The Belfast Megafinals took place on Saturday 14th May 2022
The question of one group or splitting into multiple sections according to age arose. To maximise the possibility of getting as many qualifiers as possible I split the group into three sections Under 18, Under 14 and Under 12. We had the Under 12s in my room and the U18s and U14s in the second room looked after by volunteers Geoff Hindley and Karina Kruk.
This competition is part of a bigger organised competition - the Delancy Chess Challenge. Players have to qualifier to get to the next section of the competition. More details : https://www.delanceyukschoolschesschallenge.com/
In running the Under12s we decided to take the opportunity to start each round after the previous round had completed. So the tournament ended earlier for this section and as we were in a separate room we had the prize giving after the last round and let the players go early. For the other sections we kept to our announced timetable with 3 rounds before a lunch break followed by 3 rounds after.
Puzzle sheets were handed out as players registered and were collected prior to the beginning of round 5.
I include some of the puzzles to challenge you: This time there were a couple of brilliant endgame examples from the book Chess Endgame 171 types in 4560 Positions by Lazlo Plogar the other problems from 1001 Winning Chess Sacrifices and combinations Fred Reinfeld and from Chess 5334 Problems, Combinations, and Games by Laszlo Polgar. Solutions at the end of the page. Goodluck.
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The champion Primary School Puzzle Solver: Ethan Cole.
| No | Name | Points | Cert. |
| 1 | Cole, Ethan | 19 | Gold |
| 2 | Loughrey, Matthew | 18 | Gold |
| 3 | Rippon, Lorcan | 16 | Gold |
| 4 | Tahmankar, Advait | 11 | Silver |
| 5 | Sooraj, Aadhi | 8.5 | Bronze |
| 6 | Thoke, Shlok | 8 | Bronze |
| 7 | Chaudhry, Dev | 7 | Bronze |
The Champion Secondary School Puzzle Solver: Calum Glendinning.
| No | Name | Points | Cert. |
| 1 | Glendinning, Calum | 19 | Gold |
| 2 | Huang, James | 12 | Silver |
| 3 | Rippon, Saoirse | 12 | Silver |
| 4 | Hill, Daniel | 10 | Silver |
| 5 | Karpagavinayagam, Umaiorubagam | 9 | Silver |
| 6 | Karpagavinayagam, Karthikeya | 8 | Silver |
| 7 | Leopold, Conor | 6 | Bronze |
| 8 | Worbey, Leah | 5 | Bronze |
| 9 | Campbell, Andrew | 4 | Bronze |
| 10 | McCullough, David | 2 | Bronze |
U12 - Round 1
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Ethan Cole [0] 1:0 Lorcan Rippon [0] 2 Advait Tahmankar [0] 0:1 Dev Chaudhry [0] 3 Matthew Loughrey [0] 0:1 Shlok Thoke [0] 4 Saoirse Barnes [0] 0:1 Aadhi Sooraj [0]
by Swiss Perfect (TM) www.swissperfect.com
Ulster Champion and Irish Champion (U10) Ethan Cole is favourite for this tournament. Would he be beaten? Up and coming players Dev, Lorcan, Advait, Aadhi, Shlok, Matthew and Saoirse are all improving.
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U12 - Round 2
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Aadhi Sooraj [1] 0:1 Ethan Cole [1] 2 Dev Chaudhry [1] 1:0 Shlok Thoke [1] 3 Advait Tahmankar [0] 0:1 Matthew Loughrey [0] 4 Lorcan Rippon [0] 1:0 Saoirse Barnes [0]
Ethan and Dev lead the group after this round on 2 points out of 2.
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U12 - Round 3
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Ethan Cole [2] 1:0 Dev Chaudhry [2] 2 Matthew Loughrey [1] 1:0 Lorcan Rippon [1] 3 Shlok Thoke [1] 0:1 Aadhi Sooraj [1] 4 Saoirse Barnes [0] 0:1 Advait Tahmankar [0]
The two top players play each other. Ethan goes into the lead. Chased by Matthew, Dev and Aadhi on 2 points.
U12 - Round 4
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Matthew Loughrey [2] 0:1 Ethan Cole [3] 2 Dev Chaudhry [2] 0:1 Aadhi Sooraj [2] 3 Lorcan Rippon [1] 1:0 Advait Tahmankar [1] 4 Shlok Thoke [1] 1:0 Saoirse Barnes [0]
Ethan continues his wins. Matthew Loughrey is doing brilliantly for his young years. Who will score 4 points to qualify? and who will come in the qualifying spots of 1st, 2nd and 3rd? Saoirse is up against tough opposition but the games are good and the results dont always reflect the closeness of the games.
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U12 - Round 5
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Ethan Cole [4] 1:0 Saoirse Barnes [0] 2 Aadhi Sooraj [3] 1:0 Matthew Loughrey [2] 3 Lorcan Rippon [2] 1:0 Dev Chaudhry [2] 4 Advait Tahmankar [1] 1:0 Shlok Thoke [2]
During round 5 the puzzles have been collected and get marked. Each puzzle sheet handed in gets a certificate and their marked sheet back. Ethan has qualified and continues to lead with max points. Aadhi is chasing closely on 4 points followed by Lorcan on 3 points.
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U12 - Round 6
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Advait Tahmankar [2] 0:1 Ethan Cole [5] 2 Aadhi Sooraj [4] .5:.5 Lorcan Rippon [3] 3 Dev Chaudhry [2] 1:0 Matthew Loughrey [2] 4 Saoirse Barnes [0] 0:1 Shlok Thoke [2]
As nos in the tournament were low we had todo a manual draw for the last round. Allowing Saoirse to replay Shlok. Ethan wins the section on full points. Aadhi comes a close second on 4.5 points followed by Lorcan on 3.5 points.
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Standings
Place Name Score M-Buch. Buch. Progr.
1 Ethan Cole 6 10.5 15.0 21.0
2 Aadhi Sooraj 4.5 11.5 17.5 15.5
3 Lorcan Rippon 3.5 11.5 17.5 10.5
4-5 Dev Chaudhry 3 13.0 21.0 12.0
Shlok Thoke 3 7.0 11.5 10.0
6-7 Matthew Loughrey 2 14.0 22.0 9.0
Advait Tahmankar 2 11.5 17.5 6.0
8-9 Saoirse Barnes 0 14.0 22.0 0.0
Rithvik Siddhi Deekonda 0 0.0 0.0 0.0
I have listed the qualifiers together at the bottom of the page.
We had an award ceremony and completed the tournament.
U14 - Round 1
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Harrison Andrews [0] 1:0 Conor Leopold [0] 2 Ethan Longwell [0] 1:0 Karthikeya Karpagavinayagam [0] 3 Kevin Hoyne [0] 0:1 Saoirse Rippon [0] 4 Zack Todd [0] 1:0 BYE
The two sections have an odd no of players. So with the rounds co-ordinated the players with the byes were encouraged to play friendlies. After each game was completed we encouraged players to play friendlies or do the chess puzzles - we assisted with these by giving clues.
U18 - Round 1
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Calum Glendinning [0] 0:1 Andrew Campbell [0] 2 Umaiorubagam Karpagavinayagam [0] 0:1 Daniel Hill [0] 3 James Huang [0] 1:0 Josh Christie [0] 4 David McCullough [0] 0:1 Caleb McClean [0] 5 Leah Worbey [0] 1:0 BYE
Geoff Hindley and Karina Kruk looked after the U14 and U18 sections. Karina on watching the games commented to me that it was thrilling to see such exciting quality games of chess. It made the volunteering for assisting at the tournament a pleasure.
Andrew Campbell beat the favourite of the tournament, Calum Glendinning. The rest of the games went to players approx rating. We are fortunate to have a group of quite talented chess players in this section.
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U14 - Round 2
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Saoirse Rippon [1] 1:0 Harrison Andrews [1] 2 Zack Todd [1] 0:1 Ethan Longwell [1] 3 Karthikeya Karpagavinayagam [0] 1:0 Kevin Hoyne [0] 4 Conor Leopold [0] 1:0 BYE
Saoirse and Ethan come out of round 2 on full points. Chased by Harrison, Zack, Karthikeya and Conor.
U18 - Round 2
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Daniel Hill [1] 0:1 Leah Worbey [1] 2 Caleb McClean [1] 0:1 James Huang [1] 3 Andrew Campbell [1] 1:0 Umaiorubagam Karpagavinayagam [0] 4 Josh Christie [0] 0:1 Calum Glendinning [0] 5 David McCullough [0] 1:0 BYE
Leah gets a good win against Daniel whilst Andrew continues his wins with a good win against Umaiorubagam.
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U14 - Round 3
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Ethan Longwell [2] 0:1 Saoirse Rippon [2] 2 Harrison Andrews [1] 1:0 Zack Todd [1] 3 Conor Leopold [1] 0:1 Karthikeya Karpagavinayagam [1] 4 Kevin Hoyne [0] 1:0 BYE
Saoirse takes the lead unbeaten with 3 out of 3.
U18 - Round 3
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Leah Worbey [2] 0:1 Andrew Campbell [2] 2 James Huang [2] 1:0 Daniel Hill [1] 3 Calum Glendinning [1] 1:0 David McCullough [1] 4 Umaiorubagam Karpagavinayagam [0] 0:1 Caleb McClean [1] 5 Josh Christie [0] 1:0 BYE
Andrew continues to win, defeating Leah. James Huang shares the lead with Andrew.
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U14 - Round 4
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Saoirse Rippon [3] .5:.5 Karthikeya Karpagavinayagam [2] 2 Kevin Hoyne [1] 0:1 Harrison Andrews [2] 3 Zack Todd [1] 0:1 Conor Leopold [1] 4 Ethan Longwell [2] 1:0 BYE
The section opens up a bit with a draw on the top table. Karthikeya and Saoirse draw. Harrison is a close 3rd on 3 points.
U18 - Round 4
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Andrew Campbell [3] .5:.5 James Huang [3] 2 Caleb McClean [2] 0:1 Calum Glendinning [2] 3 David McCullough [1] 0:1 Leah Worbey [2] 4 Daniel Hill [1] 1:0 Josh Christie [1] 5 Umaiorubagam Karpagavinayagam [0] 1:0 BYE
The top board Andrew and James draw. Calum continues to chase, with Leah on 3 points.
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U14 - Round 5
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Conor Leopold [2] 1:0 Saoirse Rippon [3.5] 2 Harrison Andrews [3] 1:0 Ethan Longwell [3] 3 Zack Todd [1] 0:1 Kevin Hoyne [1] 4 Karthikeya Karpagavinayagam [2.5] 1:0 BYE
Harrison takes the lead with a win against Ethan. Conor challenges Saoirse's lead with a win.
U18 - Round 5
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Leah Worbey [3] 0:1 James Huang [3.5] 2 Josh Christie [1] 1:0 Andrew Campbell [3.5] 3 Calum Glendinning [3] 1:0 Daniel Hill [2] 4 David McCullough [1] 0:1 Umaiorubagam Karpagavinayagam [1] 5 Caleb McClean [2] 1:0 BYE
James qualifiers by getting 4 or more points as does Calum. Its a tough section how will it end.
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U14 - Round 6
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 Karthikeya Karpagavinayagam [3.5] 0:1 Harrison Andrews [4] 2 Ethan Longwell [3] 1:0 Kevin Hoyne [2] 3 Saoirse Rippon [3.5] 1:0 BYE 4 Conor Leopold [3] 1:0 Zack Todd [1]
The final round. Harrison wins the section with 5 out of 6. Saoirse gets 4.5 out of 6 and is second. Followed by Ethan and Conor on 4 points.
U18 - Round 6
Results
No Name Total Result Name Total 1 James Huang [4.5] 1:0 Calum Glendinning [4] 2 Andrew Campbell [3.5] .5:.5 Caleb McClean [3] 3 Umaiorubagam Karpagavinayagam [2] 0:1 Leah Worbey [3] 4 Josh Christie [2] .5:.5 David McCullough [1] 5 Daniel Hill [2] 1:0 BYE
This section is incredibly close. James gets a good win against Calum and wins the tournament. Followed by Andrew, Calum and Leah on 4 points.
U14 Standings
Place Name Score M-Buch. Buch. Progr.
1 Harrison Andrews 5 11.5 16.0 16.0
2 Saoirse Rippon 4.5 13.0 19.5 17.5
3-4 Ethan Longwell 4 11.5 17.0 15.0
Conor Leopold 4 10.5 16.0 11.0
5 Karthikeya Karpagavinayagam 3.5 14.0 20.5 12.5
6 Kevin Hoyne 2 13.5 19.0 6.0
7 Zack Todd 1 13.5 20.0 6.0
Players on 4 points or more qualify - the full list is given below.
U18 Standings
Place Name Score M-Buch. Buch. Progr.
1 James Huang 5.5 13.0 19.0 19.5
2-4 Andrew Campbell 4 12.5 19.5 17.0
Calum Glendinning 4 11.5 18.0 14.0
Leah Worbey 4 11.0 17.5 15.0
5 Caleb McClean 3.5 12.5 19.0 12.5
6 Daniel Hill 3 12.5 19.5 10.0
7 Josh Christie 2.5 13.5 20.0 6.5
8 Umaiorubagam Karpagavinayagam 2 12.0 17.0 5.0
9 David McCullough 1.5 11.5 17.0 5.5
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We wish the Qualifiers good luck in the next stage of the competition - the Gigafinals. We will endevour to keep you in touch with players progress.
The dates of the Gigafinals:
- Northern Gigafinal (9th and 10th July) – players play on one of the days. Venue: Wright Robinson College, Abbey Hey Lane, Gorton, Manchester, M18 8RL
- Southern Gigafinal (23rd and 24th July) – players play on one of the days. Venue: Harrow High School, Gayton Road, Harrow, HA1 2JG.
- Online Gigafinal (3rd and 4th September) – two day event
Megafinal Qualifiers:
Under 18 Section
| Name | Points | |
| James Huang | 5.5 | 1st |
| Andrew Campbell | 4 | 2nd |
| Calum Glendinning | 4 | 3rd |
| Leah Worbey | 4 | Q |
| Caleb McClean | 3.5 | Q |
Under 14 Section
| Name | Points | |
| Harrison Andrews | 5 | 1st |
| Saoirse Rippon | 4.5 | 2nd |
| Ethan Longwell | 4 | 3rd |
| Conor Leopold | 4 | Q |
Under 12 Section
| Name | Points | |
| Ethan Cole | 6 | 1st |
| Aadhi Sooraj | 4.5 | 2nd |
| Lorcan Rippon | 3.5 | 3rd |
| Matthew Loughrey | 2 | U8 Champ |
| Saoirse Barnes | 0 | 1st Girl |
Puzzle Solutions
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14. (C668) White to move 1. Rxe8 Qxe8 2. Qa4 |
15. (C669) White to move 1. Qxb4 axb4 2.Rxa8+ Be8 3. Bxd5 Qxd5 4. Rxe8# |
16. (C670) White to move 1. Be6 fxe6 2. Qc8+ Bd8 3. Qxd8+ Rxd8 4. Rxd8 # |
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17. (C671) White to move 1. Qxf8+ Kxf8 2. Re8# |
18. (C672) White to move 1. Qxf3 Rxf3 2. Rc8+ Bxc8 3. Re8+ Rf8 4. Rxf8# |
19. (C673) White to move 1. Qc4+ Kh8 2, Qf7 winning |
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20. White to move (E200) 1. Qh8+ Kb1 2. Qh1+ Kb2 3. Qh2+ Kb1 4. Kc4! a1(Q) 5. Kb3! |
21. White to move (E201) 1. Kb6! Kb2 2. Ka5+ Kc1 3. Qh1+ Kb2 4. Qg2+ Kb1 5. Ka4 a1(Q) 6. Kb3 |
22. White to move (E145) 1. Rb7+ Kc8 2. Rb5! C1(Q) 3. Rc5+! Qxc5 = |
