New venue for Merdeka tourney

THE plush setting of the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) in Kuala Lumpur shall, for the first time, be the venue of this year's 17th Merdeka team chess championship on Aug 28-30.

How the PWTC came to be chosen as the home for this year's competition is an interesting story. For many years and for many chess players around the country, whenever the Merdeka chess championship was brought up, Wisma Belia in Kuala Lumpur would be mentioned in the same breath. To them, Wisma Belia was synonymous with the event itself.

Then last year, the Terengganu Chess Association proposed to hold the Merdeka chess championship in Kuala Terengganu. It was an offer which the Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) could not refuse, because the TCA had offered to match the Merdeka celebration committee's budget on a ringgit-for-ringgit basis.

Unfortunately, the proposal fell through and the MCF brought the Merdeka event back to Kuala Lumpur.

Luckily for MCF, the PWTC had been attempting to promote the place as a centre for chess excellence in the capital. For example, among the facilities is a perfectly usable giant chess set which is a guaranteed conversation piece for visitors to the PWTC chess centre.

Since the start of this year, the centre has been the venue for several small local events but in the past months, the two most prominent events to be held there were the Malaysia-Singapore match and the national age-group championship.

It did not take long for MCF to convince the PWTC authorities that the place would be suitable for the Merdeka chess championship. Moreover, a deal was made with the nearby Dynasty Hotel to provide accommodation for the players at a special promotional rate.

Last year's competition was expanded from a seven-round to a nine-round event but it reverts back to seven rounds this year. Consequently, the number of playing days has also been reduced from four to three. One aspect of the championship that is unchanged, however, is the playing categories which remain at three.

The main attraction is the state category where the fight is for the Deputy Prime Minister's trophy. The MCF can expect most of the state chess associations to send their strongest line-ups. For the youth category, the winner will be awarded the Merdeka youth challenge trophy.

The other main feature is the open category which has always attracted teams from far and near. Last year, Bali Jeff, a very strong team from Indonesia came to sweep the first prize.

Bali Jeff is not anticipated to defend their title this year but even without them, the keen competition from the local teams and maybe a few from Singapore will certainly raise the temperature in the playing hall by a few degrees.

Registration for the teams starts at 8.30am on Aug 28. The first round will commence at 3pm and the second round at 7.45pm. On the second day, the rounds begin at 9am, 1pm and 4.30pm, while on the last day of the competition, the final two rounds will start at 9am and 1.30pm. The closing ceremony will be held at 5pm.

Prizes for the state category are RM2,000, RM1,500 and RM1,000. The winner will also receive custody of the Deputy Prime Minister's challenge trophy. The five prizes in the youth section are RM1,000, RM750, RM500, RM300 and RM150. The Merdeka youth challenge trophy will also go to the winner.

There will be seven prizes for the open category. The winning team will receive RM2,000 and the runner-up RM1,500. The other prizes are RM1,000, RM800, RM600, RM400 and RM200. In addition, there are special prizes for the best government department, women's, school, and family teams.

Entry fees are RM150 for teams playing in the State and open categories, and RM80 for the youth category. The closing date for entries is Aug 23.

For more details, contact Ibrahim Bakar (tel: 03-559-5442) or Ibrahim Yaacob (tel: 03-636-3082) after 7pm.

Make a date at Endah Parade

THE Endah Parade Chess Challenge starts this weekend at the Endah Parade in Bandar Baru Sri Petaling, Kuala Lumpur. The Endah Parade blitz tournament will be played tomorrow afternoon and players can register for this event beginning at 1pm. The first round is scheduled to start at 2pm.

This blitz event is a 13-round Swiss, and the champion will receive a trophy and RM200. The runner-up will get RM100 while the third prize is RM50. Entry fee is RM10 per player.

On Sunday, there will be the Endah Parade Age Group Open. These under-16 and under-12 events will be played as a six-round Swiss. Participants are required to register at 9am. For both age groups, the champion will get a trophy and RM200, and the runner-up RM100. The prizes for third and the best girl player are RM50 each. Entry fee is RM10.

Selection event

THERE will be a selection tournament at the Methodist High School in Malacca on Aug 8 to select players for the Malacca state team which will be participating in the Merdeka team chess championship. This event, organised by FCLChess, will have an open section as well as an under-11 section.

Entry fee is RM10, and the closing date is Aug 5. Entries received after this date will be subjected to availability of places and the payment of a late fee of RM5. Players are required to be at the playing hall by 9am on the date of competition.

Meanwhile, FCLChess also disclosed that it will organise a series of local rating tournaments with the first scheduled for the Holiday Villa Subang in Selangor on Aug 16. Entry fee is RM15 and the closing date is Aug 10. There will be four sections -- under-8, under-10, under-12 and under-14.

For more information on the two events, contact Foong Chee Leng (tel: 013-360-2316).

Penang Chess League

AFTER a week's break, the eighth Penang Bayview Chess League resumes this Sunday beginning 10am at The City Bayview Hotel's revolving restaurant on the 15th floor. The competition, which began on June 7, will end on Aug 16.

The standings in the Premier Division after six rounds are: Penang Free School A 21 pts; Old Frees Association A 17 1/2 pts; Chung Ling High School A 16 pts; Chung Ling Old Boys Association 15 1/2 pts; Methodist Boys School A and Pessca 10 1/2 pts each; Universiti Sains Malaysia 8 pts; MSSPP Juniors and Old Frees Association B 7 1/2 pts each; and Chung Ling High School B 6 pts.

In Division One: Penang Free School B and Chung Ling High School C 20 pts each; St Xavier's Institution A 16 1/2 pts; Penang Development Corporation 16 pts; Chung Ling High School D 13 pts; Hewlett-Packard 12 1/2 pts; Penang Chess Association Novices and Chung Hwa Confucian A 6 1/2 pts each; Penang Free School C and Union High School 6 pts each.

Division Two: MSSPP Girls and Penang Free School D 17 1/2 pts each; Polis Di Raja Malaysia 16 1/2 pts; St Xavier's Institution B 15 pts; Chung Hwa Confucian B 14 pts; Chung Ling High School E 13 pts; Methodist Boys School B 10 1/2 pts; Dynacraft 9 1/2 pts; Penang Chinese Girls High School 5 pts; and Westlands Secondary School 2 1/2 pts.

The round-by-round results of the Bayview Chess League can be viewed from the Penang Chess Association homepage on the Internet at www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Stadium/2379/.

VIP visitors to the PWTC Chess Centre trying out the giant chess set: Singapore High Commissioner K. Kesavapany (right), Malaysian Chess Federation honorary president Datuk Tan Chin Nam (centre), and Malaysian Chess Federation vice-president Datuk Mohd Rosli Abdul Aziz (left).

 

A busy month ahead

JUDGING from the number of chess organisers who have contacted me this past week or so, August is starting to look like one very busy month indeed.

The month begins with some tournaments in Kuala Lumpur, then the action moves south to Johor before switching back to Kuala Lumpur at the end of the month for the traditional Merdeka team championship. Of course, during the month itself, the Penang Bayview Chess League continues, although it will wind down in about three weeks.

All right, let's see what are the tournaments in store for players next month.

Endah Parade Challenge, Kuala Lumpur (Aug 1): For starters, there will be the Endah Parade Chess Challenge in Bandar Baru Sri Petaling, jointly organised by the Endah Parade and the Malaysian Chess Federation. The Endah Parade blitz tournament will start in the afternoon; registration for players will open at 1pm, with the first round scheduled to start at 2pm. This blitz event is a 13-round Swiss, and the champion will receive a trophy and RM200. The runner-up will get RM100 while the third prize is RM50. Entry fee is RM10 per player.

Endah Parade Age Group Open, Kuala Lumpur (Aug 2): These under-16 and under-12 events will be played in a six-round Swiss, and participants are required to register at 9am. For both age groups, the champion will get a trophy and RM200, and the runner-up RM100. The prizes for third and the best girl player are RM50 each. Entry fee is RM10.

Endah Parade Computer Challenge, Kuala Lumpur (Aug 8): The organisers of the Endah Parade events hope to have a competition between human players and computer chess programs like Chessmaster and Fritz. However, the format has not been finalised and the only information released to date is that the event will be played over six rounds beginning 1pm. There are five non-cash prizes. Entry fee is RM5 per player.

Endah Parade Open, Kuala Lumpur (Aug 9): This open chess tournament will complete the Endah Parade chess challenge. This is a six-round Swiss, and registration begins at 9am. Entry fee is RM10 for players who are under 12 years old, and RM15 for others. Ten cash prizes are on offer, including a RM250 first prize, a RM200 second prize and a RM150 third prize. Fourth and fifth will receive RM100 each, and those who finish sixth to 10th will get RM50 each. In addition, there are RM50 prizes for the best under-16, under-14, under-12 and girl players.

Entry forms for the events can be obtained from, and submitted to, the information counter at Endah Parade. However, entry fees will only be collected on the day of registration. Would-be participants should submit their entry forms early because each of the events would be limited to the first 100 participants. For more details, contact Zac, Yuonne or Soo Kee (03-583 0100).

MSE Silver Jubilee, Johor (Aug 9): This year is the 50th anniversary of Malaysia Shipyard and Engineering Sdn Bhd, and to mark the occasion, the company will organise a silver jubilee open chess tournament at their training centre in Pasir Gudang. This event will be played in two sections -- open and under-16 -- and there will be a total of RM3,000 in prizes.

For the open section, the entry fee will be RM20 while RM10 will be collected from the players of the under-16 section. The winner of the open section will receive RM300, and the second-placed player will get RM250. Other main prizes include RM200 for third, RM150 for fourth and RM100 for fifth. The sixth to 10th prizes range from RM80 to RM40.

As for the under-16 section, the winner will get RM150 and the runner-up RM120. There are also prizes for the third to 10th-placed winners, including a RM100 third prize and a RM80 fourth prize. For registration or information, call M. Said Husin (07-259 3784) or Shamsuddin Taimain (07-259 2332).

Merdeka Team Chess Championship, Kuala Lumpur (Aug 28-30): The highlight of the month will be the Merdeka team chess championship. Instead of Wisma Belia, the venue of this year's Merdeka championship will be the Putra World Trade Centre.

Like in previous years, cash prizes and trophies will be awarded to the winners of the State, youth and open sections. Entry fees are RM150 for teams playing in the State and open sections, and RM80 for the youth section. The closing date for entries is Aug 23.

The organiser Malaysian Chess Federation will provide accommodation for only the official State and youth teams. They will be housed at the nearby Dynasty Hotel, the official hotel for the event, which is about five minutes' walk from the PWTC. There will be more details on the championship next week. In the meantime, readers can also contact Ibrahim Bakar (03-559 5442) or Ibrahim Yaacob (03-636 3082) after 7pm if they have enquiries.

PERAK GRAND PRIX

The Perak International Chess Association will hold the seventh stage of their nine-leg chess grand prix at the Tun Razak Library in Ipoh this weekend.

Six rounds are scheduled for the two-day event, and the time control will be 60 minutes per player for each game. This event is open to all chess enthusiasts in the State. Three rounds will be played tomorrow and the remaining rounds will be on Sunday.

The overall grand prix standings will be based on the best five tournament performances of each player and the top 24 players at the end of the series will qualify for the Perak state championship in September. The interim grand prix standings will also be used for selecting Perak players to national events like the Merdeka team championship.

Those interested in playing this weekend must register at the playing venue by 1pm tomorrow. For more details, contact W.K. Wong (05-366 1692).

BAYVIEW LEAGUE RESULTS

In the sixth round of the eighth Bayview Chess League last Sunday, Penang Free School 'A' whitewashed Chung Ling High School 'B' 4-0 to take a commanding lead in the Premier Division. Their nearest rival, Old Frees Association 'A', beat MSSPP Juniors 3 1/2-1/2, while Chung Ling High School 'A' could score only 2 1/2-1 1/2 against Pessca.

In other matches, Chung Ling Old Boys Association beat Old Frees Association 'B' 3-1, and Universiti Sains Malaysia beat Methodist Boys School 3-1.

The Division One results saw Penang Free School 'B' beating Chung Ling High School 'D' 3 1/2-1/2, Hewlett-Packard beating Penang Chess Association Novices also by the same score line, and Chung Ling High School 'C' thrashing Penang Free School 'C' 4-0. Penang Development Corporation beat Union High School 3-1, while St Xavier's Institution 'A' beat Chung Hwa Confucian 'A' 2 1/2-1 1/2.

In Division Two, MSSPP Girls beat Methodist Boys School 'B' 3-1, Penang Free School 'D' beat Dynacraft 3-1, St Xavier's Institution 'B' beat Westlands Secondary School 3-1, and Police beat Chung Hwa Confucian 'B' 3-1. Chung Ling High School 'E' scored a narrow 2 1/2-1 1/2 win over Penang Chinese Girls High School. Standings:

Premier Division: PFS A (21 points); OFA A (17 1/2); CLHS A (16); CLOBA (15 1/2); MBS A (10 1/2); Pessca (10 1/2); USM (8); MSSPP Juniors (7 1/2); OFA B (7 1/2); CLHS B (6).

Division One: PFS B (20); CLHS C (20); SXI A (16 1/2); PDC (16); CLHS D (13); Hewlett-Packard (12 1/2); PCA Novices (6 1/2); Chung Hwa Confucian A (6 1/2); PFS C (6); Union (6).

Division Two: MSSPP Girls (17); PFS D (17); Police (16 1/2); SXI B (15); Chung Hwa Confucian B (14); CLHS E (13); MBS B (10 1/2); Dynacraft (9 1/2); PCGHS (5); Westlands (2 1/2).

The round-by-round results of the Bayview Chess League can be viewed at the Penang Chess Association homepage

( www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Stadium/2379/ ).

Meanwhile, there are no games this Sunday and the seventh round will only be played on Aug 2 at The City Bayview Hotel. The hotel is sponsoring the use of their premises for the weekly games.

 

Our golden boy shines again

ALL right, let's come clean. What have you been doing during your nights in the past month? Seated in front of the television set, I suppose.

Well, I have to admit that that was what I did, to a reasonable extent, of course. After all, who can avoid the lure of the year's greatest sports spectacle? The magic and skills of strikers like Ronaldo, Zidane, Suker and others, crudely counterbalanced by the overpowering bombardment of Ricky Martin's overhyped soccer anthem!

We shall not be witnessing the World Cup again until the year 2002, but four years can be considered a relatively short wait for football.

Unlike chess.

I have been waiting patiently for the past 14 years for it to happen, and I am glad to announce to readers that it has happened at last! After 14 years, Malaysia has her second international master!

There are no prizes for guessing who this player is. It can only be Mas Hafizulhelmi who is currently our strongest player. While your eyes and mine were on France, Mas Hafizul had quietly drifted into Singapore to take part in an international tournament there.

This was a double round-robin event with a six-player field, and Mas Hafizul was one of three players chasing for a title norm. He had earlier obtained two international master norms at the First Saturday tournaments in Hungary last year and hungered for a third one to fulfil the requirements.

Mas Hafizul has had various other attempts at his third norm, including the Asian junior chess championship in Iran last month, but the results had not been encouraging. In Singapore, he finally made sure that the norm would not elude him this time.

Our player had a rather inauspicious start to this tournament. In his first game, he could only manage a draw against Singapore's Mooi Kok Onn and he followed this with another draw in his second game, against Singaporean international master Hsu Li Yang. Disaster struck in the third game which he lost to Singaporean Fide master Terry Toh.

Two draws then followed, against Vietnam's international master Tu Hoang Thong and Chinese international master Wu Shaobin, and so, at the midway point of the tournament, Mas Hafizul was lying in fifth place with only two points from five games.

For Mas Hafizul to achieve an IM norm, he would need to score a total of six points from the 10 games. After the first half of the event, it looked like a tall order for him as he would now require four points from the remaining five games.

Luckily for him, his indifferent start to the title chase seemed to awaken him. For in the second half of the tournament, Mas Hafizul was a changed player. Firstly, he accounted for both Mooi and Hsu in the sixth and seventh games and then he agreed to a draw with Toh in the eighth game.

He fought to overcome Tu in the ninth game, which left him needing only half a point to realise his dream. In the final round of the tournament, the dream became a reality when Wu agreed to split the point with Mas Hafizul.

Final standings: Wu Shaobin (6 1/2); Hsu Li Yang (6 1/2); each, Mas Hafizul (6); Terry Toh (6); Tu Hoang Thong (4 1/2); Mooi Kok Onn (1/2).

Incidentally, it was also in Singapore way back in 1984 when Malaysia obtained her first international master. Fourteen years ago, Jimmy Liew was a joint winner of the second leg of the Asian IM chess circuit in Singapore, and this result gave him the necessary norm for the international master title. Liew was rewarded RM5,000 by the Malaysian Chess Federation for his success; Mas Hafizul should receive a similar sum too.

With this IM title now, it is expected that Mas Hafizul will now allow chess to take a back seat for the rest of the year. Already, there are indications that he is not interested to play in the Elista Chess Olympiad as he will be sitting for the SPM examinations this November.

Bayview so far

IN the fifth round of the eighth Bayview Chess League last Sunday, Penang Free School 'A' further extended their lead in the Premier Division after beating Methodist Boys School 3-1.

Old Frees Association 'A' drew 2-2 with Chung Ling Old Boys Association while Chung Ling High School 'A' beat Universiti Sains Malaysia 3 1/2-1/2.

In other matches, Chung Ling High School 'B' beat MSSPP Juniors 2 1/2-1 1/2, and Pessca beat Old Frees Association 'B' 2 1/2-1 1/2.

Division One saw three drawn matches: Penang Free School 'B' with Penang Development Corporation, Union High School with Chung Hwa Confucian 'A', and Chung Ling High School 'D' with Penang Free School 'C'. St Xavier's Institution 'A' beat Hewlett-Packard 2 1/2-1 1/2, while Chung Ling High School 'C' beat Penang Chess Association Novices 4-0.

In Division Two, MSSPP Girls drew with Chung Hwa Confucian 'B'. Their lead is now shared with Penang Free School 'D' which beat Methodist Boys School 'B' 3 1/2-1/2. The Police scored a 3-1 win over Penang Chinese Girls High School, while Dynacraft beat Westlands Secondary School 4-0. The encounter between St Xavier's Institution 'B' and Chung Ling High School 'E' was drawn. Standings:

Premier Division: PFS A (17); OFA A (14); CLHS A (13 1/2); CLOBA (12 1/2); MBS A (9 1/2); Pessca (9); MSSPP Jrs (7); OFA B (6 1/2); CLHS B (6); USM (5).

Division One: PFS B (16 1/2); CLHS C (16); SXI A (14); PDC (13); CLHS D (9 1/2); Hewlett-Packard (9); PCA Novices (6); PFS C (6); Chung Hwa A (5); Union (5).

Division Two: MSSPP Girls (14); PFS D (14); Police (13 1/2); Chung Hwa B (13); SXI B (12); CLHS E (10 1/2); MBS B (9 1/2); Dynacraft (8 1/2); PCGHS (3 1/2); Westlands (1 1/2).

The round-by-round results of the Bayview Chess League can be viewed on the Penang Chess Association homepage (www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Stadium/2379/).

Meanwhile, the sixth round of the chess league will be played this Sunday beginning 10am at The City Bayview Hotel's revolving restaurant. The hotel is sponsoring the use of their premises for the weekly games.

Malaysia tops Singapore

ONE popular fixture in the local chess calendar is certainly the annual match between Malaysia and Singapore. This social gathering of chess players from the two countries dated back to 1985 when the first match was hosted in Kuala Lumpur by the Malaysian Chess Federation.

At that time, the match was played over only 20 boards. The victor was the Singaporean team which notched a 21 1/2-18 1/2 win over their Malaysian counterpart. In the second match two years later in Singapore, it was the Malaysian team's win with a 9 1/2-6 1/2 score over the Singaporeans.

In 1990, the third match was again played in Singapore, this time over 26 boards and four rounds, and the score was a flattering 62 1/2-41 1/2 in the Singaporeans' favour.

While the early matches were conducted on a biennial or triennial basis, it was then decided by the MCF and the Singapore Chess Federation that beginning with the 1993 match, it should be contested annually to cement the close ties between the two countries.

The 1993 annual match was played in Kuala Lumpur and the homesters chalked an impressive 33-19 win over the visitors. This marked the first of three consecutive wins by the Malaysians as they also won the 1994 and 1995 matches. In 1994, the Malaysians won by 71-33 in Singapore and in 1995, while playing on home turf, the score was 36-24.

The popularity of this match was such that in 1995, there were even two matches played. The second such match in 1995 was played in Singapore and it was won by the Singaporeans with a very close 30 1/2-29 1/2 result. This herculean effort by the Singaporeans, however, marked the last time that they would win the annual match.

In 1996, the match went Malaysia's way by a 40-20 result. The next year, Malaysia won the match with a 74-46 drubbing of their southern neighbours.

This brings us to the present where the 1998 annual match was played two weeks ago at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur. The match was contested over 34 boards and it covered a wide spectrum of players of all ages.

The Malaysians scored a 20-14 win in the first round with crucial ties like Foong Chee Leng against Chan Tat Wong (veterans), Ismail Ahmad against Chia Chee Seng, Ng Ee Vern against Mark Chan, and Ng Tse Han against Tan Chor Chuan (men's), Dion Moh against Ang Jia Jun (boy's under-16), Wong Tze Chuang against Luke Leong, and Jonathan Chuah against Jerald Tan (boy's under-12), Ooi Ching Chung against Bryan Hooi and Eric Ng against Amos Chan (boy's under-10) all going Malaysia's way.

In the women's section, valuable points were contributed by Eliza Hanum against Charlotte Ng, and Chai Hwei Meen against Zerlinda Tan (women's), Ng Ee Laine against Ng Yuk Ching (girl's under-20), Marina Soh against Sangeeta Vadev (girl's under-16), Effalini Farid against Janice Ong (girl's under-14), Hazuin Husin against Dawn Hui (girl's under-12), and Effaliana Farid against Lin Ailin (girl's under-10).

In the second round, the Malaysians' won with a wide 24 1/2-9 1/2 result. Jimmy Liew won against Malcolm Tan, Ismail Ahmad against Chia Chee Seng again, and Julian Navaratnam against Ignatius Leong (men's), Ng Ee Vern against Lau Keng Boon, and Lim Cheng Teik against Chua Han Wei (boy's under-20), Ng Tze Han against Goh Wei Ming, and Wong Zi Jing against Navin Sawalani (boy's under-18), Law Tze Kang against Mark Kay, and Aaron Yee against Clement Chia (boy's under-16), Hasrul Hussain against Desmond Oh, and Gerald Soh against B. Sriram (boy's under-14), Jonathan Chuah against Jerald Tan (boy's under-12), and Eric Ng against Bryan Hooi (boy's under-10).

The women players also fared well. Nurul Huda shrugged off a loss in the first round to beat Charlottee Ng, Nor Fatitah won against Ng Yuk Ching, and Haslinda beat Tan Ming Ju (women's). Other wins included Chai Hwei Meen against Zerlinda Tan (girl's under-20), Mardiana against Sangeetha Vadev (girl's under-16), Hsyamira Ismail against Felicia Tan (girl's under-14), Hazuin Hussain against Janice Ong, and Effaliani Farid against Lin Ailin (firl's under-12), and Effaliana Farid against Liu Yang (girl's under-10).

Bayview League

In the fourth round of the eighth Bayview Chess League last Sunday, Penang Free School 'A' extended their lead in the Premier Division after beating Chung Ling High School 'A' 3 1/2-1/2.

Of their nearest rivals, the Old Frees Association 'A' beat Chung Ling High School 'B' 3-1 while the Chung Ling Old Boys Association drew 2-2 with Pessca. In other matches, Methodist Boys School 'A' beat the MSSPP Juniors 4-0, and Universiti Sains Malaysia drew 2-2 with the Old Frees Association 'B'.

The Division One results saw Penang Free School 'B' beating Union High School 3-1 to retain their overall lead. Chung Ling High School 'C' beat St Xavier's Institution 'A' 2 1/2-1 1/2, Penang Development Corporation were inspired in their 4-0 win over Penang Free School 'C', Chung Ling High School 'D' beat the Penang Chess Association Novices 2 1/2-1 1/2, and Chung Hwa Confucian 'A' went down 0-4 to Hewlett-Packard.

In Division Two, the MSSPP Girls lead has been whittled down following a 1-3 loss to Penang Free School 'D'. Chung Hwa Confucian School 'B' scored a 3 1/2-1/2 win over Penang Chinese Girls High School. The Police suffered their first loss of the tournament to St Xavier's Institution 'B' with a 1 1/2-2 1/2 result, while Chung Ling High School 'E' narrowly beat Dynacraft 2 1/2-1 1/2. Westlands Secondary School suffered their third 0-4 loss to Methodist Boys School 'B'.

The final standings are:

Premier Division: PFS A (14 points); OFA A (12); CLOBA (10 1/2); CLHS A (10); MBS A (8 1/2); Pessca (6 1/2); MSSPP Juniors (5 1/2); OFA B (5); USM (4 1/2); CLHS B (3 1/2).

Division One: PFS B (14 1/2); CLHS C (12); SXI A (11 1/2); PDC (11); CLHS D (7 1/2); Hewlett-Packard (7 1/2); PCA Novices (6); PFS C (4); Chung Hwa A (3); Union (3).

Division Two: MSSPP Girls (12); Chung Hwa B (11); Police (10 1/2); PFS D (10 1/2); SXI B (10); MBS B (9); CLHS E (8 1/2); Dynacraft (4 1/2); PCGHS (2 1/2); Westlands (1 1/2).

The fifth round of the chess league will be played this Sunday beginning 10am at The City Bayview Hotel's revolving restaurant. The hotel is sponsoring the use of their premises for the weekly games.

 

Ilyumzhinov in murder poser

LAST week, I mentioned a news report from Moscow which quoted Kalmyk Republic and World Chess Federation president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov as saying he would be contesting the Russian presidency.

A few days later, there was another news item from Moscow which reported that three people had been detained in Elista, Kalmyk's capital city, in connection with the murder of the editor of Kalmyk's only opposition newspaper.

Larisa Yudina, editor of the Soviet Kalmykia Today newspaper, was found dead on June 8 with multiple knife wounds and a fractured skull. Two of the three detained later confessed to the killing; one was a former aide of Ilyumzhinov while the other was Ilyumzhinov's envoy to a nearby region.

By any standard, murder is alarming enough but when the crime can be linked to a man who is the leader of an international sports organisation, it becomes a very delicate point. Moreover, these reports were making the rounds on the Internet and many people were drawing negative conclusions from them.

It was not surprising that the World Chess Federation (FIDE) soon felt it necessary to comment on these reports. In a statement released on June 24, FIDE executive director Emmanuel Omuku drew attention to the reports, calling them rumours.

According to him, FIDE was in touch with the office of the President of Kalmykia and had access to statements by the relevant officials of both the Kalmyk Republic and the Russian Federation. He said the Russian Interior Ministry had stated that there was no political motive behind this murder.

Omuku said Ilyumzhinov had consistently maintained the need to isolate FIDE from his other activities as a political leader in Russia.

Nevertheless, whether the murder had anything to do with Ilyumzhinov's bid for the Russian presidency or not, FIDE was forced to issue the statement because certain members of the chess fraternity had been circulating and adding to these rumours.

UP NEXT

Klang Valley events

The two-day national age-group chess championship starts tomorrow at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur.

There are five categories in this event: under-10, under-12, under-14, under-16, under-18. There will be seven rounds in each category and a time control of one hour per player for each game.

Entry fee is RM10 per player. Although there will be no cash prizes, the winners of the various age-groups stand to be considered for selection to the world age-group championships in Oporesa del Mar Castellon, Spain, this October.

Those interested in playing should be at the foyer of the PWTC by 8am tomorrow. Unless a player has registered earlier for the championship, those registering at the PWTC tomorrow will only be accepted on a first-come basis. For more details, contact Malaysian Chess Federation secretary Hamid Majid (03-421 9576).

This coming Monday, the first leg of the third Royal Selangor under-15 chess grand prix will be held at Sunway College in Petaling Jaya.

The grand prix consists of four legs. According to the Chess Association of Selangor (CAS) calendar, the second leg will be held on July 12, the third leg on July 19 and the final leg on July 25 and 26. Each of the legs will be played over six rounds, with a time control of 30 minutes per game for each player.

Game points won by players in each of these legs will be accumulated and the results of a player's best three legs will be used to determine the overall winner of the grand prix. The top four winners will each receive discount vouchers that can be used to buy a digital chess clock from CAS. The two top winners will also be given free participation in a chess workshop conducted by CAS and free entry to a CAS chess camp in November. Entry fees for each leg are RM10 for junior members of CAS, and RM20 for non-members. For more information, contact Mrs Jackie Wong (03-703 8237) or Lim Tse Pin (03-733 0927).

Bayview League

After a break of one week, the Penang Bayview Chess League resumes this Sunday, beginning 10am at The City Bayview Hotel's revolving restaurant.

The chess league is a round-robin event and the standings in the Premier Division after three rounds are: Penang Free School A (10 1/2 points); Chung Ling High School A (9); Old Frees Association A (9); Chung Ling Old Boys Association (8 1/2); MSSPP Juniors (5 1/2); Methodist Boys School (4 1/2); A Pessca (4 1/2); Universiti Sains Malaysia (3); Old Frees Association B (2 1/2); Chung Ling High School B (2 1/2).

Division One: Penang Free School B (11 1/2); St Xavier's Institution A (10); Chung Ling High School C (9 1/2); Penang Development Corporation (7); Chung Ling High School D (5); Penang Chess Association Novices (4 1/2); Penang Free School C (4); Hewlett-Packard (3 1/2); Chung Hwa Confucian A (3); Union High School (2).

Division Two: MSSPP Girls (11); Police (9); Chung Hwa Confucian B (7 1/2); St Xavier's Institution B (7 1/2); Penang Free School D (7 1/2); Chung Ling High School E (6); Methodist Boys School B (5); Dynacraft (3); Penang Chinese Girls High School (2); Westlands Secondary School (1 1/2).

The results of the Bayview Chess League can also be viewed at the PCA homepage (www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Stadium/2379/).

Tan Chin Nam tourney winners

UKRAINIAN grandmaster Alexander Onischuk won the fourth Tan Chin Nam grandmaster tournament that took place in Beijing from June 8 to 18.

This Category 12 event had a prize fund of US$16,000 and Onischuk took the first prize of US$5,000 with a score of 7 1/2 points from 11 games.

China's international master Zhang Zhong and Russian grandmaster Sergei Tiviakov were half a point behind Onischuk, and they each won US$2,950. It was a satisfying result for Zhang who also obtained a GM norm.

Tying from the fourth to sixth places with 6 1/2 points each were Xie Jun, Estonian grandmaster Jaan Ehlvest and Spanish grandmaster Jorge Magem Badals. China's grandmaster Ye Jiangchuan scored six points while Kudrin, an American grandmaster, obtained five points.

Lin had 4 1/2 points, and below him were international master Tong Yuanming and woman grandmaster Xhu Chen with 3 1/2 points each. Chinese international master Liang Chong had 2 1/2 points.

National events galore

THIS year's annual Malaysia-Singapore match will be played tomorrow at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) in Kuala Lumpur. According to Malaysian Chess Federation secretary Hamid Majid, there will be one round in the morning and another in the afternoon.

Previously, the annual match had been contested over four rounds but to reduce costs, the match has been trimmed to only one day. The morning games start at 9.30am and the afternoon games at 2.30pm.

The players who are expected to turn out for the Malaysian team are Mas Hafizulhelmi, Jimmy Liew, Mok Tze Meng, Ismail Ahmad, Ghalam Sani, Azhaari Mohd noor, Julian Navaratnam, Ahmad Maliki, Lim Cheng Teik, Tan Wei Sin, Mak Weng Yee, Ng Tze Han, Ng Ee Vern, Lim Yee Weng, Wong Zi Jing, Lim Chuin Hoong, Gerald Soh, Wong Zi Chuang, Jonathan Chuah and Ooi Ching Chung. The veterans will be represented by Choo Min Wang, Ghazali Che Cob, Foong Chee Leng and Mohd Jamil Yahya.

The women's team is expected to be made up of Nurul Huda Wahiduddin, Eliza Hanum Ibrahim, Eliza Hanim Ibrahim, Roslina Marmono, Samantha Lee, Hasanthy Loganathan, Lee Su Ann, Nor Asikin Mansor, Lim Jeannie, Nor Idani Saranon, Hazuin Hussain, Effalini Farid and Effaliana Farid.

The PWTC will also be the venue for this year's national age-group chess championship on July 4 and 5. There are five categories of play for the two-day event: the under-10, under-12, under-14, under-16 and under-18 age sections. There will be seven rounds in each category, and a time control of one hour per player for each game will be used.

Entry fee is RM10 per player. Although there are no cash prizes, the winners of the various age-groups will get the chance to be considered for selection to the world age-group championships in Oporesa del Mar Castellon, Spain, this October.

Those interested in playing in this event should be in the PWTC foyer by 8am on July 4. Unless a player has registered earlier for the championship, those turning up at the PWTC on this day will only be accepted on a first-come first-served basis. For more details, contact Malaysian Chess Federation secretary Hamid Majid at 03-421 9576.

Meanwhile, the third Royal Selangor under-15 chess grand prix gets under way with the first leg on July 6. This event, organised by the Chess Association of Selangor (CAS), will be played at Sunway College in Petaling Jaya.

The grand prix event consists of four legs. The second leg will be held on July 12, the third leg on July 19 and the final leg on July 25 and 26. Each leg will be played over six rounds and a time control of 30 minutes per game for each player will be adopted.

Game points won by each player in each of these legs will be accumulated and the results of a player's best three legs will be used to determine the overall grand prix winner. The top four winners will each receive discount vouchers for a digital chess clock from the CAS. The two top winners will also be given free participation in a chess workshop conducted by the CAS and free entry to a CAS chess camp in November.

Entry fees for each leg are RM10 for junior CAS members and RM20 for non-members. For more information, contact Jackie Wong at 03-703 8237 or Lim Tse Pin at 03-733 0927.

Bayview Chess League results

IN the third round of the eighth Bayview Chess League last Sunday, Penang Free School A beat the Old Frees Association B 3-1 to retain their lead in the Premier Division.

Of their nearest rivals, Chung Ling High School A beat the MSSPP Juniors 3 1/2-1/2, while the Old Frees Association A beat Methodist Boys School 3 1/2-1/2. The Chung Ling Old Boys Association beat Chung Ling High School B 2 1/2-1 1/2, and Universiti Sains Malaysia drew 2-2 with Pessca.

The Division One results saw Penang Free School B whitewashing Chung Hwa Confucian A 4-0. The Penang Free School C-Union High School, the Penang Development Corporation-Penang Chess Association Novices and the St Xavier's Institution A-Chung Ling High School D matches all ended with similar 3-1 scores, while Chung Ling High School C beat Hewlett-Packard 2 1/2-1 1/2.

In Division Two, the MSSPP Girls set a blazing trail by scoring their second 4-0 win over Penang Chinese Girls High School. On the other hand, Westlands Secondary School suffered their second 0-4 loss, this time at the hands of Penang Free School D. Chung Hwa Confucian School B went down 1 1/2-2 1/2 to St Xavier's Institution B, while the Police beat Dynacraft 3-1. Chung Ling High School E drew 2-2 with Methodist Boys School B.

Premier Division: PFS A (10 1/2 pts); CLHS A, OFA A (9 pts each); CLOBA (8 1/2); MSSPP Juniors (5 1/2); MBS A, Pessca (4 1/2 each); USM (3); OFA B, CLHS B (2 1/2 each).

Division One: PFS B (11 1/2); SXI A (10); CLHS C (9 1/2); PDC (7); CLHS D (5); PCA Novices (4 1/2); PFS C (4); Hewlett-Packard (3 1/2); Chung Hwa A (3); Union (2).

Division Two: MSSPP Girls (11); Police (9); Chung Hwa B, SXI B, PFS D (7 1/2 each); CLHS E (6); MBS B (5); Dynacraft (3); PCGHS (2); Westlands (1 1/2).

The Bayview Chess League takes a week-long break; the fourth round will only be played on July 5 at The City Bayview Hotel's revolving restaurant. The hotel is sponsoring the use of its premises for the weekly games.

The break will be used by the Penang Chess Association (PCA) to organise the first leg of its second Penang grand prix chess circuit. This event will be held this Sunday at the Bayan Baru Residents Association clubhouse. Only paid-up members of the PCA are allowed to take part in this circuit.

The circuit is divided into four preliminary legs and a final. Each of the preliminary legs will be a six-round event using a 30-minute time control.

For these legs, the prizes include RM200 for the winner, RM120 for the runners-up and RM80 for the third-placed. There are five other minor cash prizes, and also prizes for the best junior and woman players. The entry fee is RM10 per player.

Besides the cash prizes, the top players from each leg will be awarded GP points. Ten finalists are selected according to the total GP points accumulated by the players from their best three legs. Entry to the final will be by qualification only. The final will be a round-robin tournament with a one-hour time control. The winner will receive RM400 and a challenge trophy, the second-prize is RM200, third RM100, and fourth and fifth RM50 each.

Further details of this grand prix chess circuit and also the results of the Bayview Chess League can be obtained from the PCA homepage at www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Stadium/2379/

World chess chief eyes Russian presidency

ACCORDING to an Associated Press report from Moscow last week, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, the president of the World Chess Federation and the southern Kalmykia republic in Russia, has said that he will seek the Russian presidency in the year 2000.

Ilyumzhinov made the announcement when interviewed on the Russian television programme Obozrevatel .

The AP report quoted Ilyumzhinov as saying that he would either form his own party, "relying on the regions and young people," or align himself with an existing party such as the Communists or the Agrarians.

One of his first tasks will be to raise his profile outside Kalmykia, a resource-rich region on the steppes of southern Russia.

Russian president Boris Yeltsin has repeatedly said he plans to step down after the end of his current term, but Yeltsin's aides have also been hinting that the 67-year-old leader might run again.

Other potential candidates include former Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov and former national security chief Alexander Lebed.

Kalmykia played host to the World Chess Federation championships in 1996, and is set to organise the Chess Olympiad in October.

 

New dates for event

THE Malaysian Chess Federation has fixed July 4 and 5 for this year's national age-group chess championship. This event, which was originally supposed to have been held in Shah Alam, Selangor, earlier this month, will now be played at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur.

There will be five categories of play for the event: the under-10, under-12, under-14, under-16 and under-18 sections. Each participant will be charged an entry fee of RM10. Although there are no cash prizes, winners will get the opportunity to be selected for the world age-group championships later in the year.

Those interested in playing in this event should be in PWTC's foyer by 8am on July 4. For more details, contact Malaysian Chess Federation secretary Hamid Majid ( 03-421 9576).

Other matches coming up include the first leg of the Penang Chess Association's second Penang grand prix chess circuit . It will be held on June 28 at the clubhouse of the Bayan Baru Residents' Association in Bandar Bayan Baru. Only paid-up members of the PCA are allowed to take part in this circuit.

The circuit is divided into four preliminary legs and a final; each of the preliminary legs will be a six-round event using a 30-minute time control.

For these legs, the prizes include RM200 for the winner, RM120 for the runners-up and RM80 for those placed third. There are five other minor cash prizes, and also prizes for the best junior and woman players. The entry fee is RM10 per player.

Besides the cash prizes, the top players from each leg will be awarded Grand Prix points. Ten finalists will be selected according to the total GP points accummulated from the best three legs. Entry to the final will be by qualification only.

The final will be a round-robin tournament with a one-hour time control. The winner will receive RM400 and a challenge trophy; the second prize is RM200; third RM100; and fourth and fifth RM50 each.

Details of this circuit can also be obtained from the PCA homepage at ( www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Stadium/2379/ ).

Bayview chess league results

In the second round of the eighth Bayview Chess League last Sunday, Penang Free School "A" took a significant lead in the Premier Division after scoring a 3 1/2-1/2 victory over Pessca.

Their two nearest rivals were Chung Ling High School "A" and Chung Ling Old Boys Association. The CLHS team played the Old Frees Association "A" to a 2-2 draw, while the CLOBA beat Universiti Sains Malaysia 3-1.

Two other matches also ended with the same 3-1 scoreline: Methodist Boys School beat Chung Ling High School "B", and the MSSPP (Penang Schools' Sports Council) Juniors pulled off a surprising win against the Old Frees Association "B".

The Division One results saw Penang Free School "B" taking a slim lead after whitewashing their "C" team 4-0. CLHS "C" also scored 4-0 against Chung Hwa Confucian School "A".

The matches between CLHS "D" and Hewlett-Packard, St Xavier's Institution "A" and Penang Development Corporation, and the Penang Chess Association Novices and Union High School all ended in 3-1 results.

In Division Two, the MSSPP Girls scored a thrilling 4-0 win over Westlands Secondary School, Chung Hwa Confucian School "B" handily despatched Dynacraft 4-0, and St Xavier's "B" beat Penang Chinese Girls High School 4-0. Polis Di Raja Malaysia scored a 3-1 win over Methodist Boys School "B" 3-1, while PFS "D" narrowly beat CLHS "E" by 2 1/2-1 1/2.

Standings

Premier Division: PFS "A" 7 1/2 pts; CLHS "A", CLOBA 6 pts each; OFA "A" 5 1/2 pts; MSSPP Juniors 5 pts; MBS "A" 4 pts; Pessca 2 1/2 pts; OFA "B" 1 1/2 pts; USM and CLHS "B" 1 pt each.

Division One: PFS "B" 7 1/2 pts; SXI "A", CLHS "C" 7 pts each; PDC, CLHS "D" 4 pts each; PCA Novices 3 1/2 pts; CHCS "A" 3 pts; HP 2 pts; PFS "C", UHS 1 pt each.

Division Two: MSSPP Girls 7 pts; Polis, CHCS "B" 6 pts; SXI "B" 5 pts; CLHS "E" 4 pts; PFS "D" 3 1/2 pts; MBS "B" 3 pts; Dynacraft, PCGHS 2 pts each; Westlands 1 1/2 pts.

The third round of the chess league will be played this Sunday beginning at 10am at The City Bayview Hotel's revolving restaurant on the 15th floor. The hotel is sponsoring the use of its premises for the weekly games.

GAMES OF THE WEEK

ALEXEI Shirov displayed flashes of brilliance in beating Vladimir Kramnik 5 1/2-3 1/2 in a match held in Cazorla, Spain, earlier this month. Events came to an abrupt end after Shirov won the ninth game to take an unassailable lead in a match which had originally been scheduled for 10 games.

The win over Kramnik, whom many people had predicted would prevail in this match, means that Shirov is poised to collect his biggest ever paycheck when he meets Gary Kasparov in a match this October. This match will be organised by the so-called World Chess Council, a body formed by Kasparov and Luis Rentero to provide Kasparov with a channel to play.

We left off two weeks ago when the score was 3 1/2-2 1/2 in Shirov's favour after six games. Shirov, a former world junior champion, had won the fourth game with the other games ended drawn. Two further draws ensued in the seventh and eighth games, then Shirov won again in the ninth game. Here are the remaining three games of the match.

Kramnik - Shirov, Game 7

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 c6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Nc3 d5 6.Qb3 0-0 7.Bg2 Qb6 8.0-0 Bf5 9.Ne5 e6 10.Bf4 Nbd7 11.Qxb6 axb6 12.f3 Nxe5 13.Bxe5 g5 14.e4 Bg6 15.b3 Rfd8 16.Rfd1 dxe4 17.fxe4 Ng4 18.Bxg7 Kxg7 19.Bf3 h5 20.Rd2 Ne5 21.Bg2 c5 22.d5 Nc6 23.Rad1 Nd4 24.e5 exd5 25.cxd5 Re8 26.Re1 Nc2 27.Ree2 Nd4 28.Re1 Nc2 29.Rxc2 Bxc2 30.d6 Bf5 31.Bxb7 Rad8 32.Bc6 Re6 33.Bd5 Rdxd6 34.Bxe6 1/2-1/2

Shirov - Kramnik, Game 8

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.Qe2 Qe7 6.d3 Nf6 7.Nc3 Qxe2+ 8.Bxe2 g6 9.Nd4 a6 10.h3 Bg7 11.g4 Bd7 12.Bf3 Nc6 13.Nxc6 Bxc6 14.Bxc6+ bxc6 15.Bd2 h5 16.g5 Nd5 17.Nxd5 cxd5 18.0-0-0 Kd7 1/2-1/2

Kramnik - Shirov, Game 9

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.f3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nb6 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.Be3 0-0 8.Qd2 e5 9.d5 c6 10.h4 h5 11.Be2 cxd5 12.exd5 N8d7 13.d6 Nf6 14.Bg5 Re8 15.Rd1 Be6 16.Nh3 Nc4 17.Bxc4 Bxc4 18.b3 Ba6 19.Nd5 e4! 20.Nxf6+Bxf6 21.d7 Qb6!! 22.dxe8=Q+ Rxe8 23.Qe3 Bxg5 24.Qxb6 Bxh4+ 25.Kd2 axb6 26.fxe4 Rxe4 27.Kc2 Rg4 28.Rd2 Be7 29.Rg1 Kg7 30.Nf2 Rf4 31.Nd3 Re4 32.Rgd1 Bb5 33.a4 Bc6 34.Re1 Rxe1 35.Nxe1 Bb4 36.Re2 Bxe1 37.Rxe1 Bxg2 38.Kd2 h4 39.Ke3 Bd5 40.b4 h3 41.Re2 f5 42.Rd2 Be4 43.Kf4 Bg2 44.Rd7+ Kf6 45.Rh7 g5+ 46.Kg3 f4+ 47.Kg4 Ke5 48.b5 0-1

 

May's many events

THERE are a number of local events to report on this week, and I shall start with the Royal Selangor Open which was played in Petaling Jaya late last month.

The tournament was taken by local schoolboy Lim Yee Weng who won the nine-round event handily. He had a slow start, suffering a shock second round defeat at the hands of Terengganu's Mohamad Arshad, but as the tournament progressed, Lim showed enough resilience in his games.

He kept pace with the tournament leaders and by the eighth round, had hauled himself within reach of the winner's purse. He defeated Ismail Ahmad in the final round of the tournament to finish with 7 1/2 points. Along the way, he had also defeated Khor Shihong, Agus Salim, Ng Ee Vern and last year's winner, Mok Tze Meng. Lim's only draw was with Kamaluddin Yusof.

Mok had a breezy start, winning his first five games before being held to draws in the sixth and seventh rounds by Julian Navaratnam and Ahmad Maliki. However, a loss to Lim in the eighth round effectively ended his quest for another Royal Selangor chess title. Mok had to settle for a third draw with Jimmy Liew in the final round to take the second prize with 6 1/2 points.

Four other players -- Ng Ee Vern, Ismail Ahmad, Kamaluddin Yusof and Ghalam Sani -- also scored 6 1/2 points while Jimmy Liew, Law Zhe Khang and Mustafa Kamal Huri obtained six points each. This tournament must have been a disappointment for Liew; apart from a loss to Ghalam Sani, he was held to draws in four games.

The Royal Selangor open tournament was just one of several events organised by the Chess Association of Selangor (CAS) to commemorate its silver jubilee. At the start of May, CAS had held its Royal Selangor Juniors Open for the under-10, under-14 and under-18 age groups. The under-12, under-16 and under-20 events have been organised in mid-May.

The under-12 event which attracted 74 entries was won by Jonathan Chuah who swept all his seven games for maximum points. In joint second place were Wong Zi Chuang, Lim Choo Seng and Chan Tze Wei with six points each, while five points went to Effazuwan Farid, Ooi Ching Chung, Ahmad Hafiz, Low Chung Peng, Lim Han Ying, Nishaah, Ungku Iskandar, Kow Wen Fey, Lim Tao Sheng and Mohd Irman.

In the under-16 section, Lim Yee Weng again proved a notch over the rest of the players by winning the event with 6 1/2 points from seven games. Second was Law Zhe Khang with six points, while in joint third to seventh places were Lee Su Ann, Effawira Farid, Soh Hui Siang, Effahrin Farid and Thaw Chee Yin with five points each. There were 41 participants.

There were only 28 players in the under-20 event and this was won by Mak Weng Yee with six points. Joint second to fourth were Chua Lin Kiat, Lim Kweng Seng and Premnanth with five points each.

CAS also held a round-robin team event for institutions of higher learning, and the champion team was the International Islamic Universiti A which scored 24 points. In second place was Universiti Malaya with 22 1/2 points.

Bayview League

THE eighth Penang Bayview Chess League squared off last Sunday at the City Bayview Hotel with a record 30 teams taking part. The teams will be locked in a nine-round contest which is played on Sundays until Aug 16. The City Bayview Hotel is sponsoring the use of their hotel premises for the games.

In the first round of the Premier Division last Sunday, Chung Ling High School A crushed their B team 4-0, while Penang Free School A also won 4-0 against Universiti Sains Malaysia. Old Frees Association A beat their B team by 3 1/2-1/2, while methodist Boys School A defeated Chung Ling Old Boys Association 3-1. The match between MSSPP Juniors and Pessca was drawn 2-2.

The Division One results saw St Xavier's Institution A beating Union High School 4-0, and Penang Free School B winning 3 1/2-1/2 against the Penang Chess Association Novices team.

The other three matches in this division -- Chung Hwa High School A vs Penang Free School C, Penang Development Corporation vs Hewlett Packard, and Chung Ling High School C vs their D team -- all ended in 3-1 scores.

In Division Two, the MSSPP Girls team beat St Xavier's Institution B and the Police beat Penang Free School D by 3-1 results. Chung Ling High School E narrowly beat Westlands Secondary School 2 1/2-1 1/2, while two matches -- Chung Hwa B vs Methodist Boys School B and Penang Chinese Girls High School vs Dynacraft -- were drawn 3-1.

The second round will be played this Sunday morning beginning 10am at the hotel's Revolving Restaurant on the 15th floor.

Klang team event

THERE will be a two-day open team chess tournament for school students starting tomorrow at the SM Tengku Ampuan Rahimah in Klang. This is a six-round event with a time control of 45 minutes per player for each game. Each team can have only four players.

Registration of teams will be from 8am tomorrow and the first round is expected to start at 9.30am. For more details, contact Lee Kok Foong (03-332 1020), Law Zhe Khang (03-331 4160) or Edwin Lam (03-343 4792).

Penang GP

THE Penang Chess Association will organise their second Penang grand prix chess circuit this year, and the first of four legs will be held on June 28 at the Bayan Baru Residents Association clubhouse. Only paid-up members of the PCA can take part in this circuit.

According to organising secretary Goh Yoon Wah, the circuit is to provide playing opportunities and training to PCA members throughout the year, as well as rating and selecting players for representing the state.

The circuit is divided into four preliminary legs and a final. Each of the preliminary legs will be a six-round event using a 30-minute time control.

For these legs, the prizes include RM200 for the winner, RM120 for the runners-up and RM80 for the third-placed. There are five other minor cash prizes, and also prizes for the best junior and woman players. Entry fee is RM10 per player.

Besides cash prizes, the top players from each leg will be awarded GP points. For example, the winner will be given 1,000 GP points, the second-placed 900 GP points, and so on until the 10th-place winner who shall receive 100 GP points.

The 10 finalists are determined by the total GP points accummulated by the players from their best three legs. Entry to the final will be by qualification only. The final will be a round-robin tournament with a one-hour time control. The winner will receive RM400 and a challenge trophy; the second-prize is RM200; third, RM100; and fourth and fifth, RM50 each.

Details of this circuit can also be obtained from the PCA homepage at www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Stadium/2379/

 

Age group event put off

THE national age-group championship, due to be played this weekend, has been postponed to next month, according to Malaysian Chess Federation secretary Hamid Majid.

Hamid, who had just returned from Iran where he accompanied Malaysia's top player, Mas Hafizulhelmi, to the Asian junior championship, apologised for the postponement. He said there was insufficient time to organise the national age-group event effectively.

The new dates for this event will be announced later.

Bayview League starts on Sunday

The eighth Penang Bayview Chess League kicks off at 10am this Sunday at the City Bayview Hotel's Revolving Restaurant. This year's league sees a record of 30 teams participating in the 12-week event which is played every Sunday until mid-August.

Because of the large number of entries, the Penang Chess Association has divided the teams into the Premier, First and Second Divisions.

Entry fees are RM150 per team. There will be cash prizes for the top teams in each of the three divisions.

Meanwhile, State Executive Councillor Dr Toh Kin Woon has been re-elected president of the Penang Chess Association for a two-year term. Wong Mun Hoe was re-elected vice-president, Ooi Kiem Boo as secretary and Goh Yoon Wah as treasurer.

The new assistant secretary is Chan Kim Beng, while Chuah Soon Pheng, Eoh Hook Kim, Khor Bean Hwa, Dr Lim Boon Liang, Quah Seng Sun and Tan Hock Lye have been elected as committee members.

Perak grand prix

The Perak International Chess Association will hold the fifth stage of their nine-leg chess grand prix at Taman Dr Seenivasagam in Ipoh this Sunday.

Six rounds are scheduled for the one-day event, and the time control will be 25 minutes per player for each game. This event is open to all chess enthusiasts in the state.

The overall grand prix standings will be based on the best five tournament performances of each player and the top 24 players at the end of the series will qualify for the Perak state championship in September. The interim grand prix standings will also be used for selecting Perak players to national events like the Merdeka team championship.

Those interested in playing this weekend must register at the playing venue by 8.15am on Sunday. For details, contact W.K. Wong ( 05-366-1692).

Playing sessions in Johor

The Johor Chess Association meets weekly at Level One of the Leisure Mall in Taman Pelangi, Johor Baru. Tournaments and coaching sessions are available for beginners.

Anyone interested can contact Soh Zee Wee ( 07-354-5418 after 8pm) or just turn up at the Chess Corner from 3pm to 5pm every Saturday.

GAMES OF THE WEEK

I find the Internet to be the perfect medium for chess. Not only can I play online chess with someone across the globe, but I can also visit the official tournament websites to find out more about international chess events.

One event, though, has eluded me lately. I would have thought that an event as significant as the Kramnik-Shirov match now taking place in Cazorla, Spain, would be worthy of a web page.

But, no! The unpredictable Luis Rentero, who formed the World Chess Council with Gary Kasparov, had decided that there would be no official coverage of the match on the Internet! According to a report from Spain, this has made the mayor of Cazorla rather unhappy since the town is not getting the worldwide publicity it wanted.

But it is not a total loss. The Spanish newspapers are following the match quite closely and there are sites such as http://www.elpais.es (the online edition of the Spanish newspaper, El Pais) or http://visitweb.com/wcc which give the results and game scores. Pretty good, if you happen to speak or read the Spanish language.

So where does this leave us, who know no Spanish? Luckily, there are two rather dependable websites to visit: firstly, Mark Crowther's This Week In Chess at http://www.chesscenter.com/twic and secondly, the Chess Planet site at http://www.chessweb.com. These two web addresses provide reasonable coverage of the match.

Meanwhile, back in Cazorla, their local hero Alexei Shirov is leading pre-match favourite Vladimir Kramnik by a 3 1/2-2 1/2 score after six games in the 10-game match.

Last week, I gave the first game of the match which was drawn by the players after 25 moves. The second and third games of the match were also drawn. Then, in the fourth game, Shirov drew the first blood when he beat Kramnik. After that, both players settled down to draw their fifth and sixth games.

Alexei Shirov - Vladimir Kramnik, Game 2

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. d4 Nxe4 4. Bd3 d5 5. Nxe5 Nd7 6. Nxd7 Bxd7 7. O-O Bd6 8. Nc3 Nxc3 9. bxc3 O-O 10. Qh5 f5 11. Rb1 b6 12. Re1 c6 13. Bg5 Qc7 14. c4 Be8 15. Qh3 dxc4 16. Bxc4+ Bf7 17. Be6 Bxe6 18. Rxe6 Rae8 19. Qb3 Rxe6 20. Qxe6+ Rf7 21. Qe8+ Rf8 22. Qe6+ Rf7 23. Qe8+ Rf8 1/2-1/2

Vladimir Kramnik - Alexei Shirov, Game 3

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 O-O 8. Ne2 c5 9. O-O Nc6 10. Be3 Bg4 11. f3 Na5 12. Bxf7+ Rxf7 13. fxg4 Rxf1+ 14. Kxf1 cxd4 15. cxd4 e5 16. d5 Nc4 17. Qd3 Nxe3+ 18. Qxe3 Qh4 19. h3 Bh6 20. Qd3 Rf8+ 21. Kg1 Qf2+ 22. Kh1 Qe3 23. Qxe3 Bxe3 24. Rd1 Rf2 25. Ng1 Kf7 26. Rd3 Bb6 27. Rf3+ Ke7 28. Rxf2 Bxf2 29. Nf3 Kd6 30. g3 Bxg3 31. Kg2 Bf4 32. Kf2 Kc5 33. Ke2 b5 34. Kd3 1/2-1/2

Alexei Shirov - Vladimir Kramnik, Game 4

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. d4 Nxe4 4. Bd3 d5 5. Nxe5 Nd7 6. Nxd7 Bxd7 7. O-O Bd6 8. c4 c6 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Qh5 O-O 11. Qxd5 Bc6 12. Qh5 g6 13. Qh3 Ng5 14. Bxg5 Qxg5 15. Nc3 Rfe8 16. d5 Bxd5 17. f4 Qd8 18. Nxd5 Bc5+ 19. Kh1 Qxd5 20. Rac1 Be3 21. Bc4 Qf5 22. Qxf5 gxf5 23. Rcd1 Rad8 24. g3 Bd4 25. b3 Bf6 26. Bb5 Rxd1 27. Rxd1 Rd8 28. Rc1 Rd5 29. a4 Bd8 30. Rc8 Kg7 31. Rb8 Bb6 32. Rxb7 Rd1+ 33. Kg2 Rd2+ 34. Kh3 Bg1 35. g4 Bxh2 36. gxf5 h5 37. Kh4 Bxf4 38. Kxh5 Kf6 39. Bc4 Kxf5 40. Rxf7+ Ke4 41. Rxa7 Be5 42. Bf1 Rf2 43. Bh3 Rf8 44. Be6 Rf1 45. Rd7 Rh1+ 46. Kg6 Rg1+ 47. Kf7 Rg7+ 48. Ke8 Rxd7 49. Kxd7 Bc3 50. Kc6 Ke5 51. Bg8 Be1 52. Kb6!! Bf2+ 53. Ka6 Kd6 54. a5 Kc7 55. b4 Kc6 56. b5+ Kc5 57. b6 Kb4 58. b7 Bg3 59. Kb6 Bf2+ 60. Kc6 Ba7 61. a6 Ka5 62. Bc4 Bb8 63. Bf1 1-0

Vladimir Kramnik - Alexei Shirov, Game 5

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. O-O Bg4 11. f3 Na5 12. Bd3 cxd4 13. cxd4 Be6 14. Rc1 Bxa2 15. Qa4 Bb3 16. Qb4 b6 17. Bg5 f6 18. Bh4 Qd6 19. Qxd6 exd6 20. d5 f5 21. exf5 gxf5 22. Ng3 Bb2 23. Nxf5 Bc4 24. Ne7+ Kh8 25. Bxc4 Rf4 26. Bg5 Rxc4 27. Rce1 Rc2 28. Nf5 Nc4 29. Re6 Rf8 30. Nxd6 Nxd6 31. Rxd6 Re8 32. Rd1 Ree2 33. Kh1 Rxg2 34. Rd8+ Kg7 35. Bf4 Bf6 36. Ra8 Bg5 37. Be5+ Bf6 38. Bf4 Bg5 39. Rxa7+ Kg6 40. Ra8 Kf7 41. Ra7+ Kg6 42. Bb8 h5 43. Rb7 Be3 44. Re7 Bc5 45. Re6+ Kg5 46. Re4 Kf5 47. Bf4 Rge2 48. Rxe2 Rxe2 49. Bg3 Re8 50. Kg2 Rd8 51. Kh3 Rd7 52. d6 h4 53. Rd5+ Ke6 54. Re5+ Kf6 55. Kxh4 Rh7+ 56. Rh5 Rxh5+ 57. Kxh5 b5 58. d7 Ke7 59. Be5 Kxd7 60. Bb2 Ke6 61. Kg6 Bd6 62. h4 b4 63. h5 Bf4 64. h6 Bxh6 65. Kxh6 Kf5 1/2-1/2

Alexei Shirov - Vladimir Kramnik, Game 6

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. Bb5 Nd4 5. Bc4 Bc5 6. Nxe5 d5 7. Bxd5 Nxd5 8. Nxd5 O-O 9. c3 Re8 10. cxd4 Bxd4 11. O-O Rxe5 12. d3 c6 13. Nf4 b6 14. Qc2 Rc5 15. Qe2 Ba6 16. Be3 Qd6 17. Rac1 Rxc1 18. Rxc1 Be5 1/2-1/2

World finals in December

THE executive council of the World Chess Federation (FIDE), which met earlier this month in Bled, Slovenia, has unanimously approved the staging of the World Chess Championship finals this December. The event will be played in Las Vegas and carry a prize fund of US$3mil (about RM11.4mil).

This resolution is seen as further endorsement of the decision by FIDE president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov to change the two-year world championship cycle to an annual event.

Ilyumzhinov, who chaired the executive council meeting, said his action was motivated by the need to seize the initiative after the success of the last world championship in Groningen and Lausanne, which was held under the patronage of the International Olympic Committee.

The council lauded Ilyumzhinov's offer to increase the prize fund from US$5mil (RM19mil) to US$6mil (RM22.8mil) over two years, and noted that the rules and regulations used in last year's event provided an adequate legal framework for the change.

The regulations will be finalised by a committee which will set November as the deadline for the world championship cycle qualifiers to sign their player's contracts with FIDE.

The council re-emphasised the decision adopted at last year's general assembly in Kishinev that top players would not be granted any special privilege that could be seen as giving them an unfair sporting advantage over other participants.

At the last world championship cycle, FIDE was heavily criticised for allowing Anatoly Karpov direct entry into the final match against Viswanathan Anand. It was felt at that time that Anand, after having survived an exhausting knock-out series of games in Groningen, would be too tired to play against a fresh Karpov.

From this year's event, the world champion will be required to join the knock-out series from the second round. A number of other top players like Gary Kasparov and Vladimir Kramnik will also enter the world championship from the second round.

According to FIDE, these players will be chosen based on their best average ratings from the January and July rating lists this year.

Also approved at the executive council meeting was a proposal to increase the number of zonal qualifiers. It was hoped that this move would encourage the top players to participate in their respective national championships and zonal events.

Meanwhile, in another discussion by the FIDE executive council, Ilyumzhinov insisted that the national chess federations must get their national Olympic committees to support the move to recognise chess as a sport.

So far, FIDE has received 49 letters signed by various national Olympic committees. He wanted another 50 letters before officially asking the International Olympic Committee's secretariat to put the matter into its agenda.

Up next

Johor open: Organised by the Johor Chess Association with assistance from Pelangi Berhad, this event will be staged at the Menara Pelangi on June 7. It will be played over six Swiss rounds and divided into the open, under-16 and under-12 sections. Winners will get cash prizes.

Entry fees for the open section are RM10 for men and RM6 for women. Players have to pay RM6 to join the under-16 event, and RM5 for the under-12. For entry forms or more details, call Sumathy ( 07-332 4366), Wong ( 07-333 0931), Lim ( 07-861 5951) or Cheong ( 016-720 2272). Entries will close next Friday at 4pm.

National age-group: The Malaysian Chess Federation will hold the national age-group championship in Shah Alam from June 5 to 7. Although medals will only be given to the winners this year, the MCF will continue to select players from this event to play in the world age-group championship later in the year.

Malaysia-Singapore: The annual Malaysia-Singapore match will be played at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur on June 27 and 28.

Royal Selangor open: The Royal Selangor silver jubilee open chess tournament is now on at the Sunway College in Subang Jaya, Selangor (final on Sunday).

Sakura Selangor girls junior: This two-day event starts tomorrow at the Sunway College.

Penang Bayview League: The eighth Penang Bayview Chess League will kick off on June 7 at The City Bayview Hotel. The games will be played every Sunday until mid-August. Entry fees are RM150 per team and there will be cash prizes for the top teams in each of the three divisions.

Closing date for entries is tomorrow, and a managers' meeting will take place at the hotel next Wednesday at 8pm. For more details, call Goh Yoon Wah ( 04-644 5687), Ooi Kiem Boo ( 04-826 3764) or Eoh Hook Kim ( 04-826 0196) in the evenings.

Penang AGM: The Penang Chess Association will hold its annual general meeting on Sunday at the Bayan Baru Residents Association clubhouse. The meeting at 6pm will be preceded by a blitz tournament one hour earlier. Members of the association who wish to play in the blitz event are required to be at the clubhouse by 4pm. There will be dinner for the members after the meeting.

Game of the week

REMEMBER the World Chess Council which was formed by Gary Kasparov and Luis Rentero last March to look into staging a match between Kasparov and the winner of another match between Vladimir Kramnik and Viswanathan Anand?

When Anand refused to be associated with this World Chess Council, Rentero decided that Alexei Shirov would take Anand's place in the match. Two months down the road, the match between Kramnik and Shirov finally began last Sunday in Cazorla, Spain.

The first game of the match was drawn after 25 moves. For most of the game, the players followed chess opening theory. The match will be played over 10 games. Here is the first game:

Kramnik vs Shirov

1. d4 Nf6, 2. c4 g6, 3. Nc3 d5, 4. cxd5 Nxd5, 5. e4 Nxc3, 6. bxc3 Bg7, 7. Bc4 0-0, 8. Ne2 c5, 9. 0-0 Nc6, 10. Be3 Bg4, 11. f3 Na5, 12. Bd3 cxd4, 13. cxd4 Be6, 14. Rc1 Bxa2, 15. Qa4 Bb3 16. Qb4 b6, 17. Bg5 f6, 18. Bf4 e5, 19. Be3 exd4, 20. Nxd4 Bf7, 21. Ba6 Re8, 22. Rfd1 Qe7, 23. Qxe7 Rxe7, 24. Nc6 Nxc6, 25. Rxc6 (1/2-1/2)

 

Gearing up for local tournaments

THERE are a number of local chess events organised by various chess organisations around the country during the next one month or so.

For starters, the Malaysian Chess Federation will organise the national age-group championship at the Majlis Perbandaran Shah Alam building from June 5 to 7.

According to the Federation's secretary, Hamid Majid, this year's championship will be held on a smaller scale because sponsorship has not been forthcoming. As a result, there will not be any cash prizes for the winners. Instead, the various age-group winners will be given medals.

Hamid also said that the winners will be selected to play in the world age-group championship later in the year.

The Federation has also slotted in the annual Malaysia-Singapore match on June 27 and 28. This match will be played at the Putra World Trade Centre, and the visitors housed at the Stamford Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that the Labour Day team tournament in Kuala Lumpur has been postponed indefinitely.

Bera Chess Open

In Pahang, The Persatuan Catur Daerah Bera will organise a three-day open chess tournament starting today at the Dewan Majlis Daerah Bera. This is a seven-round event with a time-control of 1 1/2 hours per player for each game.

The prize fund is quite attractive, with a RM700 first prize, a RM500 second prize and a RM400 third prize. There are seven other prizes ranging from RM300 to RM100. Entry fees are RM15 for members of the Persatuan Catur and RM50 for non-members.

As the first round will start at 2.30pm today, readers planning to take part should contact Zakaria Saleh ( 09-255 6103), Mohd Fadzal Hamid ( 09-255 7823) or Ghazali Mamat ( 09-255 5370) immediately.

Accommodation is not provided for outstation players but, according to the organisers, there are a number of hotels nearby which offer reasonable room rates.

Royal Selangor Open

The Royal Selangor silver jubilee open chess tournament — which is the highlight of the month-long silver jubilee activities of the Chess Association of Selangor — will be played at the Sunway College in Subang Jaya from May 27 to 31.

Several top players from around the country are expected to play in this nine-round Swiss event. There will be 20 cash prizes, including a first prize of RM1,500, a second prize of RM1,000 and a third prize of RM700.

The minor prizes range from RM500 for the fourth-placed winner, to RM60 each for those who finish 11th to 20th in the tournament. Trophies are also awarded to the top three winners.

In addition, there are cash prizes of RM50 each for the best woman and the best under-16 players if they score at least 50% in the tournament. Those who do not qualify for any of the cash prizes will be eligible to take part in five lucky draws during the closing ceremony.

Entry fees for the Royal Selangor silver jubilee open tournament are RM35 for Chess Association of Selangor members, RM50 for members of clubs that are affiliated to the CAS, and RM60 for other players. International masters and the visually handicapped players are given free entry to this tournament.

Readers are reminded that, apart from this event, the CAS's silver jubilee blitz tournament will be held tomorrow and on Sunday, and the Sakura Selangor junior girls tournament will be played on May 30 and 31.

Anyone interested in taking part should contact either Jackie Wong ( 03-703 8237) or Lim Tse Pin ( 03-733 0927) for more details or registration.

Eighth Penang Chess League

The Penang Chess Association's eighth Penang Bayview Chess League will start on June 7 at the City Bayview Hotel. The hotel, which donated a 45cm pewter challenge trophy worth RM6,000 in 1993, will sponsor the use of its premises for the championship which will be played on Sundays until mid-August.

Only teams legitimately representing the public and private sectors, institutions of learning and registered associations, societies and clubs are allowed to play in the league. A guest player may be included in each team, but the other players must strictly be employees, students or members of the organisation they represent.

In the past, the organisers recognised the fact that there were several players who were interested in playing in the league but could not do so because they were not accepted as guest players on any of the teams. For this year's event, the organisers are requesting that these players contact the Penang Chess Association immediately. If the response is encouraging enough, the association will consider grouping them together to play under its banner.

Provision has been made for about 24 teams to take part, and each team is allowed up to eight players. However, only four players from each team will play in every round.

This year's event will again be split into three divisions. The third division will comprise teams of mainly novice players, while the first and second divisions will be made up of the teams that have been taking part regularly in previous chess leagues.

Entry fees are RM150 per team and cash prizes are guaranteed for the top teams in each of the three divisions. Closing date for entries is May 30, and a managers' meeting will take place at the hotel on June 3 at 8pm.

For more details, contact Goh Yoon Wah ( 04-644 5687), Ooi Kiem Boo ( 04-826 3764) or Eoh Hook Kim ( 04-826 0196) in the evenings.

Meanwhile, the Penang Chess Association will hold its annual general meeting on May 31 at the Bayan Baru Resident's Association clubhouse. The 6pm meeting be preceded by a blitz tournament one hour earlier.

Members who wish to play in the blitz event are required to be at the clubhouse by 4.30pm. There will be dinner for the members after the meeting.

Batu Gajah events

There will be two tournaments this Sunday at SK Toh Indera Wangsa Ahmad in Batu Gajah, Perak. The first is the Batu Gajah open tournament and the second, the Batu Gajah under-12 closed tournament.

Both are six-round events. Registration for the tournaments will be from 8am and the first round is expected to start at 9.10am. For details, call Azmi Ishak ( 05-365 1848) or W.K. Wong ( 05-366 1692).

Kalmyk tournament winding down

THE strong knock-out tournament in Elista, in the Russian republic of Kalmykia, which I wrote about last week, has reached the semi-final stage. Of the original 32 players in the field, only four are left.

In the first of the two semi-final encounters, Evgeny Bareev (of Russia) will play the Ukraine's Vassily Ivanchuk. The second semi-final match is between Alexander Khalifman and Alexei Dreev, both Russians. So far, their first games have ended drawn.

Earlier, in the quarter-final stage of the knock-out event, Ivanchuk had triumphed easily over Armenia's Rafael Vaganian. Bareev, Khalifman and Dreev had taken slightly longer to dispose of their respective opponents, Konstantin Sakeav, Sergei Tiviakov and Valery Salov.

The knock-out event began in Elista, the Kalmyk capital, on May 6. At stake is a US$100,000 prize fund raised by the Kalmyk president, Kirsan ljumzhinov, who is also the president of the World Chess Federation.

The official tournament web site is located at http://www.ruschess.com. When I visited the site, what struck me was that the official flag of the Kalmyk Republic is an open lotus flower. Furthermore, the President's Cup is adorned with an etched picture of the Buddha — all this from a land that was formerly Communist, under the old Soviet Union's regime!

But it seems that there is good reason for these symbols: the people of Kalmykia are predominantly Buddhists. The republic was settled by Chinese migrants in the 17th century who managed to retain their beliefs and culture even under Communist rule.