Golders Green Rapid moving to new venue after 27 years!

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Adam Raoof
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Golders Green Rapid moving to new venue after 27 years!

Post by Adam Raoof » Fri Sep 08, 2017 10:36 pm

After about 27 years (!) we are moving our monthly tournament to a new venue from October 2017 (reason: old venue has been leased to a nursery). Does this make Golders Green the longest running chess event at the same venue in the UK?

Our new venue is St Luke’s Church in Kidderpore Avenue, London NW3 7SU. This is pretty close to the former venue (4 minutes away by car, 15 minutes by bus and 20 minutes walk).

http://bit.ly/stlukeschess

St Luke’s Church is a much bigger venue, so we are going to introduce a new section for players new to chess or graded Under 80 by the English Chess Federation - not a FIDE rated section, so the rules regarding illegal moves and mobile phones will be relaxed slightly just for that section. The section will be five rounds of 25 minute + 5 seconds a move, with trophies for prizes and a prize giving ceremony.

We will also soon have a bookstall!

If you get a chance to tweet this, make this your Facebook status or send it to a friend to let them know about the new venue, I would be most grateful.

from october a new venue for golders green #chess http://bit.ly/stlukeschess after 27 years! bigger and better
Adam Raoof IA, IO
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Graham Borrowdale
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Re: Golders Green Rapid moving to new venue after 27 years!

Post by Graham Borrowdale » Sat Sep 09, 2017 12:21 am

Adam Raoof wrote:After about 27 years (!) we are moving our monthly tournament to a new venue from October 2017 (reason: old venue has been leased to a nursery). Does this make Golders Green the longest running chess event at the same venue in the UK?
I don't think so - for example, the Bourne End Congress has been held every year, I think, at least as far back as 1976 at the same venue, Bourne End Leisure Centre (I think most of the players have been playing since then as well). I am sure Roger will correct me if I am wrong. I only remember because it was my first congress. Mind you, it is only once a year, not every month.

Good luck with Golders Green!

Roger de Coverly
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Re: Golders Green Rapid moving to new venue after 27 years!

Post by Roger de Coverly » Sat Sep 09, 2017 1:14 am

Graham Borrowdale wrote:I don't think so - for example, the Bourne End Congress has been held every year, I think, at least as far back as 1976 at the same venue, Bourne End Leisure Centre
Bourne End Community Centre.

Other Congresses with similar longevity at the same venue are Kidlington and probably Frome. I would be certain that Kidlington has never been anywhere else, but not so sure about Frome. Exeter also has been in the Corn Exchange for many years, as has Scarborough in that seafront complex. Blackpool was in the Winter Gardens for many years but has moved around in recent times.

All these are annual.

The current record for annual events is most likely Paignton which clocked up fifty years at the Oldway until its closure forced a move.

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