Junior players Christie, Walker capture National Blitz titles
THE 2018 National Blitz Chess Championship concluded with a thrilling finale at the Signature Suite of the Medallion Hall Hotel on Sunday, November 18, as FIDE Master (FM) Joshua Christie and Lontae Walker came out victorious in the showpiece event.
Blitz chess, which is akin to a 100 metres race in track and field, sees the player who has the quicker tactical wit and faster moves standing supreme at the end of the game. The National Blitz Championship saw Jamaica’s strongest players contend in a nine-round robin format while the National Junior Blitz Championship was an 11round Swiss format with all games having four minutes with a two-second increment.
Jamaica’s number four-player and top junior FM Christie won the National Blitz Chess Championship after an exciting playoff with FM Shreyas Smith. Both finished on seven points after regulation play. Despite losing Game One of the playoff to the more experienced Smith, FM Christie struck back in the remaining two games to become Jamaica’s youngest National Blitz Champion at the age of 16. This left FM Smith in second place with seven victories from a hard fought endeavour.
Candidate Master-elect (CM) Nathan Hinds finished third on 6.5 points with his only losses coming at the hands of the top two finishers. National Master (NM) Akeem Brown and NM Ryan Blackwood finished on six and 5.5 points to finish in fourth and fifth places, respectively.
Woman Candidate Master (WCM) Annesha Smith was crowned the new Women’s National Blitz Champion after finishing on three points which included noteworthy wins against NM Blackwood and NM Raheem Glaves. WCM Margoe Williams and WCM Melisha Smith rounded up the top three with each finishing on 2.5 and zero points respectively in the championship.
NATIONAL JUNIOR BLITZ CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP
Lontae Walker displayed his full prowess with the speed chess format, as he secured the National Junior Blitz Chess Championship title for the first time. This was after defeating Jaden Shaw in a nail-biting playoff after both players were tied at the end of regulation play on 10 points each.
With his only loss in the event coming at the hands of Walker, Shaw stirred up some complications to secure the first game of the playoff. However, Walker came up with precise calculations in the midst of a must-win situation to defeat his younger opponent to become the 2018 champion for a final score of 2-1. This relegated Shaw to second place with notable wins secured against Michael Christie, WCM Adani Clarke and Raehanna Brown.
Michael Christie, who had won the National Junior Rapid Chess Championship the day before, finished in third place on 8.5 points. Leading female juniors Raehanna Brown and Nickaylah Curwin finished in third and fourth place on eight and 6.5 points respectively. As such, Brown was declared the National Girls Junior Blitz Champion. WCM Clarke was third in the girls’ category on six points and seventh in the overall standings.
The main sponsors of the event were Medallion Hall Hotel, Lucozade, and the Magnificent Chess Foundation.