CHESS IRELAND - NEWS, Mar-July 1999

• Phillip Doyle, PRO of the Braille Chess Association of Ireland, has sent me a considerable amount of information about the IBCA including a history of braille / blind chess in Ireland and a file of top games by Irish blind and partially sighted players. All of this information - and any further updates from Phillip - will be available from links on the top bar and side bar.

• Thanks to David O'Kelly for sending on the address of the new Cork City CC website.

• I have received the following announcement re Kilkenny 1999 from Maurice Buckley: "It is with regret that I announce Iona Technologies have advised that they are not in a position to sponsor this years Kilkenny Masters event. On behalf of the club I thank them for their involvement in the past, and look forward to renewing their acquaintance in the future. However the event will go ahead the weekend of November 26th-28th. More details will follow later."

• The second of the summer's open air summer blitz tournaments takes place at Meeting House Square, Temple Bar, Dublin on 15th August, start 2.30pm. Format: ten minutes per game with rating handicaps favouring lower rateds / unrateds. Over 40 players competed in the first event won by John Kennedy junior in July.

• Young IM Jonathan Rowson scored his last GM norm while winning the title of 1999 Scottish champion recently. Neil Berry (FIDE rating) scored an IM norm while Irish IM Mark Orr finished jt 5-8th on 5/9.
  Results, 1999 Scottish Chs.: 1st= IM Jonathan Rowson, GM Aaron Summerscale (Hackney, hors concours) 7/9, 3rd GM Paul Motwani (Dundee) 6; 4th Neil Berry (Balerno) 5½ (1st IM norm); 5-8th GM Colin McNab (Dundee), WGM Ketevan Arakhamia (Edinburgh West), IM Douglas Bryson (Shettleston) & IM Mark Orr (Wandering Dragons) 5

• GM Alexander Baburin enjoyed success at the recent Politiken Open in Copenhagen where he shared first place with mercurial Swedish international master Tiger Hillarp Persson ahead of a field of 162 players. Ireland's only resident grandmaster recovered from a potentially disastrous seventh round loss (a fifteen move miniature against the tournament's surprise package, untitled Swedish player Stefan Schneider) posting a strong finish which included a crucial final round victory with the black pieces over American grandmaster Nick De Firmian.

• Irish top 8, July lst 1999 FIDE Rating list: lst GM A.Baburin 2593, 2nd IM B.Kelly 2417, 3rd FM C.Daly 2378, 4th FM M.Quinn 2377, 5th IM M.Heidenfeld 2368, 6th IM M.Orr 2350, 7th K.O'Connell 2328, 8th FM S.Brady 2310.
  New rating: M.Dooley 2214. See The Irish Chess Archive for other Irish FIDE ratings.

• In contrast to the ICU, the Irish Correspondence Chess Association has actually managed to expand its membership base in recent years thanks in no small part to the excellent ICCA newsletter which every quarter faithfully and concisely reports the activities of members in all of the correspondence variants. The summer 1999 edition of the newsletter reports how former Irish correspondence champion Dr Eugene Gibney has just won the national CC title in his adopted Canada, describes the progress of the national teams in the Olympiad XIII and advises regarding forthcoming events including the Millenium edition of the national CC championships (entries to Jim Corby, Chess corr., Evening Herald, Mid Abbey St, Dublin 1 before August 31st). Membership of the ICCA is a mere £5 which can be sent to Tom Clarke, 35 Hampton Park, Belfast BT7 3JP.

• RESULTS
  St Benildus Congress, 26-27 June
  Open lst G.Freeman 4.5/5, 2nd S.Brady 4, 3rd P.Walsh 3.5. Grading prize: E.Casey.
  Intermediate lst J.Phelan 4.5/5, Jt 2nd C.Walsh, K.Rodgers 4. GPs: T.Flynn, R.Goetzee.
  Junior lst D.O'Neill 4.5/5, Jt 2nd E.McNena, J.Thompson, D.Murray 4. GPs: C.Sternal, J.Healy.
  Key open results: 3rd G.Freeman 1/2 S.Brady (Scandinavian), 4rd S.Brady 1/2 R.O'Rourke, A.Kelly 0 G.Freeman 1, 5rd G.Freeman 1 R.O'Rourke 0, P.Cafolla 0 S.Brady 1.

• Rathfarnham CC's Paul Delaney advises that the club will close for a summer break during July and August, re-opening on August 30th. An open rapidplay event will be held on Monday September 13th at 7.45pm in the Spawell. All welcome.
  Paul has also passed on a short report of a strong English weekender, the lst Kensington Open Congress, in which he and his son Killian both enjoyed successful outings.

• Drogheda Congress, 4-7 June
  Section A - lst P.Wallace 4.5/5, 2nd D.O'Boyle 3.5, 3rd S.Collins 3.
  Sec. B - lst C.Egan 3.5/4, 2nd D.Path 3.
  Sec. C - lst M.Germaine 4.5/5, Jt 2nd B.Boyle, J.Loughran 3.
  Sec. D - Jt lst K.Rogers, J.Reid 3/5, Jt 3rd D.Quinn, D.Smith 2.5.
  Sec. E - lst A.Roger 4/5, 2nd N.Whelan 3.5.
  Sec. F - lst D.O'Neill 5/5, 2nd A.White 3.5.
  Sec. G - lst P.Lynch 3.5/5, Jt 2nd G.Walsh, A.Mcmenamin, E.Mcnena 3.
  Sec. H - lst S.Stokes 4/5, Jt 2nd U.O'Boyle, G.Walsh 3.

• Pat Reynold reports: The 5th Bray Rapidplay was held in the Esplanade Hotel on June 12. 58 players competed in a six-round swiss @ 25 minutes each per game. Top seeds were Paul Delaney, Colm Barry & Stephen Brady. Barry lost in Rd4 v Sam Collins. Top board in Rd6 was Brady (5) v Delaney (4½). Brady came through. Ita Ryan presented a new trophy to the winner.
  RESULTS: lst S.Brady 6/6, Jt 2nd T.Rufli, J.McCarthy, B.Fitzpatrick 5, Jt 5th P.Delaney, A.Fox, B.Palmer 4.5. Jt 8th C.Barry S.Collins, P.Reynolds, S.Duffy, L.Fagan, B.Bruen, JCrowley, SBurns, JMcCann 4
  Grading Prizes- Sec.1 Duffy, Fagan, Bruen, Crowley. Sec. 2 Steve Burns. Sec. 3 Jack McCann. Sec. 4 Graeme Walsh 3

• Open air chess
  Temple Bar Properties in conjunction with the Leinster Chess Union will be running open-air chess in Meeting House Square (behind the IFC) from this Sunday, 30/5/99, every Sunday throughout the summer. Session begins 2pm, boards / sets provided. Two blitz events are planned, the first for July 11.

• Armagh Chess Club meet every Thursday night in Armagh Golf club about 8pm. Secretary: John Canning,279 Coalisland Rd, Dungannon,Co.Tyrone. Tel: 01868740467.

• See Rathfarnham CC website for details of the south county Dublin's present organisation and plans. Contact: Secretary, Rathfarnam Chess Club. Tadgh O’Connell, ph:(eves) 4902338.
• Results Jan 97-Feb 98~~ Jan 98-Apr 98~~ May-Jun 98~~ Jun-Sep 98~~ Sep-Dec 98~~ Jan-Mar 99~~ Mar-Jul 99