Narrow win

In addition to Lim Zhuo Ren winning the national closed championship two weeks ago, there is also a new national women’s champion in Nur Nabila Azman Hashim. 

The national women’s closed championship, which was also being held at the same time, was an equally gripping affair. Not much actually separated the eventual champion, Nur Nabila, from her sister, Nur Najiha, who finished as the runners-up.

For much of the distance, both of them were going neck-to-neck in the tournament. Both started off the tournament on a winning note, winning their first two games, and in the third round they met one another and drew their game.

At that point, Puteri Rifqah Fahada Azhar had jumped into the early lead with three full points from her first three games. But that was about as far as she got with her impressive 100 percent score because immediately, she lost to Nur Najiha in the fourth round. In the meanwhile, Nur Nabila overcame the defending champion, Fong Mi Yen.

These two wins set the two sisters firmly in the lead and on a canter towards the finish line. It was only a matter of knowing whom they would be paired against in the subsequent rounds and how they would score in these games.

Nur Najiha made the first breakthrough in the sixth round as she overcame Camila Johari while Nur Nabila could only score a draw with Tan Li Ting, another former national women’s champion.

However, Nur Najiha’s sole lead in the championship was short-lived. In the seventh round, she could only draw with Li Ting while Nur Nabila easily overcame a challenge from Amira Syahmina Zulkafli. 

Now, both players were tied again. More importantly, though, they had opened up a one-point gap between themselves and their nearest rivals. That one of them would become the next national women’s champion was never a doubt; the only question was who would it be?

This far in the tournament, Nur Najiha had managed to avoid Fong Mi Yen. The defending champion had already played with Nur Nabila but not with Nur Najiha yet. In the eighth round, they met. If ever there was an occasion that Nur Najiha needed all the luck to win, this would be it. 

Unfortunately, Mi Yen was equally determined to win the game. A loss would have seen her spiral out of contention for a decent finish to this event and she wanted to avoid that. In any case, Mi Yen won the game to put a real dent into Nur Najiha’s chances. On the other hand, Nur Nabila had no problem disposing of Anis Fariha Saleh. 

With only a single round remaining in the championship, Nur Nabila suddenly found herself propelled into the sole lead for the very first time, and she still retained a one-point lead over her nearest rivals. Would she falter in the final round? It was still possible that the championship could end up tied if she lost and her nearest rivals won.

But Nur Nabila knew what to do. Paired against Camila Johari, she quickly extracted a half point from this game. This half-a-point meant that her lead would be unassailable no matter what happened on the other boards and it was enough for her to become the new national women’s champion.

Of her two closest rivals who were now fighting more for honour than the title, Nur Najiha won against Amira Syahmina Zulkafli to take the second prize while Mi Yen agreed to a draw with Li Ting. This result gave Mi Yen the third place and Li Ting the undisputed fourth place. 

Up next

Perak grand prix

The Perak International Chess Association (PICA) will kick off this year’s Tan Sri Lee Loy Seng chess grand prix with the first leg at the Chinese Recreation Club in Taiping on Apr 10. 

This is the second series of the local grand prix which will see five legs held in Taiping, Kerian, Slim River, Kampar and Ipoh until July. Last year’s inaugural series attracted more than 900 players from around the country and were held at seven different districts in the state. PICA is confident that this year’s series would attract even greater response. 

Each leg of the grand prix will be played over seven rounds with a 25-minute time control. Other than the cash prizes, points will be awarded to the top 10 winners of each leg and these would accumulate till the final leg. 

Entry fees for the first leg in Taiping: RM25 (open section), RM15 (under 16 years old), RM10 (under 12 years old). For PICA members and Perak residents: RM20 (open section), RM10 (players under 16 years old). Closing date: Apr 7. For more information, call Yunus (013.3908129) or visit the PICA blog at http://perakchess.blogspot.com for updates. 

Selangor open

The nation’s longest-running chess tournament is back. The Chess Association of Selangor (CAS) will organize their 38th Selangor open chess tournament at the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre, Wilayah Complex, Kuala Lumpur from Apr 28 to May 2.

This nine-round, Fide-rated tournament will have 10 main cash prizes totaling RM7,000 with the winner receiving RM2,500. There are also various minor category prizes. Entry fees: RM70 (CAS members with Fide ratings), RM80 (CAS members without Fide ratings), RM90 (non-CAS members with Fide ratings) and RM100 (non-CAS members without Fide ratings). Grandmasters and international masters play for free. Universities, colleges and schools that submit four players or more will receive a 20 percent discount. Entries received after Apr 21 will be charged an extra RM20.

For enquiries, contact Lim Tse Pin (012.2984922, selangorchess@gmail.com), Mat Zaki Yeop (017.2032051) or Yeoh Chin Seng (012.6199816). More information available from http://selangorchess.blogspot.com 

Percawi Labour Day team

The Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Chess Association (Percawi) will organize a Labour Day team tournament at the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre, Wilayah Complex, Kuala Lumpur on Apr 24. Six rounds, 30-minute games, four players per team. Entry fee: RM160 (companies and government departments), RM80 (schools, colleges and universities). Details available from Collin Madhaven (016.2123578) and Bob Yap (012.2878378)