News
Standings of the Childrens Chess Grandprix after March 2026.
The Ulster Chess Union runs monthly tournaments at Methodist College. All pupils are welcome to play. Five of these tournaments make up the Childrens Chess series and these have a Grandprix scoring system with the top players being invited to the Elite Tournament in June at Stormont. Next tournament Methodist College 11th April.
Amost 40 young players gather at our Monthly Childrens Chess tournaments
Saturday March 14th. Methodist College. We continue our monthly events. An afternoon of Chess games and puzzles. With all ages and some top players. Our next tournament is on Saturday April 11th.
Standings of the Childrens Chess Grandprix after February 2026.
The Ulster Chess Union runs monthly tournaments at Methodist College. All pupils are welcome to play. Five of these tournaments make up the Childrens Chess series and these have a Grandprix scoring system with the top players being invited to the Elite Tournament in June at Stormont.
New Rapidplay Ulster Champion Crowned 28th February 2026
Fruithill Bowling Club hosted in its brilliant venue the annual Rapidplay Ulster Championship. Many thanks to the Club and to the Fruithill Chess Club. Some 26 players gathered to play with a time control of 25mins and 6 rounds of exciting chess.
Saturday 14th Feb 2026 and another brilliant monthly Childrens Chess Tournament.
Youngsters from all over Ulster gathered at Methodist College to compete in an afternoon of Chess, a swiss tournament and a chess puzzle competition. This monthly series of tournaments continues .... The next one is on March 14th.
UCU Events Update – Remainder of the Season
This has been a challenging year for UCU events; however, we have been fortunate to secure arbiters for events held so far. We would like to provide members with an update on plans for the remainder of the season.
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 tournaments make up the Childrens Chess series and these have a Grandprix scoring system with the top players being invited to the Elite Tournament in June at Stormont.
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 focused on their contribution to the match, their game. Players and captains proud of their teams, happy to play tough matches against other good teams. Here are some pics from the first league weeks of the year and two interesting games.
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.
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 Sixth form. From players who are just getting a footing to top players who represent Ireland and could beat most adult players.
Christmas and New Year sees the Ulster Blitz Championships 2025/26
Hosted by Fruithill Chess Club, Falls Bowling Club. A brilliant venue and Chess Club. 37 players played a marathon of 18 rounds of 3mins + 2 sec increments.
One week left to register for the upcoming Ulster Blitz Championship
The Ulster Blitz Championship 2025 will be held on Saturday 27th December in Fruithill Chess Club, Falls Bowling Club. Entry for registration will close Wednesday 24th December at noon.
Ulster Champions were crowned at Methodist College on Sat 6th Dec 2025
37 young chess players gathered at Methodist College to compete for the age group titles of Ulster Champion. 6 rounds of chess and a day of solving challenging chess puzzles.
Ulster Masters 2025 – Results
A 5 round FIDE-rated classic event was held at Lisburn Chess Club, Friday 14th November – Sunday 16th November.
An afternoon of brilliant chess and puzzle solving was held at Methodist College on 1st Nov 2025
The first of our 5 Childrens Chess took place on Saturday. These feed into a grandprix with top players being invited to our award ceremony and elite competition in June hopefully to be held at Stormont. We had some 35 youngsters attending.
The LJCC Belfast Qualifier took place at Methodist College on 25th Oct 25
The first of the UCU monthly childrens tournaments took place on 25th Oct 2025 after being postponed due to the storm. 32 players gathered to have a day of chess and puzzle solving. For the younger players it was an opportunity to qualify for one of the most prestigious tournaments in the UK. The London Junior Chess Championships.
UCU Tournaments: A Critical Moment for Volunteer and Arbiter Support
This report, prepared by Tournament Director Karina Campbell and presented to the Ulster Chess Union Executive Board, outlines the Union’s ongoing challenges in sustaining its tournament programme and aims to spark the vital support needed to move forward.
