Cambridge International Open

[Kevin Thurlow]

"1.12 There must be no more than twelve hours play in one day. This is calculated based on games
that last 60 moves, although games played using increments may last longer."

The legendary organizer (and author) Hans Olav Lahlum got round this 12 hour restriction by having a morning game, then the second game started at 8 pm, so it could go into another day if needed. Then the next round started about 4 pm on the following day. Happily, I think everyone had the good sense to finish at least one of the games quickly.

[jholyhead]

Please note – entries are currently closed.

So the ECF organised a major international Open and picked a venue where they could only fit 58 boards?

I didn't realise the E stood for embarrassing.

[Paul Heaton]

Please note – entries are currently closed.

So the ECF organised a major international Open and picked a venue where they could only fit 58 boards?

I didn't realise the E stood for embarrassing.

Presumably the very long tail will make norms challenging too.

[Roger de Coverly]

Please note – entries are currently closed.

So the ECF organised a major international Open and picked a venue where they could only fit 58 boards?

I suppose it could be observed that for an initial event, the likely response was unknown. Perhaps also, they are negotiating for additional space.

[jholyhead]

Witney Congress runs (superbly) out of a Sixth Form canteen and fits ~100 entrants.

For what has been marketed as a flagship event, it is a really poor effort.

[John Moore]

Parking should be interesting for those travelling by car. The University Arms has no car park and parking in Cambridge generally always used to be a nightmare.

[Kevin Thurlow]

Just driving is a nightmare - last time I went, there was a road in the city centre with a sign saying road closed (with no prior warning), so you had to either do a 3-point turn in a busy road or use the bus lane, and undoubtedly get sent a demand for money.

[Wadih Khoury]

Please note – entries are currently closed.

So the ECF organised a major international Open and picked a venue where they could only fit 58 boards?

I didn't realise the E stood for embarrassing.

I was tired driving from Hastings yesterday and delayed registration to today.. had I know capacity was limited I would have registered a couple of weeks ago

[Paul Dargan]

I've posted elsewhere about the hotel. It really is a fantastic refurbishment - rooms are great, it's a top-end Marriott property and I'm a bit of a Marriott fanboy. Parking is seriously limited - the only way to guarantee a space is to book one of the suites. I also bothered to check the ECF accommodation link and £150/night is better than the standard rate for that week - I've had friends hit for £250/night there before, but also grabbed rooms for as low as £100 at low occupancy times and just after the soft launch.

There's plenty of parking nearby - the other side of PArkers Piece for example or the underground carpark beside the shopping centre and the Hilton.

Let's hope it's a great event, and that the ECF manage to negotiate some more space.

[Brendan O'Gorman]

Please note – entries are currently closed.

So the ECF organised a major international Open and picked a venue where they could only fit 58 boards?

I didn't realise the E stood for embarrassing.

I don't know for certain but the event may have been proposed by the hotel.

[Roger de Coverly]

So the ECF organised a major international Open and picked a venue where they could only fit 58 boards?

They seem to have known from the outset that it was restricted to 120 players.

from https://www.englishchess.org.uk/wp-cont ... eeting.pdf

6. Events (SB)
SB informed the Board that preparations were going well for the Cambridge International event to be held in March. There were already 5 GMs from England attending and invitations were being extended to several GMs from overseas to generate norms. Michael Adams had already confirmed his attendance. Capacity was 120 players

[Leonard Barden]

SB informed the Board that preparations were going well for the Cambridge International event to be held in March. There were already 5 GMs from England attending and invitations were being extended to several GMs from overseas to generate norms. Michael Adams had already confirmed his attendance. Capacity was 120 players

Of active English IMs Fide 2430+ only Clarke 2450 and Grieve 2438 are entered for Cambridge.

Wadsworth 2477, Ghasi 2471, Harvey 2466, Royal 2456, and Willow 2431 are all missing and if wanting to compete will presumably have to go on the waiting list.

It looks as if the ECF has effectively concentrated on inviting high-rating GMs to provide GM norm opportunities, but omitted to provide places for the young English GM norm seekers.

Long ago at Lloyds Bank it was done differently. As soon as the entry form was available, a personal invitation was sent to every young English norm contender, with financial incentives to compete.

[Roger de Coverly]

It looks as if the ECF has effectively concentrated on inviting high-rating GMs to provide GM norm opportunities, but omitted to provide places for the young English GM norm seekers.

Isn't the long tail of lower rated players something of a hazard to norm seekers as well? That's particularly if a handful do well and have to be paired against any norm seekers.

Surprising perhaps that with limited capacity, something only just publicly disclosed, that there wasn't a minimum rating imposed.

[NickFaulks]

My attempt to evaluate norm opportunities has been hampered by the use of ECF rather than FIDE ratings. Whatever their relative merits, it is the latter that you need for norms.

[jholyhead]

Failing to invite the people that the event is being held for seems like a perfect summing up of the situation. And I would not be surprised if the "lack of take-up" is cited as a reason why they wont invest in future norm generating events.