Campion, St Andrew claim high school Chess Champs glory
CAMPION College’s ‘A’ team claimed victory in the National High Schools Chess Championship finals recently. The six-round event was competitive with the champions winning five matches and losing one, finishing with 10 points.
The winning team consisted of Woman Candidate Master (WCM) Raehana Brown, Darren Mckennis, Jaheim Smart, Zahmir Smikle, Aaron Mckoy, and Ronal Shergil.
Many-times winners St Jago High School ‘A’ team finished second on tie-break with four wins, one tie and a loss, accumulating nine points. The team was made up of J-loy Chin, Kofi Sutherland, Nathaniel Hope and Khatray Cato.
Defending champions Wolmer’s Boys’ High School ‘A’ team made up of FIDE Master (FM) Jaden Shaw, John Stephenson, Corbin Harvey, Zuberi Edwards, John Robinson, and Alexander Bloomfield finished third, also with nine points, and also with four wins, one tie , and a loss.
Board 1 winners were FM Jaden Shaw and WCM Raehanna Brown, who both finished with five points. They will share the coveted Top Board 1 title.
Kofi Sutherland was the Board 2 winner with 5.5 points.
On Board 3, Nathaniel Hope was the winner with six points.
On Board 4, Shelson Mcnamee, Glenmuir High School A; Khaleel Bartlett, Campion College ‘B’; and Khamarlo Huell, Titchfield High School ‘A’, all finished with five points. All three players will share the Top Board 4 Player title.
Twenty teams, representing 10 zones across the island, participated in the finals.
The National Girls High School Chess Championship Finals was won by St Andrew High School for Girls, who finished with nine points, consisting of four wins and one tie in the five-round event. The winning team consisted of Rachel Foster, Kaia Gayle, Hayden Duncan, Kaity Gayle, Raeann Atkinson, and Tisha Rhone.
Immaculate Conception High School ‘A’ team, made up of Gabriella Watson, Arianna Bowen, Jessica Chang and Abigail Taylor, finished second with eight points, consisting of four wins and one loss.
Third place went to Wolmer’s High School for Girls. Team members Amy Stephenson, Breanna Banks, Kathryn Okpiavbe, Tsenaye Lewis, Camillia Henderson, and Oshea Walker accumulated 7 points, consisting of three wins and one tie.
Six teams competed in the finals.
Jamaica Chess Federation chair of public relations and publicity, Candidate Master (CM ) Mark Cameron said, “The National High Schools Chess Championship is one of the premier events on the Jamaica Chess Federation tournament schedule. It’s a great opportunity for juniors across the island to play against each other in a rigorous process to determine the best high school team. It’s always great to follow the games and watch top players compete. The players and their coaches all work very hard to overcome the strong competition in this event. Congrats to all!”