The Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) has launched a free online Chess-in-Schools programme in partnership with ChessKid.com, one of the foremost chess websites worldwide. Chess.com, the parent Company of ChessKid.com, hosted the 2020 FIDE Online Chess Olympiad last month.
The purpose of the Chess-in-Schools programme is to teach children about creativity, tactics, strategies, perseverance and calculated risk-taking which they can access throughout their lifetimes. Once children sign up, a variety of learning tools would be made available to them. ChessKid.com boasts a fully curated curriculum, video content and a level progression system. The site is designed as an educational tool to make learning chess fun. One of the children who has demonstrated an interest in the ChessKid programme is Ronan Lee, a third form student of Marian Academy. He is known within the chess fraternity since he participated at the national level and represented Guyana at the 2018 Carifta games in Suriname, FIDE Americas Cup in Barbados (2019) and the St Lucia Chess Classic in 2019 where he won the title of Under-20 champion.
Lee secured his place on the Guyana team for the 2020 Junior Carifta Chess Championship but it was postponed owing to the pandemic. At home, Lee won the 2018 Marian Academy Inter-School Open and the Mae’s Schools Under-14 Developmental Tournament 2020.
In a brief comment, his father John Lee disclosed that his son preferred the longer classical games (90 minutes) instead of the blitz (5 minutes) and bullet (2 minutes) games. Since the appearance of Covid-19, all face-to-face chess board games have ceased and online chess tournaments have become very popular.
The GCF should be congratulated for this timely initiative.
Meusa victorious with Closed Sicilian Defence
Wendell Meusa played the Closed Sicilian Defence against the Trinidad and Tobago chess champion Ryan Harper and emerged victorious at last month’s FIDE Online Chess Olympiad.
White: Wendell Meusa, Guyana
Black: Ryan Harper, Trinidad and Tobago
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d3 Nc6 4. g3 g6 5. Bg2 Bg7 6. O-O d6 7. c3 Rb8 8. a4 a6
9. d4 cxd4 10. cxd4 Nge7 11. Nc3 O-O 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxe7 Nxe7 14. Rc1 Bd7 15.
d5 exd5 16. exd5 Qa5 17. Re1 Rfe8 18. Qd2 Rbc8 19. Ne4 Qxd5 20. Nxd6 Qxd2 21.
Nxd2 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 Rb8 23. Rc7 Bc6 24. Rxe7 Bf8 25. Bxc6 Bxe7 26. Nxb7 Rc8 27.
Be4 f5 28. Bd5+ Kg7 29. Nc4 Rc7 30. Nba5 Rd7 31. Nb6 Rc7 32. Nc6 Bc5 33. Nc4
Rd7 34. Bf3 Kf6 35. b4 Bf8 36. b5 axb5 37. axb5 Rd3 38. b6 Rb3 39. Bd5 Bc5 40.
N6a5 Rb1+ 41. Kg2 Bxb6 42. Nxb6 Rxb6 43. Nc4 Ra6 44. Ne3 g5 45. f4 Ra3 46. Kf2
Ra1 47. h4 gxh4 48. gxh4 Rb1 49. Bf3 Rb2+ 50. Be2 Ra2 51. Kf3 Ra3 52. Bd1 Rc3
53. h5 Ra3 54. Bc2 Rc3 55. Bxf5 Ra3 56. Bg6 Rb3 57. Bc2 Ra3 58. Be4 Ra5 59. Kg4
Ra3 60. Nf5 Ra4 61. Bf3 Ra1 62. Nxh6 Rg1+ 63. Kh3 Ra1 64. Kg3 Rg1+ 65. Bg2 Ra1
66. Ng4+ Kg7 67. h6+ Kh8 68. Be4 Ra4 69. Bg6 Ra6 70. f5 Ra1 71. Kh4 Ra4 72. f6
Rb4 73. Kg5 Rb5+ 74. Bf5 Ra5 75. Kg6 Ra4 76. Ne5 Ra7 77. f7 Ra6+ 78. Kg5 Rf6
79. h7 Kg7 80. Ng6 Kxh7 81. Kxf6 1-0. Black resigns.
