FIDE RATED NI Gold Coast Team Classic League Round 5

Thursday 13 March 2025 : 7:30pm to 10:30pm

Venue: Church of Ireland Parish Hall, 30 Main Street, Groomsport, County Down, BT19 6JR, Northern Ireland

Time control 90+0

This event will be rated by FIDE and the ICU

Please note rounds 4, 5 and 6 will be rated by FIDE on March 31, 2025

Date for your diary: the final round of the NI Gold Coast Team Classic is Round 6 on Thur 27 March. Engraved trophies will be awarded to every member of the winning team.

Please arrive by 7:20pm at latest and be seated by 7:25pm.

No food allowed in playing hall. Drinks permitted at boards.

Entry fees are per round to keep it flexible as some players will not be able to commit to all rounds. It costs £5 per round for individuals or £15 per team of 5 (so £3 each). Payment required in advance to secure a place at the event. It is free entry for paid-up members of Bangor Chess Club in the 2024/2025 season (but ICU membership must also be paid-up).

It costs £40 per season membership fees at Bangor Chess Club, with half-price discount of £20 for Under 18s, full-time students and unemployed on state benefits.

Entire teams can enter or individuals from other clubs are welcome to play and you will be placed in a team.

The format is similar to UCU league matches, with teams of 5. The home team (the squad named first in the fixture) will take White on boards 2 and 4. The away team (squad named second in fixture) will take White on boards 1, 3 and 5.

Players should be seated in board order with highest to lowest ratings (within 100 rating points) and first rating to be used to select board order will be a player’s FIDE rating. If a player has no FIDE classic rating, the player’s ICU rating will be used. If the player has no ICU rating, their UCU classic will be used. Players with no classic rating at all, will he seated below rated players.

Deadline to enter round 5 is 12 noon on Sunday 9 March  (i.e. 5 days before the round).

Current league table at start of Round 5:

20.0 points - Bangor 3

14.5 points - Bangor 8

12.0 points - Bangor 4

12.0 points - Bangor 7

11.5 points - Downpatrick

11.0 points - Bangor 5

8.0 points - Bangor 6

5.5 points - Bangor 9

1.0 point - Civil Service 2

1.0 point - Inter-City

Entrants should be paid-up members of the Irish Chess Union [ICU] because all our FIDE rated events in Northern Ireland are run through the ICU and FIDE require entrants to be paid-up members of their National Federation.

Please send details of the date you renewed your 2024/2025 ICU membership (screen-shot or email receipt will suffice, both of which should show your ICU ID).

If you need to renew your ICU membership or register from scratch, please do so online here: www.icu.ie/shop

Checklist for competing:

1.ICU Member status

2.FIDE ID

3.FIDE classic rating (if you have one)

4.Entry fee

Entries to: Chief Arbiter/Organiser Brendan Jamison at: fidechessni@gmail.com