COVENTRY CHESS LEAGUE MAY 2020 UPDATE

Please find the latest update concerning over the Board Chess from our League Chairman.

COVENTRY CHESS LEAGUE MAY 2020 UPDATE

Dear All,

The Coventry Chess League remains suspended due to the present Covid 19 pandemic but as Chairman of the League I thought I would update you on the situation as your committee sees it.

It seems that there is no immediate prospect of over the board chess restarting any time soon.  It might well be that the pubs and social clubs that many of us use as venues are among the last places to reopen.  Nevertheless your committee recently 'met' on Zoom to discuss what the future might look like and to be prepared to be in a position to restart when it is safe to do so.

With this in mind I would like to communicate to all members of the Coventry League our intention to continue playing chess in the 2020-21 season even if it takes a different form to that which we have known previously. We also plan to complete 2019-20 with the three outstanding matches to decide the final three tournaments.

If over the board chess is not possible then there will be an online presence for the Coventry League.

Therefore please keep your Tuesdays free during our normal Autumn/Winter playing season as there will be some form of activity.  The Coventry League committee will continue to 'meet' online and we will be consulting with all of our clubs as to how to develop in the future.

You might also wish to note that at present the 3rd Coventry Chess League Congress due for Sunday 6th December 2020 is still in the diary.

Many thanks and best wishes.
Colin Green

Coronavirus update - Message from the Chairman of the League

Dear All,

At this very difficult time your thoughts may be far from considering

the future of the Coventry Chess League.

Nevertheless the present tragic situation will come to an end at some

stage and I wanted you to know that your Coventry Chess League committee

will be working towards the completion the 2019-20 season and to prepare

for the 2020-21 season.

It is not possible at this stage to know when this might be, but I

wanted you to know that when restrictions are lifted, and when chess

players are ready to re-start we will be in a position to reform our

leagues and return to playing chess.  I will hope to keep you updated

but in the meantime do please keep safe and if you have any thoughts or

opinions do please share them with your club organisers or myself.

Best wishes,

Colin Green.

Chairman, Coventry Chess League

Corona Virus

As you are all aware the current Coronavirus situation has been escalating for some time and now the ECF has issued guidance for all chess clubs as follows:

 

"The ECF has been considering the operation of evening league chess during the continuing coronavirus pandemic.
It is for individual leagues to decide on their own policy and the ECF cannot make decisions for those organisations. Our suggestion is that play is suspended for a period. A sensible period to allow for the progress of the virus to be monitored and reviewed in line with developments in Government policy might be for the next three weeks, with the policy being reconsidered at the end of that period."

Suspensions are now occurring across the sporting world, in chess and way beyond, to the point where keeping going increasingly appears anomalous and unwanted.

As we operate under the auspices of the ECF we have no choice but to close Coventry Chess Club for the foreseeable future. However, we will keep a close eye on the situation and as soon as there is any change in the guidance I will get back in contact. 

This does mean that the Summer Cup and the Club AGM will be postponed as well.

Whilst we are reluctant to close the club we feel in order to protect all our members this is the right course of action.

Kind Regards,

Simon & Dave

Coventry Chess Club Rapid Play

Happy New Year to everyone!

I am delighted to say that Coventry Chess will be holding a Rapid Play Tournament on Sunday January 26th.

We look forward to welcoming all players as we are sure you will find a Section suitable for your playing strength

Due to the size of the venue places are strictly limited so please apply now!

There are more details here along with an application form :- 

Coventry Chess Rapid Play

Leamington League Venue For Home Matches

We have managed to secure a new venue for our Home Leamington League Matches. Of course, if anyone is in the area when we are playing you are welcome to call in!

The venue details are :-

Lime Tree Social Club

Templar Avenue

Coventry

CV4 9BQ

https://www.limetreepark.org.uk/

02476 466366

As you go into the club, the room where we are located is on the ground floor on the left hand side - (it is called the committee room.)

Plenty of Free Secure Parking available

There are the usual facilities available that you would expect at a Social Club, so we would ask players to respect not bringing their own food or drinks into the venue. Thank You

Leamington League Matches Fixture List:-

Leamington League Fixture List

Isle Of Man Chess International

From the 10th-21st October 2019, some of the very best players from planet Earth made their way to the Isle of Man to compete in a FIDE qualifier for the world chess championships. Having a spare week or two available, I also decided to tag along, and played in the Major, a side event running alongside the Masters event.
Whilst the main event featured a brutally strong field, with players from all corners of the globe competing; the Major, (my section), featured a very international looking line up to. Players from England, Wales, Russia, Georgia, Australia, Portugal, Isle of Man, Sweden, Germany, USA, Netherlands and Romania all played alongside myself in the Major. Two of the competitors were FIDE Masters, albeit relatively speaking, very low rated ones.
If we include the Minor section, further players from Israel, Spain, Ireland, Scotland, France and India also competed. That's quite an array of nations represented, and that's not even including the Masters line up!
The tournament was very enjoyable, with complimentary daily refreshments available; (tea, coffee, water and fizzy drinks), for competitors to enjoy. There are very few tournaments where these are provided free of charge. In fact, this is the only one I know of that does this, at least for chess players of mortal status anyway!
In addition, there were a couple of complimentary magazines for each competitor, and a free buffet, and beverage of choice from the bar, were provided on the final night. Add to this the excellent prize money on offer, and this makes for a great annual event.
A highlight for me was a win against Russian FM, Aleksandr Bujakevich, (it sounds quite Russain, doesn't it!) I tried a gambit line which I like to play from time to time, and I managed to win quite a nice game in the end.
Anyway, after 7 days, I managed to finish joint first in my section when the dust had settled, and I had the bonus of being declared the winner on tiebreak. Apparently, the sum of my opponent's progressive scores was greater than those of my co-winners opponent's progressive scores. Or something along those lines! In any case, I enjoyed the event, and managed to gain a few rating points along the way!
One feature of the tournament was that a free bus service was provided from Douglas to the host venue; the Comis Hotel and Golf Resort, which, by the way, was a very nice venue to play in. Anyway, as many of the top players were staying in Douglas, I got to share the same bus as them. As well as some of the best women players in the world, stars like Hikaru Nakamura and Magnus Carlsen also shared the same bus as myself' and my co competitors, to the venue.
Well, it's not every day you get to share a bus with the world's elite chess players, is it?