By Carlena Knight
In fostering a culture of equal opportunity and gender development, the Antigua and Barbuda Chess Federation (ABCF) has announced plans to launch an all-female chess training course.
The official launch will be on February 27.
The ABCF is currently undergoing a recruitment phase with the goal of recruiting 24 participants. These participants will be separated into two groups which will host separate weekend classes on Saturdays and Sundays independently, from 5pm-7pm over the course of 12 weeks.
Further information can be found on the Antigua and Barbuda Chess Federation’s Facebook page or by contacting the President, Chester Grant at 726-4908.
The ABCF in January of this year also hosted its first ever online tournament.
The annual New Years’ Champ, which is now in its fourth year running, was converted into an online competition due to the Covid pandemic. This is an increasing trend for play to be held online as the world governing body for chess, FIDE, has allowed online games to be rated provided an arbiter is present.
Seymore Smith was named the New Year’s Champion having lost only one game to third place finisher, Chester Grant.
In second place was Matthew Bailey, the two-time back-to-back New Years’ Champ. Matthew, also having lost only one game, lost on the tie-breaker criteria to Smith.
This tournament is the first of many upcoming online chess competitions that will be made available to members of the ABCF and other chess enthusiasts.