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Ulster Rapidplay Championship

With the Ulster Senior Championship no longer played over the Christmas vacation period, the UCU Committee considered there was still a market for a tournament at that time of year.

With New Year's Day falling on a Sunday, Monday 2nd January was a public holiday so this seemed the ideal day to stage a one-day tournament. It was given the title of Ulster Rapidplay Championship, and it is hoped that this might become a regular fixture in the Ulster chess calendar. It was encouraging for the future to see that of the 27 players competing, 12 were schoolchildren.

Final standings

Place Name                Rtg  Club          Score Prize

 1-3  John Cairns         2028 Fisherwick    5     Joint winner 
      Gareth Annesley     1892 RVH           5     Joint winner
      Nicholas Pilkiewicz 1796 Clifton House 5     Joint winner
 4-5  Tom Clarke          2196 Clifton House 4.5  
      Ian Woodfield       1652 Fisherwick    4.5   U1800 Grading  
 6-9  Utkarsh Joshi       1400               4     U1600 Grading  
      Stephen Scannell    2154 Bangor        4    
      Michael Waters      2011 Fisherwick    4    
      Samuel Moore        1717 Civil Service 4    
 10   Ananda Srinivasan   1429 Fisherwick    3.5  
11-17 Eamonn Walls        1744 North Belfast 3    
      Gerry Collins       1405 RVH           3    
      Leon Hulleman       1586 City of Derry 3    
      Luke McMullen       1358 Fisherwick    3    
      Simon Wright        900                3     U1200 Grading    
      Patrick McKillen    1286 Fisherwick    3    
      Drew Ferguson       1351 Bangor        3    
18-20 Eugene Medvedev     900                2.5  
      Alan Burns          1384 Bangor        2.5  
      Pearse O'Brien      1031 RVH           2.5  
21-25 William Storey      1246 RVH           2    
      Eddie Li            900                2    
      Rachel Murphy       900                2    
      Samruddhi Joshi     900                2    
      Geoff Hindley       1045 Civil Service 2    
26-27 Numair Damani       900                1    
      Neil Adamson        900                1    
News
Standings of the Childrens Chess Grandprix after January 2026. The Ulster Chess Union runs monthly tournaments at Methodist College. All pupils are welcome to play. Five of these tour... Feb 07, 2026
The new year and the chess league continues.... Playing chess in a team is one of those joys of chess. You have the beautiful game and the team spirit. Each player focu... Feb 01, 2026
Williamson Shield 2026: Storms, Strategy, and a New Champion A report by Chris Dorrian Jan 28, 2026
Chess Players of Carrickfergus and Beyond! The Ulster Chess Union is delighted to have been contacted to share the details of a new club coming in Carrickfergus. Jan 21, 2026
The New Year - Welcome - and Childrens Chess continues at Methodist College : Sat Jan 10th 2026 Young players gathered at Methodist College to compete in the monthly Chess tournaments. Players of all ages from P2 to ... Jan 13, 2026
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Upcoming Events
FIDE rated Team Match: Northern Ireland v India. Saturday 21 Feb 2026 A Bangor Chess Club initiative, celebrating the outstanding contribution that players from the local Indian community ha... Feb 21, 2026 10:15 AM - 04:30 PM — Queen’s Hall, 13 West Street, Newtownards, BT23 4EN
FIDE rated Ulster Rapidplay Championship 2026 Feb 28, 2026 09:30 AM - 04:30 PM — Fruithill Chess Club, Falls Bowling Club, 63 Andersonstown Rd, Belfast, BT11 9AH
FIDE RATED Coalisland Blitz Championship 2026 Tuesday 10 March 2026. Check-in at 19:50 The 10 rounds will be played back-to-back from 20:00 to 22:30 Time-control 3-... Mar 10, 2026 07:50 PM - 10:30 PM — Washingbay Centre, 92 Ballybeg Road, Aughamullan, Coalisland, County Tyrone, BT71 5DX
Third Executive Board Meeting Agenda TBC Mar 10, 2026 08:00 PM - 09:30 PM — Lisburn Chess Club
FIDE RATED Black Mountain Rapid 2026 [event 2 of 10 in art & chess neurodiversity festival] The Chess neurodiversity festival continues. With second exciting event. Venue: Black Mountain Shared Space, 208 Ballyg... Mar 28, 2026 10:15 AM - 04:30 PM — Black Mountain Shared Space, 208 Ballygomartin Road, Belfast, BT13 3NG
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