Prestwick 2012 Junior Saturday

[David G Congalton]

2nd PRESTWICK INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT CHESS CONGRESS

May 4th to May 6th 2012

JUNIOR SATURDAY CHESS TOURNAMENT – SATURDAY MAY 5TH

A one day junior event suitable for novices, beginners and juniors who are not taking part in the weekend event. The Saturday Junior Event is one of the new additions to this years congress and it is hoped that the event will give an opportunity to young people in Ayrshire, and beyond, who are interested in chess, to be part of a major event and encourage them to continue playing.

Open to any Junior aged under 16 at 4th May 2012 with a grade under 1000 or who is ungraded. The format of this new event will depend on the number of entries. Trophies and medals will be awarded for the best performances.

Entry fee for the Junior Saturday event will be £5 per person. Chess Scotland members may deduct £2.

The Junior Saturday Tournament will be held on the first floor of the airport’s main departure lounge and just a very short walk from the weekend tournament hall, where top players including a Chess Grand Master from Lithuania will be playing.

The Junior Saturday Venue overlooks the main airport departure area and as it is semi-open we anticipate that the event will create a lot of interest among those using the airport and probably some curious spectators.

The venue provides a fantastic opportunity to bring attention to Junior Chess events and junior chess in Ayrshire and we hope that the event will be well supported by juniors and parents alike. With a good turnout, who knows what publicity and benefits could be reaped from the event.

The 2012 event will be run by David Deary, who is the newly elected Treasurer of the Ayrshire Chess Association. David is a well known face on the congress circuit and it's good to see one of the younger faces taking an interest in organising at a County level and at tournaments. Joining David will be Michael Hanley, the President of Chess Scotland, who in addition to this role, finds the time to organise an extremely successful junior club in Hamilton and take chess into schools in the Hamilton and Bothwell area.

Further details on the Junior Event, the weekend congress and an entry brochure can be found at <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.ayrshirechesscongress.co.uk">http://www.ayrshirechesscongress.co.uk</a><!-- m -->

[David G Congalton]

I am hoping that we will have plenty of entries for this new to the calendar junior event, which will justify its organisation for next year.

Numbers permitting the event will be split into three sections - those graded under 1000, those under 600 and players graded below 300 including ungraded players.

There will be trophies for the winners and medals for those who perform well.

The Junior Saturday is very much a part of the whole weekend congress. Those who will be running the Junior part of the event have loads of experience in junior chess and all believe that the most important thing is the kids enjoy themselves. The format will be arranged so that kids of similar experience play in the same section and there will be adults experienced in Primary and Secondary school chess on hand to help out and make sure everyone has fun.

Quite a few of the parents, whose kids are playing in the weekend events will also be around and there is a real family atmosphere at the event. Everyone is welcome to have a look at the serious stuff going on in the main event hall, where there's the chance to see a top chess Grand Master in action.

I would advise silence or at least quiet in the main hall though, unless you want to see Donald and Andy put on their stern faces.

Children taking part may want to bring a packed lunch with them. There are no restrictions on bringing food into the event and the kids can have their packed lunch in the Junior area or in the reception lounge of the Aviator Suite, where most of the weekend players, parents and families relax.

Whilst it is all about fun, I would ask that children and parents are sensible about behaviour during the event. This applies equally to those playing in the weekend events and certainly some of those more than others.

I don't want to give the little ones nightmares but the airport police do carry guns! =o

[David G Congalton]

I'm delighted to announce that the Junior Saturday Tournament will be a Chess for Kicks (CFK) qualification event. The tournament will run in a smilar way to all other CFK events. There will be three sections, if numbers permit.

Under 1000
Under 600
Under 300

Clocks will be used in all games. For those who haven't used chess clocks, don't worry, the organsiers are there to help and make sure everybody enjoys themselves. They will be on hand to explain how playing chess with chess clocks works.

Each player will have 25 minutes each to make all their moves in each game.

Play will be on a continuous basis with each round taking place shortly after the last game of the previous round finishes. It is anticpated that there will be between 5 and 7 rounds.

All games will be full graded games.

[David G Congalton]

I'm hoping, later in the week, to have a number of local entries for the junior Saturday event. Keep an eye on the congress website.

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[David G Congalton]

Only 11 days to go before the Prestwick Congress Junior Saturday event. Please support this new addition to the Junior Calendar if you can. The playing area is somewhat unique as it overlooks the public area of the airport. The airport is easy to get to and has its own train station. It is a Chess for Kicks qualification event this year. Entry fee is only £5. Play starts at 10:30am.

[David G Congalton]

Only a week to go.

Better very late than never a specific entry form for the Junior Saturday event is now available to download at <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.ayrshirechesscongress.co.uk/JuniorTrophy.html">http://www.ayrshirechesscongress.co.uk/ ... rophy.html</a><!-- m -->

[David G Congalton]

Entries for the weekend events are now closed. However, entries for Junior Saturday will still be accepted on the Friday by e-mail, post and in person (and maybe even up to 10am on the Saturday ).

[David G Congalton]

Results from the Junior Saturday event can now be found on the congress website.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.ayrshirechesscongress.co.uk/JuniorTrophy.html">http://www.ayrshirechesscongress.co.uk/ ... rophy.html</a><!-- m -->

Huge thanks to David Deary, Michael Hanley and Jacqui Thomas for setting up, organising and running this first event at the Prestwick Congress.

Thanks to all the parents and club organisers who brought kids along to support the event. Your support is greatly appreciated.

Finally, thanks to all the juniors who played for making it a succesful day and what I hope will be the first of many junior events in Ayrshire over the rest of the year and beyond.