Guyanese FIDE Master Anthony Drayton emerged champion of the Caribbean Blitz 2024 hosted by the Guyana Chess Federation on Wednesday (March 6) at the Ramada Georgetown Princess Hotel, Providence, East Bank Demerara.
The competition was open to all members of the visiting teams for the ongoing CARICOM Classic Chess Tournament, and Guyanese chess players and attracted more than 40 participants.
Among the players were females from both the visiting CARICOM and Associated Members and local teams. The fast-paced intense chess competition was played over seven rounds with three minutes on each side plus two seconds increment after each move.
Drayton triumphed over his opponents to gain an undefeated 6.5 points. He won against Guyanese players Rolex Alexander, Sachin Pitamber, Trinidadians Ysvett Hermoso Rodriguez, Quinn Cabralis and Joshua Johnson, and Jamaican Nathan Hinds. He drew with Surinamese Jason Yeung in the last round.
Coming in second to fourth place with 5.5 points each were FM Joshua Johnson, FM Quinn Cabralis and Jason Yeung respectively.
Guyanese Candidate Master Ronuel Greenidge placed fifth with five points. Rodriguez, Jhustice-Demonte McDonald (Jamaica), Phillip Corbin (Barbados) and Ryan Blackwood (Cayman Islands) also gained five points to take positions sixth to ninth respectively, while Barbados’ Emar Edwards took the 10th spot with 4.5 points.
Cash prizes totaling US$1,250, sponsored by the Guyana Chess Federation, were presented to the top 10 finishers, while the Under-14 prize went to 13-year-old Guyanese Sachin Pitamber.
The chess tournament was supervised by FIDE Arbiter John Lee and International FIDE Arbiter Kelvin Daniel from Barbados. Several Guyanese players who are known for playing the speed chess format also participated.
They included Davion Mars and the Motilall brothers. The speed chess format forces players to overwhelm opponents in a few minutes.
“The GCF congratulates Anthony Drayton on his achievement and thanks all the players who participated in the Blitz,” the Federation said.
The CARICOM Classic games will continue on Friday with rounds seven and eight. The week-long tournament will conclude on Saturday.
The games can be viewed live at https://guyanachess.gy/caricom2024/caricom-2024-live-games/
