I would appreciate Forum review of the draft 2013 junior selection policy. It’s substantially the same as last year. I did not build in lots of time for discussion/debate, but your short & sharp comments would be useful. It’s on track to be adopted this weekend. Here’s the link: http://englishchess.org.uk/Juniors/play ... on-policy/
Principal changes:
- Written more clearly.
- Target ratings either stayed the same or dropped a few points.
- Awards English Youth Chess Champions (new Grand Prix winners) with a World Youth or European Youth invitation, rather than top players from the British Junior Championships. (The 2012 British Junior Champions will probably qualify by other routes. Those who do not may be ‘wild cards’ for this year only.)
- Changes responsibility for the World Junior event from International to Junior, per agreement between David and me. We will need to agree on players older than 18.
- Slight adjustment to the U10 official representatives.
- Dropped the leadership paragraph, preferring to inspire rather than require acts that are inherently “E" on one of the Briggs-Myers continua.
Interesting locations this year: Central China, Turkey near the Syrian border, Novi Sad...and Cardiff! Dates for the World Youth (in the UAE) are not yet known.
Thanks.
Junior Selection Policy 2013
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David Sedgwick
- Posts: 5249
- Joined: Mon Apr 09, 2007 5:56 pm
- Location: Croydon
Re: Junior Selection Policy 2013
The previous approach had the advantage of encouraging entries for the British Junior Championships. With Torquay 2013 being the 100th British Championships, the ECF is keen to attract as many entries as possible.Phil Ehr wrote: - Awards English Youth Chess Champions (new Grand Prix winners) with a World Youth or European Youth invitation, rather than top players from the British Junior Championships. (The 2012 British Junior Champions will probably qualify by other routes. Those who do not may be ‘wild cards’ for this year only.)
With that in mind, is there a case for maintaining qualification from the British Junior Championships for 2013, even if it is then abolished?
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Phil Ehr
- Posts: 56
- Joined: Sat Sep 17, 2011 10:14 am
Re: Junior Selection Policy 2013
Thanks, David. Juniors will support the British Junior Championships in Torquay and have a wonderful time doing it, regardless of this selection policy.
The selection policy supports The British Championships directly. Junior selection norms are awarded for any performance that qualifies a junior to play in the The British Championship. That seems right, despite the qualification standard being not necessarily as high as a rating-based or grade-based junior selection norm.
The previous debate centred around the legitimacy of the British Junior Championship as our national youth championship. I started with the view (perhaps arrogantly) to bestow legitimacy on the British Junior Champions rather than recognise reality. The reality that our top older juniors opt to play in the Major Open or The British Championship itself persuaded me to recommend English youth titles from something other than the British Junior Championships.
Two choices were considered--award national youth titles from (1) a youth grand prix or (2) a different event, separated from The British Championship. Most nations choose a separate youth championship event. The French, for example, convene a youth championship in the Easter term break, despite the common problem of diverse school schedules. The strongest French juniors participate. It attracts significant sponsorship. It is said to attract 1000+ players. In Canada, children travel across the continent to play in their youth championship, which holds exclusive rights to qualify Canadians to play in the World Youth. These events are built with juniors as the priority. They are thrilling. The British Junior Championships also thrilling and offer an indispensable immersion in chess culture, but they are fundamentally built to enhance the main event--The British Championship--not to be the main event. That’s the right priority.
My team of merry volunteers does not have the capacity to create a youth championship in March/April, but that remains a choice for the future. Absent roaring thunder from the junior chess community or overwhelming financial sponsorship, it’s not a realistic option.
So, the youth grand prix option was decided. The legitimacy of awarding titles from the EYCC Grand Prix, however, can be questioned similarly to the British Junior Championships, because our strongest juniors often opt out of youth-only events. The advantage of choosing a grand prix is to demonstrate that the national federation recognises the inherent value of youth-only chess; to recognise that (considering the different psychology in play) it can be just as competitive as chess open to all ages; to support the junior chess community who participate in the ECF grading system; and to have a youth-only path in England that leads to FIDE's and ECU's youth-only championships. Simple!
The British Junior Championships produce some of the highest junior selection TPGs in the new EYCC Grand Prix, giving winners and near winners strong positions to start the race for national youth titles. Some of those performances should also produce junior selection norms for the major championships (World Youth and European Youth), which is the substantive incentive I think you seek, but not the presentation you expected. A selection stream from the British Junior Championships into the developmental championships (World Schools, European Schools, Glorney-Gilbert-Robinson-Stokes Cups, etc.) makes more sense substantively, but many British Junior Champions will qualify for the major championships by grades or ratings. Some will argue that the British Junior Championships should be presented at least on par with Mike Basman's UKSCC. The reason UKSCC is specifically included is to tap into a path that is dedicated to Northern players and to recognise the contribution of a tournament that consistently attracts 65,000+ entries. We all appreciate that UKSCC and the British Championships are fundamentally different. The common feature is that top players (those who qualify for major championships) tend to play in both. If more prominence for the British Junior Champions in the policy document is important, the appropriate path is developmental, because more legitimate (but new) English youth titles are awarded elsewhere.
The selection policy supports The British Championships directly. Junior selection norms are awarded for any performance that qualifies a junior to play in the The British Championship. That seems right, despite the qualification standard being not necessarily as high as a rating-based or grade-based junior selection norm.
The previous debate centred around the legitimacy of the British Junior Championship as our national youth championship. I started with the view (perhaps arrogantly) to bestow legitimacy on the British Junior Champions rather than recognise reality. The reality that our top older juniors opt to play in the Major Open or The British Championship itself persuaded me to recommend English youth titles from something other than the British Junior Championships.
Two choices were considered--award national youth titles from (1) a youth grand prix or (2) a different event, separated from The British Championship. Most nations choose a separate youth championship event. The French, for example, convene a youth championship in the Easter term break, despite the common problem of diverse school schedules. The strongest French juniors participate. It attracts significant sponsorship. It is said to attract 1000+ players. In Canada, children travel across the continent to play in their youth championship, which holds exclusive rights to qualify Canadians to play in the World Youth. These events are built with juniors as the priority. They are thrilling. The British Junior Championships also thrilling and offer an indispensable immersion in chess culture, but they are fundamentally built to enhance the main event--The British Championship--not to be the main event. That’s the right priority.
My team of merry volunteers does not have the capacity to create a youth championship in March/April, but that remains a choice for the future. Absent roaring thunder from the junior chess community or overwhelming financial sponsorship, it’s not a realistic option.
So, the youth grand prix option was decided. The legitimacy of awarding titles from the EYCC Grand Prix, however, can be questioned similarly to the British Junior Championships, because our strongest juniors often opt out of youth-only events. The advantage of choosing a grand prix is to demonstrate that the national federation recognises the inherent value of youth-only chess; to recognise that (considering the different psychology in play) it can be just as competitive as chess open to all ages; to support the junior chess community who participate in the ECF grading system; and to have a youth-only path in England that leads to FIDE's and ECU's youth-only championships. Simple!
The British Junior Championships produce some of the highest junior selection TPGs in the new EYCC Grand Prix, giving winners and near winners strong positions to start the race for national youth titles. Some of those performances should also produce junior selection norms for the major championships (World Youth and European Youth), which is the substantive incentive I think you seek, but not the presentation you expected. A selection stream from the British Junior Championships into the developmental championships (World Schools, European Schools, Glorney-Gilbert-Robinson-Stokes Cups, etc.) makes more sense substantively, but many British Junior Champions will qualify for the major championships by grades or ratings. Some will argue that the British Junior Championships should be presented at least on par with Mike Basman's UKSCC. The reason UKSCC is specifically included is to tap into a path that is dedicated to Northern players and to recognise the contribution of a tournament that consistently attracts 65,000+ entries. We all appreciate that UKSCC and the British Championships are fundamentally different. The common feature is that top players (those who qualify for major championships) tend to play in both. If more prominence for the British Junior Champions in the policy document is important, the appropriate path is developmental, because more legitimate (but new) English youth titles are awarded elsewhere.