European Schools Chess Championship 2015

[LawrenceCooper]

Unofficial scores after round 5:

U9: Ezra Brass 3.
U9G: Anum Sheikh 3.
U11: Aditya Munshi 3.5, Bobby Akeya Price & Nicolai Woltery 2.5.
U11G: Thivyaa Rahulan & Anisha Sawhney 2.5, Anaya Popat 2.
U13: Amardip Ahluwalia 3.5, Jonah Willow 3, Dharshan Kumaresan 2.
U13G: Helen Archer-Lock 1.5.
U15: Yang-Jian Zhou 2.5.
U17G: Victoria Sit 1.5.

[LawrenceCooper]

Live games in progress: http://escc2015.tsf.org.tr/en/live-games

U17: Victoria Sit (21)
U13: Helen Archer Lock (22)

U13: Amardip (8), Jonah (11)

U11: Thivyaa (2), Aditya (26)

[LawrenceCooper]

Wins for Aditya, Anum, Jonah and Nicolai, draws for Bobby, Amardip, Dharshan, Anisha and Thivyaa and losses for Ezra, Yang-Jian, Anaya, Helen & Victoria.

[LawrenceCooper]

Round 6 live games:

U17G Victoria (21) U13 G Helen (24)

U13: Jonah (8), Amardip (11)

U11G: Anisha (2), Thivyaa (8), U11: Aditya 17

[Andrew Martin]

Very heavy internet use here thanks to the double-round day,hence the delay.

Here is the Rd 6 report from Glenn Flear:

The games are lasting longer as the players are now meeting similar strength opposition. Nicolai won quickly (cashing-in on a sloppy opening from his opponent), but just about everyone else had long drawn out struggles. Yang-Jian, yet again, was last to finish, but despite his efforts he couldn't avoid the loss.
Overall, the squad managed 6½/14. The other winners were Anum (outplayed her opponent from an equal middlegame), Jonah (he crashed through on the dark squares) and Aditya (won a pawn early, but it was always complicated).
There were five draws this time: Anisha (difficult position, but good resistance), Thivyaa (solid throughout), Darshan (up-and-down), Robert (it started well, but then the scoresheet lost its clarity!), and Amardip (blundered away half-a-point).
The team now has to settle down from all the strong emotions and prepare itself for the next round later this evening."

[Andrew Martin]

Rd 7 Report

What are the qualities most needed to succeed in the modern game? I can tell you that one of the most important is the need to be robust. Fragile personalities need not apply, or at least have to find a way of toughening up.
This is because the level of technique and understanding has risen to an all-time high, where even little kids can play a powerful and gruelling game. I have seen it with my own eyes here. Even midgets know how to keep the game going and they will grind you down if necessary!
So it is very pleasing to report that in the second round of the day England has scored an excellent and confident 9/14. Winners were Bobby, Anum ( now 5/7), Vickie, Amardip ( now 5/7), Anaya, Helen and Thivyaa with draw for Nicolai, Anisha, Jonah and Yang-Jian.
We now move to the business end of the tournament and the time when strong players go up through the gears. Let’s hope the team repeats this success tomorrow and the day after.
In fact, why not go even better?

[LawrenceCooper]

Scores after 7 rounds:

U9: Ezra 3.
U9G: Anum 5.
U11: Aditya 4.5, Bobby & Nicolai 4.
U11G: Thiyaa 4, Anisha 3.5, Anaya 3.
U13: Amardip 5, Jonah 4.5, Dharshan 2.5.
U13G: Helen 2.5.
U15: Yang-Jian 3.
U17G: Victoria 2.5.

[LawrenceCooper]

Round 8 pairings:

5 52 SHEIKH ANUM ENG 5 - 5 SHUQJA KLEAN 1440 ALB 4

35 86 NASYROV ANTON RUS 3½ 3 BRASS EZRA ENG 48

8 15 MUNSHI ADITYA 1656 ENG 4½ 5 CABEROGLU ARDA 1466 TUR 41
21 76 CIFTER ADA YANKI 1207 TUR 4 4 AKEYA-PRICE ROBERT 1541 ENG 27
15 12 WOLTERY NICOLAI 1695 ENG 4 4 OZGUNER HAKKI ATA 1448 TUR 45

12 42 OKTAROGLU SILA TUR 4 3½ SAWHNEY ANISHA ENG 45
17 14 DOGAN EYLEM SU 1286 TUR 3 3 POPAT ANAYA ENG 44
9 8 SEDEF ELIF TUANA 1425 TUR 4 4 RAHULAN THIVYAA 1355 ENG 13

15 27 DALGAR SUDENAZ 1243 TUR 3 2½ ARCHER-LOCK HELEN 1518 ENG 13

6 23 AHLUWALIA AMARDIP 1706 ENG 5 5 MARTINOVICI ILIE 1895 MDA 11
8 8 WILLOW JONAH B 1918 ENG 4½ 5 TARLABASI EMIRHAN 1793 TUR 17
30 73 DANISMAN ALI BERKAY 1015 TUR 3 2½ KUMARESAN DARSHAN 1525 ENG 48

18 23 ZHOU YANG-JIAN 1857 ENG 3 3 DERE ABDULLAH DOGUKAN 1633 TUR 36

7 9 SIT VICTORIA 1617 ENG 2½ 3 VATANSEVER BUSE 1726 TUR 4

[LawrenceCooper]

Live boards in round 8:

U17G: Victoria (21), U13G: Helen (22)

U13: Amardip (6), Jonah (8)

U11: Aditya U11G: Thivyaa (23), Anisha (26) (Nilomi 24).

U9G: Anum (14)

[Andrew Martin]

The Rd 8 report from GM Glenn Flear follows:

In the penultimate round, the English squad scored 7½/14.
There were two winners amongst the girls: Anum continuing her fine form (in a tense middlegame she out-calculated her opponent to win a piece) and Anisha, whose bishops were too strong for her opponent.
The four winners amongst the lads were Aditya (who gradually built-up an advantage from an insipid opening), Darshan (whose King's-Indian-bishop-pair tormented his opponent's knights), Bobby (who outmanoeuvred his opponent in an opposite-coloured bishop middlegame) and Ezra (whose opponent faced up to the Dragon and was duly burnt).
Three players drew, and of these Helen and Jonah were both close to winning. Nicolai made his fifth draw, which takes some doing in a tournament where draw offers are not allowed until move 40!
One more round to go at 8am (UK time) on Thursday. Remember that the games can be seen live on the official website.
So why not support our efforts for a final day push in our quest for further fine victories.

[LawrenceCooper]

Round 9 pairings:

27 9 KARSAN ADIL TUNA 1434 TUR 4 4 BRASS EZRA ENG 48

4 30 BALOGLU DILA TUR 6 - 6 SHEIKH ANUM ENG 52

7 15 MUNSHI ADITYA 1656 ENG 5½ 5½ DINCER OZGUR DENIZ 1664 TUR 14
11 27 AKEYA-PRICE ROBERT 1541 ENG 5 5 TINARLIOGLU EMRE 1649 TUR 16
17 33 COSKUN EMRE 1522 TUR 4½ 4½ WOLTERY NICOLAI 1695 ENG 12

9 45 SAWHNEY ANISHA ENG 4½ 4½ NESANIR SELIN 1418 TUR 10
15 13 RAHULAN THIVYAA 1355 ENG 4 4 TOKAT NEHIR TUR 48
21 34 HEKIMOGLU MIHRIBAN TUR 3 3 POPAT ANAYA ENG 44

7 6 KAMER KAYRA 1950 TUR 5 5 AHLUWALIA AMARDIP 1706 ENG 23
8 25 ERGIN FARUK ESAT 1700 TUR 5 5 WILLOW JONAH B 1918 ENG 8
28 48 KUMARESAN DARSHAN 1525 ENG 3½ 3½ AYDOGDU CAGATAY 1443 TUR 56

15 13 ARCHER-LOCK HELEN 1518 ENG 3 3 GURBANOVA DIANA AZE 36

21 44 OZSAKALLIOGLU OKAN 1545 TUR 3 3 ZHOU YANG-JIAN 1857 ENG 23

5 5 KAHYA GIZEM 1701 TUR 4½ 2½ SIT VICTORIA 1617 ENG 9

[LawrenceCooper]

Live board numbers for the English players in the last round which is underway as follows:

U17G: Victoria 19, U13G: Helen 22,
U13: Amardip 7, Jonah 8,
U11: Aditya 7, Bobby 11, U11G: Anisha 23
U9G: Anum 11

http://escc2015.tsf.org.tr/en/live-games

[LawrenceCooper]

Anum wins to finish on 7/9

[John McKenna]

Thanks to John Higgs, Loz and the coaches for the progress reports and links.

Congratulations to Anum on that victory.

Comfortable final round Reti opening (A12) for Victoria Sit, playing Black.

I played Yang Jian Zhou in March in a similar opening (A12) but the game became messy. He played better and went on to win.

Today Victoria's opponent seems to be trying to simplify but Victoria has just avoided the exchange of queens.

The English players may be under orders to play for wins to the last!?

[LawrenceCooper]

91....Rc6+ would have been a spanner in the works in Sawhney-Nesanir in the Under 9 girls event. http://escc2015.tsf.org.tr/en/live-games