The DeSinco National Under-12 Rapid Championship concluded last Saturday with Alexander Zhang winning the Open Category and Kristin Xavier winning in the Girl’s category.
A total of 45 competitors (16 girls and 29 boys) Under-12s came out and played with skill and competitive spirit.
The championship, hosted online on the Tornelo.com platform, featured seven rounds of games in the Swiss format with a time control of 15 minutes with a two-second increment with every move – supervised by FIDE Arbiter John Lee.
Alexander Zhang came in first with six points after winning five of his matches and drawing his games against Nicholas Zhang and Arysh Raghunauth, which drew the most spectators of the entire tournament.
This principled game in Round Six took place between the two veteran players, with rehearsed opening theory from both. A solid game sprinkled with tactics gave Raghunauth a major advantage against Zhang.
With precision, Raghunauth led the game to the end where, unfortunately, his time had elapsed. The players agreed to a draw with Zhang having insufficient pieces for an outright win, and Raghunauth low on time.
Nicholas Zhang finished second with 5½ points, only losing to Mayas Khan who secured the third-place spot with five points.
In the Under-10 Open category, six-year-old Landon Mohabir upset the field with his five-point finish, which guaranteed him the number one slot in this category.
In his Round Seven game against Mahir Rajkumar, Landon Mohabir fashioned a clean win against his veteran opponent. The game exploded with tactics and opportunities for both sides at the very start, but concluded after 19 moves with Mohabir victorious.
Adam Rahaman and Alek Ubaldo–Singh came in second and third respectively.
In the Under-8 category, Vir Narine came in first and Javier Davenand won second place.
The Girls’ tournament winner Kristen Xavier held a wonderful game against Anaya Lall. In the face of attacks of brutal appearance by Lall, Xavier persevered.
The double-edged position was soon turned to Xavier’s favour, ending the tactical nightmare set by her opponent. Kristin cemented her status as the first-ever Under-12 Girls’ Rapid Champion by defeating all of her opponents.
Anaya Lall was a close second with six wins, only losing to the overall winner. Eight-year-old Kataleya Sam was third on five points, conceding two matches to Kristin Xavier and Anaya Lall.
The young Anaya Lall and the even younger Kataleya Sam battled it out in intense Round Three.
The advantage shifted hands back and forth in what could only be a sign of equal skill. Sam’s fierce aggression had been matched by Lall’s ‘experience.’
The advantage fell to Lall as the tactical mid-game ended, who ended it swiftly by checkmating her opponent in what could only be the most impressive game of the Girl’s tournament.
For Under-10 females, Skyler Gurchuran was awarded first place. In second was Nemisha Jagmohan and third place was Saudia Deo. The winner for Under-8 females was Isabella Shariff.
Notable games from the tightly contested Open category came from Jacob Frank Mcdonald, Mahir Rajkumar, Arysh Raghunauth, Julian Mohabir, Tejasvarun Kandavel, Omar Shariff, Ethen Pompey and Vivek Persaud.
And in the Girls’ tournament, impressive displays came from Alayna Ally, Faraa Gaskin, Ariana Munroe, Daivya Jagmohan, Aditi Joshi, Athena Gilkes, Mira Kivik and Neeharika Shetty. (GCF)
