher rated opponent (1994).
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Albania Reflections Five – by Dr Lyndon Bouah
The matches are of course all tough. There are no easy matches. Many of the players have retired or are close to retirement and have decided to come play in this event. Many of them have of course lost a bit of strength but they have not lost their understanding of the game!
Today is World Book Day – 23 April. In honour of today, I have decided to purchase two books. The books are about the life and games of GM Dragoljub Velimirovic. He was on the most exciting grandmasters. I shall enjoy the two-part series on his life.
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Albania Reflections Four – by Dr Lyndon Bouah
Chessa appointed me as manager of this trip, and I am glad to report that all
managerial roles have been going well. I attended the captains meeting and settled
all the finances and other aspects that needed settling. Everyone is settled and is
doing their best. We are now in a routine of preparation and analysis.Today I also spoke at the Conference called South African Sport and the Nation
hosted by the Jaap Durand Chair and the UWC Faculty of Community Health
Sciences. My presentation focussed on the Trilaterals and the importance of
Governance in Sport Federations. It was a video presentation. Technology is
amazing. Two of my colleagues also attended.
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FIDE Delegation Update
Over the past few days, work with the FIDE delegation has focused almost entirely on venue selection for the event. The process has been thorough and time-intensive, which has limited bandwidth for exhibition activities. The delegation remains fully engaged.
Venue shortlist (narrowed from a wider pool):
• Stellenbosch University
• CTICC
• UCT
• Curro DurbanvilleChess set handovers completed:
• Fisantekraal High School
• Alpha Primary School
Both schools sit in communities affected by drug and gang activity. The handovers were well received. President High School is scheduled for tomorrow.
