Julian Isaak won the 6th Kehat Beukes Memorial ahead on Senior chess players

Julian Isaak, the 2010 Namibia National Junior Chess Champion won the 6th Kehat Beukes Memorial Chess tournament ahead of senior chess players.

In round 3 Julian Isaak and William Kamberipa was paired agaisnt two senior chess players and Julian remarked to his peer "We will get them today William". Little did we know that his words was no idle comment it was a threat. It was real. The young lad, according to his version blew away Candidate Master Charles Eichab after the latter made an apparent blunder.

On the other side of the hall Max Nitzborn the 2011 National Chess Champion also had to fight for dear life as he chose the dubious Budapest Defence against one of his students. The attack of the young lad was relentless and Nitzborn had to accept defeat at the end. It was shock and awe. Two TWCA (The Weekend Chess Academy) students just annihilated two senior chess players in the same round. This feat placed Julian Isaak in the lead and he remained there until the last round.

In the picture is all the winners. From left to right Stephne Swartz, Lichen Mentile, Rex Oberholzer, Sylvestor Nanyala, Julian Isaak (The Champion) Abhinav Lahiri and Charles Eichab.

The 6^th Kehat Beukes Memorial chess tournament came to an unusual end. It’s the first time in Namibian chess history where 4 players came in tied for first place and had to be separated by tie-breaks. The players were, Julian Isaaks, Sanders Oberholzer who is a former national team player returning to chess after a long break, CM Charles Eichab and Max Nitzborn. They all scored 7/9 points.

Direct-encounter was the first tie-break and could not be applied because the players didn’t play out amongst themselves which meant that the placement had to be done by the Progressive score which was the 2^nd tie-breaker. Julian who scored an inspired victory against top-seed and two time winner- CM Eichab- when the latter blundered in a winning position led the tournament on progressive score from that moment onwards.  He lost to Oberholzer and Nitzborn in the later rounds but still enjoyed a superior progressive score.  

In 2^nd place was CM Eichab and in 3^rd Oberholzer. Lishen Mentile won the best Girl Prize followed by Stepne Swartz. Sylvester Nanyala rallied after a poor start to won the best Junior prize followed in second place by Abhinav Lahiri. The organizers would like to thank Anna Bayer, Dr.Ogbonna as well as Thuringer Hof hotel and Windhoek Country Club and Resort for sponsoring the event.

The Namibia Chess Federation would like to thank Charles Eichab and Larissa Beukes for organizing the event. Well done!! Keep it up.

Kehat Beukes Memorial Chess Tournament from 10-11 December 2011

Venue: Protea Thϋringer Hof Hotel, Windhoek, Namibia

Date: 10 and 11 December 2011

Time:  11h00 on 10th December 2011

             11h30 on 11^th December 2011

Registration: N$ 30 Seniors and N$ 20 Juniors. Players can register from 01 December 2011 till 09 December 2011. Players can complete the form and e-mail it back to charleseichab@yahoo.com or sms their names, date of birth and gender to 081 623 8160.  

Who may participate: Tournament is open to all players of all ages.

Play: All players will play under 1 section however differentiations for special prizes will be determined through the final standings.

Shedule:

10 December 2010:  

Welcoming by Charles S. Eichab (LOC)

Remarks by Max B. Nitzborn President of the Namibian Chess Federation (NCF)

Announcements by the Arbiter 

Round 1) 11h30 – 12h30

Round 2)12h40 – 13h40

Round 3)13h50 – 14h50

Round 4)15h00 – 16h00

Round 5)16h10 – 17h10

11 December 2010: 

Round 6) 11h30 – 12h30

Round 7)12h40 – 13h40

Round 8)13h50 – 14h50

Round 9)15h00 – 16h00

Prize- Giving at 16h20 

Prizes:

 Open Section:
1st Prize N$2000.00
2nd Prize N$1,200.00
3rd Prize N$800.00
Best Junior:
1st Prize N$500.00
Best Girl

1^st Prize 500.00 

* Note that all prizes are subject to change and can go up but not less then the stipulated allocations above. Final announcements would be made before round 1.

* Being 20 years of age by 01 January 2011 makes you ineligible for any junior prizes.

System and rate of play: The chess tournament will be a 9 round Swiss system and the rate of play will be 30 minutes per player. 

Pairing and Tiebreak System: Swiss Perfect will be used for the pairings. Tie-Breaks will be Direct Encounter, Progressive Score, Median Buchholz and Buchholz.  

General Rules:

- Silence at all time.

- Cell phones should be switched off at all times in the playing hall. If a players’ cell phone rings during a game he or she will forfeit their game.

- No sharing of prizes. No player can win more then 1 prize

- Touch is a move unless the piece that was touch has no legal move.

- Any player who makes themselves guilty of rude behaviour will be disqualified with immediate effect.

- Any one that registers after 23h30 on 09 December 2010 will be paired only in the second round and will pay N$ 50 for registration as penalty.

-FIDE rules for rapid chess will be put up at the tournament side and players are advised to familiarize themselves with the rules.

- The Local organizing committee will be Mr. Charles Eichab and Ms. Larissa Beukes

- Members of the appeals committee are CM Otto Nakapunda, Mr. Fremantle Kuhanga and Mr. Max Nitzborn.

- All complaints should be directed to the Appeals Commitee. 

By Order

Tournament Director

CM Charles Eichab 

For more enquiries please contact CM EIchab at 081 623 8160

TWCA TEAM SCHOOL TEAM CHAMPIONS 2011

Saturday, 1 October 2011, The Weekend Chess Academy made history when the B Team won the 7th Namibia National School Team Chess Championships 2011 with 11.5/20. The Champions are, Matjiua Kajovi, Ethan Pretorius, Tjitjiri Tjaronda and Abhinav Lahiri. The team had to win their last match against Kolin Foundation B Team to capture the title and they surely did. In Second place came The Weekend Chess Academy A team with 9.5/20. The TWCA A team (Immanuel, Christo, William and Julian) also had to win their final match in the last round to win the silver Medals. In third place we had Kolin Foundation A team also with 9.5/20.

Kolin Foundation lost their match against the TWCA A team and was placed 3rd because of the first tie-break being direct encounter.

In the Primary section the Zandell Chess Academy Primary A Team took the gold with 23.5/28. They are; Etu Nangula, Mutago Hochobeb, Mubasen Hochobeb and Eu-Word Brendell. It was a horse race between ZCA and TWCA Primary A team (Nicola, Camy, Vetueza and Krishanu the 2010 Primary School Team Champions) who were leading the event from round one but conceded one point to many in the last round and ended with a 23/28 score in second place.
Van Rhyn Primary A team came in third place with 12/28. They had the same points then the ZCA B team but won on they match in round 2 and was placed 3rd because of the direct-encounter tie-break. The chess coach from Van Rhyn Primary wowed to capture the primary school title this year but they were outclassed by the top teams.
TWCA Coaches: Max, Goodwill and Edmund are proud to share the glory and honor with our teams. We will do it again for 2012 and 2013. TWCA are going from strength to strength.
In total we won 12 medals of 24 4 Gold and 8 Silver. Congratulations to the kidos. You are the best!!

Nanyala and Mentile are Namibian Junior Chess Champions for 2011

Yes, he did it again with another perfect score of 7/7. Silvestor Nanyala (Superman) played his best classical chess this past weekend. He defeated all 7 of his junior rivals including the 2010 Junior Champion Julian Isaak. He seemed unstoppable and even stayed calm when Hange Tjingaete captured his queen with a bang in their round 4 encounter. Nanyala, was unfazed and simply continue gently to wrap up the game in two more moves. In the last round the title could still go to Christo Retief, if only he defeats Nanyala. Fortunately for Nanyala, his tournament experience and years of passionate practice paid off in a final victory to clinch the title. Nanyala hails from Arandis and schooled at Kolin Foundation Secondary School where he learned to play chess. He studies Engineering at Unam Oshakati Campus.
In second place was Immanuel Gariseb with 5.5/7. Immanuel was taught by his brother Eddy who also stood by his side during this tough event. Immanuel also worked hard at his game and is currently a student at The Weekend Chess Academy. He conceded only one point to Nanyala and half a point to Mclean Handjaba. Maclean Handjaba took the bronze, also with 5.5/7 as he equally lost to Nanyala and drew with Immanuel Gariseb.

The girls section was won by Lishen Mentile, a true Champion for the Zandell Chess Academy. Lishen stayed focus and conceded 3 points to her rivals to end with a 4/7 score. She was followed by Stephne Swartz from The Weekend Chess Academy also with 4/7. The progressive score of Stephne was only 18 in comparison with that of Lishen Mentile, which were 19. Stephne made a comeback two months ago after a hiatus of 3 years from chess and vowed to take the top spot next year. Yes, she said not Girl Champion but Junior Champion is her aim next year. In 3rd place was Nicola Tjaronda the 2010 Girls Junior Champion from The Weekend Chess Academy also with 4/7. Nicola got a draw in her last game. She were placed third due to the progressive score tiebreak she only had 16.5 points and that placed her third.

The top 15 juniors in the Namibia are as follows:
Place Surname Name Score Tie-breaks
Progr. Score M-Buch.
1 Nanyala Silvestor 7 28 23
2 Gariseb Immanuel 5.5 23.5 19
3 Handjaba Mclean 5.5 21.5 20
4 Isaak Julian 5 23 22
5 Retief Christo 5 22 19
6 Kamberipa William 5 21 21
7 Kajovi Matjiua 4.5 17.5 17.5
8 Neib Michael 4.5 17 18
9 Tjingaete Hange 4 20 20
10 Mentile Lishen 4 19 18
11 Swartz Stephne 4 18 18
12 Tjaronda Jack 4 17 20
13 Tjipetekera Samuel 4 17 18.5
14 Cloete Josua 4 17 18.5
15 Tjaronda Nicola 4 16.5 17.5

The Namibia Chess Federation once again expressed its appreciation for the financial support from Bank Windhoek the official sponsor of the 4th Bank Windhoek Namibia National Junior Chess Championships 2011 to the amount of N$25,000.00. It is really a great help towards the development of chess in Namibia.
Together we do better.

WHO WILL BE THE NAMIBIAN JUNIOR CHAMPIONS FOR 2011?

The Namibia Chess Federation will host 4th Bank Windhoek Namibia National Junior Chess Championships 2011 - Closed at the Dawid Bezuidenhout High School from Friday, 22 July 2011 to Sunday, 24 July 2011.

The best 6 Namibian Juniors from 7 age groups qualified and will battle it out this weekend to determine who is the best junior chess players for Namiba.

Nanyala is poised to take the title, but 2010 Junior Champion Julian Isaak vowed that he will defend his title with all his brainpower. Other contenders, Lichen Mentile, Hange Tjingaete, Immanuel Gariseb, William Kamberipa, Jack Tjaronda, Christo Retief and Stephne Swartz are all ready to wrestle the title from Julian and Nicola...

Lishen Mentile and Stephne Swartz are also going for the best spot as the Junior Girl Champion, Nicola Tjaronda will not concede her title.

There will be no registration fees and the total Prizes are N$ 10,000.00 for the final event sponsored by Bank Windhoek. Thanks to our sponsor Bank Windhoek for making this event a reality.

The tournament will commenced at 15h00 on Friday, 22 July 2011.

The tournament regulations can be downloaded here.

Nanyala (Superman) wins 4th Bank Windhoek Namibia National Junior Chess Championships 2011 - Open

The past weekend we had a spectacular chess event when Silvestor Nanyala, a student at Unam won the 4th Bank Windhoek Namibia National Open Junior Chess Championships 2011 with a perfect score of 7/7. Nanyala was calm and collected as he raked in the one victory after the other. He has a great passion for chess and has proven that he can be a champion this year. Nanyala was followed closely by Julian Isaak, the 2x TWCA Champion and current National Junior Champion of Namibia with 6/7. Hot on his heals were Mclean Handjaba from Unam who also displayed great chess skill with a 5/7 score. The trophy for the best female junior player went to Stephne Swartz from TWCA who also scored 5/7. She is making a comeback to chess after a hiatus of 3 years from competitive chess.

In the u/18 section we had another perfect score of 7/7 by Hange Tjingaete from ZCA. Hange is a promising upcoming star and is one of the favorites to capture the Namibian Junior Chess Champion title. Hange was caught by a deadly attraction combination of Jack Tjaronda in round 6, but kept his composure and defeated Jack in a technical endgame. In 2nd place we had William Kamberipa from TWCA with 6/7. Kamberipa also performed well but was unfortunately outwitted by Hange in round 5. In 3rd place we had Jack (The Blitz Master)Tjaronda with 5.5/7 also from TWCA.

Lichen Mentile, from ZCA dominated the u/16 section with a 6/7 score. This young lady also played her best chess ever when she disposed of her closes rivals Kajovi and Tjitjiri in grand style. She is another favorite contender for the ultimate title. She proofed once again that girls can deal with the boys, if given the same opportunities. In 2nd place was Kajovi from TWCA with 5.5/7. Kajovi only conceded 1.5 point to Lichen and Antonio from Academia. 3rd was none other than Michael Neib from Kolin Foundation who scored 5/7.

The u/14 section was dominated by Abhinav Lahiri from TWCA with 6.5/7. Abhinav escaped a sure defeat from Nicola Tjaronda in their round 4 encounter. She had him on the ropes but he played until she blundered and he pulled a Houdini with a draw. Samuel Tjipeiekera from Kolin Foundation came 2nd with 5.5 after he went all out from move 1 in the last round against Nicola and defeated her in 6 moves. It was a shoker for our Junior Female Champion 2010, but she just laugh it off and promised not to fall for the beginners trap again. Nicola Tjaronda from TWCA had to accept the 3rd place with 5.5 because the first tie-break was direct encounter with her rival Samuel.

Josua Cloete, from St. Pauls College took the top spot in the u/12 section with a 6/7 score. It was his first event in the juniors, but the lad had lots of fun and won his games smiling. He was followed by Ileni Kandume from ZCA with 5.5/7. In third we had Mutago Hochobeb also from ZCA with 5/7.

The under 10 section was dominated by ZCA duo Jamal and O’Brein. Jamal Simataa came first with 5.5/6 followed closely by O’Brein Simasiku with 5/6. During the event we saw them having lots of fun. They have frequent many a chess event the last 3 years and the training form their coaches from ZCA are surely paying off. In 3rd place we had another newcomer Josua Britz, from TWCA with 4.5/6. It was also his first exposure at the junior champs. Josua had a very modest and objective view of the competition as he did not boast with his victories. He too had lots of fun with his debut. The u/10 section only played 6 rounds as there were not enough participants to pair a seventh round.

The u/8 section was dominated by another newcomer, Krishanu Lahiri from TWCA. This lad played very fast and when we cautioned him to slow down he replied” but it is so easy to attack them” He did not boast but he certainly enjoyed himself. He two had a perfect score of 7/7. His closes rival was Kevin Gurirab from ZCA who has a very sore eye but insisted to participate and came 2nd with 5.5/7. It was great to witness such determination from this young lad. Here we have seen the pure passion for chess. A grandmaster in the making. Kasparov also participated in the u/8 section and came 3rd overall with 5/7. Yes, his name is Kasparov Nangula. His parents gave him the name of the 13th World Chess Champion and ZCA are in the process to mould him into a World Champion.

165 juniors from all over the country came to participate and played 1155 games over 7 rounds. 42 Namibians qualified for the final showdown to determine the Namibian Junior Champions for Namibia on the 22,23 and 24 July 2011. It will be a 7 round classical Swiss system chess tournament with a 1h15 minutes, time control per player for the entire game.

The Qualifiers for the close event are as follows:

Place Surname Name Club Count Rating Score Progr. M-
Buch.
1 Gurirab Kevin ZCA 1 1100 5.5 18 16
2 Nangula Kasparov ZCA 1 1100 5 22 16.5
3 Katjatenja Wendji CCA 1 1100 3.5 11.5 18
4 Newman Franlin CCA 1 1000 3 14 18.5
5 Hiloohamba Jennifer ZCA 1 1100 3 12.5 18.5
6 Mavunga Farai CCA 1 1100 1 6 18.5
7 Simataa Jamal ZCA 1 1100 5.5 18.5 11
8 Simasiku O'brein ZCA 1 1100 5 17 12.5
9 Britz Joshua TWCA 1 1200 4.5 15.5 13
10 Swartz Simone TWCA 1 1100 3 12 13
11 Amuphadi Tangeni ZCA 1 1100 2.5 8.5 13
12 Kefilwe Kajovi ZCA 1 1100 2.5 8.5 11
13 Cloete Josua ST PAULS 1 1100 6 21 17
14 Kandume Ileni ZCA 1 1100 5.5 20.5 19
15 Hochobeb Mutago ZCA 1 1100 5 23 18
16 Njembo Galilei CCA 1 1100 4.5 16.5 19
17 Hochobeb Mubasen ZCA 1 1400 4 21 22
18 Gowaseb Dale CCA 1 1100 4 12.5 13.5
19 Tjipeiekera Samuel KOLIN 1 1300 5.5 24 17.5
20 Tjaronda Nicola TWCA 1 1600 5.5 25 23
21 Trepper Tibor TWCA 1 1550 5 22 21.5
22 Nangula Etu ZCA 1 1590 5 21 19
23 Kafo Jafet TWCA 1 1450 4.5 17.5 17
24 Nitzborn Camy TWCA 1 1480 4.5 17 17.5
25 Mentile Lichen ZCA 1 1600 6 27 22
26 Kajovi Matjiua TWCA 1 1685 5.5 24.5 23
27 Neib Michael KOLIN 1 1300 5 21 20.5
28 Kafo David TWCA 1 1670 5 21 17.5
29 Antonio Michael ACADEMIA 1 1300 5 19.5 19
30 Sabati Kelsey TWCA 1 1660 5 19 18.5
31 Tjingaete Hange ZCA 1 1710 7 28 23.5
32 Kamberipa William TWCA 1 1710 6 25 21.5
33 Tjaronda Jack TWCA 1 1600 5.5 24 19
34 Haipinge Haitange KOLIN 1 1300 5 22 21
35 Retief Christo TWCA 1 1700 5 21 22
36 Joseph Mateus KOLIN 1 1300 5 18 18.5
37 Nanyala Silvestor UNAM 1 1800 7 28 20
38 Isaak Julian TWCA 1 1750 6 24 19.5
39 Handjaba Mclean UNAM 1 1700 5 23 21
40 Swartz Stephne TWCA 1 1760 5 21 19
41 Gariseb Immanuel TWCA 1 1780 5 20 19
42 Swartz Stoffel MAR 1 1300 4.5 17.5 15

The Namibia Chess Federation would like to thank the official sponsor of the event, Bank Windhoek for their financial support the last 4 years. Together we do better.

4h Bank Windhoek Namibia National Junior Chess Championships 2011

The 4th Bank Windhoek Namibia National Junior Chess Championships 2011 will take place on the 9th of July 2011 at the Dawid Bezuidenhout High School. All Juniors under 20 years are invited to come and showcase their chess talent. This year the event will be bigger as more and more children take up chess as an alternative sport.

Bank Windhoek is the proud sponsor of the event and has set aside N$25,000.00 for this serious encounter of the Young Minds. The Namibia Chess Federation are forever, greatful to Bank Windhoek as this is the 4th year the the Bank sponsors junior chess. Together we do better...

In the picture we have Julian Isaac the current Junior Champion of Namibia. Julian is ready to defend his title this year.
Chess is one of the most powerful educational tools available to strengthen a child’s mind. It’s fairly easy to learn how to play. Most six or seven year olds can follow the basic rules. Some kids as young as four or five can play. Like learning a language or music an early start can help a child become more proficient.

Whatever a child’s age, chess can enhance concentration, patience, and perseverance, as well as develop creativity, intuition, memory, and most importantly, the ability to analyze and deduce from a set of general principles, learning to make tough decisions and solve problems flexibly.

We therefore invite every child in Namibia to participate in this prestigious junior chess championship and would like to encourage those who don’t know how to play chess to give it a try. It's lots of fun and a great sport.

Registration fees are as follows:
U/8 &U/10 = N$30.00
U/12, U/14 & U/16 =N$40.00
U/18 & U/20 = N$60.00

Registration closes Friday, 8 July 2011 at 16h00, and any registration after this date and time will be considered as late registration and such players will only be paired from round 2 with zero points.

To register an individual click here and to register a number of individuals click here. The tournament regulations can be found here.

Nitzborn Chess King of Namibia – Wins Sanlam Sponsored National Chess Championships 2011

Sanlam Namibia is the Official sponsor of the 6th Sanlam Namibia National Chess Championships 2011 with a total sponsorship of N$19,000 for this event. Sanlam Namibia has sponsored N$78,400.00 since 2005 towards chess. With such a corporate citizen we can only appreciate their investment in sports. The Namibia Chess Federation and all its members are grateful for the financial assistance over the years.

The event was won by Max B. Nitzborn, his first ever National Chess Championship, on 4 May 2011. The newly crowned Champion took the lead in round 4 with full points and remained there until the last round. In round 7 he won the event with one round to spare, after defending masterfully against a fierce attack from Adelino Uirab. His final result was 21/24. He was followed in second place by Candidate Master Charles Eichab with 19/24 and in third place came the 2008 Champion Frans Dennis with 18/24.

The Ladies did not disappoint either, as Rauha Shipindo came 1st with 13/24 followed by Lishen Mentile in second place with 12/24 and in third place we had Camy Nitzborn also with 12/24. Rauha is thus the Women’s Champion of Namibia 2011.

The juniors gave a good account of themselves and 3 took the top honors in their category. The winner of the junior section is Silvester Nanyala who scored an impressive 18/24 and was 4th overall. Silvestor defeated Goodwill Khoa in their final battle and with that netted the 1st place in the junior section. He was followed by the 15 year old Immanuel Gariseb who was leading the juniors from round 2 but could not claim victory at the end as he drew his last game and had to settle for the second place with 16/24 points. In third place we had Christo Retief who defeated a Candidate Master and a top senior player in the last round. Christo stayed focused in his encounters and scored 15/24 to clinch the bronze medal in the junior section. Great performance. Both Immanuel and Christo are students at The Weekend Chess Academy.

The prizes were as follows:
Open Section:
1st Prize: Trophy, Gold Medal and N$2,500.00
2nd Prize: Silver Medal and N$1,500.00
3rd Prize: Bronze Medal and N$1,000.00

Junior Section:
1st Prize: Trophy, Gold Medal and N$1,000.00
2nd Prize: Silver Medal and N$ 800.00
3rd Prize: Bronze Medal and N$ 400.00

Women Section:
1st Prize: Trophy and Gold Medal
2nd Prize-Silver Medal
3rd Prize-Bronze Medal

42 chess players registered and 8 rounds of chess where played over 6 days at the Protea Hotel Thuringerhof. This is one of the best classical chess events Namibia has seen in a long time. With the introduction of the Sofia rules only 4 draws were conceded in the entire event.

For the full results click here...

6th Sanlam Namibia National Chess Championships 2011 next weekend from 29 April 2011 to 4 May 2011

Sanlam Namibia Sponsors N$19,000.00 towards National Chess Championships 2011.

The 6th Sanlam Namibia National Chess Championships will be played from 29 April to 4 May 2011. Who will be the Champion for Namibia this year? This is a closed event only for Namibians...

Date: 29 April - 4 May 2011

Venue: Protea Hotel Thuringerhof, Independence Avenue.

Registration:

Adults - N$100.00 plus Deposit of N$50.00

Students - N$ 50.00 plus Deposit of N$50.00

Scholars - N$30.00 plus Deposit of N$50.00

NB: The registration fees for Non Members will be double, so we will advise players to pay their annual registration fees. The Deposit remain the same for Non Members.

Who may participate: Namibians only.
Dress Code: Smart Casual

Event programme:

Round 1 : Friday - 29 April 2011 - 18h00 - 22h00
Round 2 : Saturday - 30 April 2011 - 8h00 - 12h00
Round 3 : Sunday - 1 May 2011 - 8h00 - 12h00
Round 4 : Sunday - 1 May 2011 - 13h00 - 17h00
Round 5 : Monday - 2 May 2011 - 8h00 - 12h00
Round 6 : Monday - 2 May 2011 - 13h00 - 17h00
Round 7: Tuesday - 3 May 2011 - 18h00 - 22h00
Round 8 : Wednesday - 4 May 2011 - 8h00 - 12h00
Prizegiving: Wednesday - 4 May 2011 - 13h00.

The Sofia rules will also be a new introduction to get figthing chess and less draws.The point system will be 3 for a win, 1 for a draw and 0 for a loss. So the drawmasters will have to hang up their negotiation skills and learn to fight and to take some risks.

You are invited to come and Think Ahead and win...

The Namibia Chess Federation would like to thank our sponsor Sanlam Namibia for sponsoring this event.

Register online
Registration forms
Tournament Regulations

James Dimba won Independence Blitz for second year!!

Twenty-three-year-old Unam student James Dimba successfully defended his title as the King of Blitz when he won the 6th NAMSPORTS Independence Blitz Chess Tournament this past weekend. Dimba scored 10 out of 11 to edge out tournament host Otto Nakapunda who scored 9.5 and Charles Eichab who managed 8.5 points. Lishen Mentile also defended her crown as the best female player with a points tally of 7.

Half-way through the tournament, Dimba led comfortably with a perfect score of 6 out 6, followed by Olympian Max Nitzborn and former Junior Champion Toivo Nangula 5. Hot on their heels were the usual suspects Nakapunda, Eichab, Simon Shidolo and a rejuvenated Glenville Kapuire, also a former Junior Champion, all on 4.5.

Things got interesting in round 9 when Goodwill Khoa, the 2010 silver medallist, handed Dimba his solitary loss, blowing the title race wide open. Khoa would eventually finish 4th but there was nothing to stop Dimba, who hails from Lusaka in Zambia, from walking away with the Job “Zarp” Ndimwedi trophy.

Brave Warriors goal-tender Attiel Mbaha showed his chess prowess by scoring a respectable 7 out of 11, but he jokingly said he wasn’t happy not being on top.

Interesting battles were also fought on the lower boards with 7-year-old Kevin Gurirab arguably walking away with the performance of the day. Gurirab’s score of 5 wins netted him the Under 8 honours and it was in fact good enough to win the Under 10 section. In the final round, he beat 20-year-old Raurovandu Kandikirira, almost 3 times his age. He was followed by Kasparov Nangula. The Under 10 section was won by O’Brien Simasiku, followed by Jamal Simataa (both 4 points) and Tuli Petrus (3). Mubasen /Hochobeb edged his elder brother Mutago /Hochobeb into third place to win the Under 12 age-group.

Ileni Kandume took second place. In the closest of finishes, the U14 trio of Abhinav Lahiri, Nicola Tjaronda and Chauncey Nakapunda all scored 6 points and had to be separated by tie-breaks to finish in that order.

Despite scoring only 1 win in his last four games, Matjua Kajovi won the U16 section thanks to his strong start of 5/7. He was followed by Immanuel Gariseb and Lishen Mentile. As in the U14 section, all three scored 6 points and the tie-breaks had to set them apart. National Junior Champion Julian Isaaks took top honours in the U18 section thanks to his superior progressive score over Mitch Nitzborn. Both scored 6.5 with Hange Tjingaete half a point behind in third.

Calvin Eixab, Namibian Junior Open winner, scooped the U20 top prize with a round to spare. He scored 7 points ahead of Richman Tjiriange (5 points) who got expelled after round 10 for interfering in a crucial match between Julian Isaak and Greg Tjamburo. Raurovandu Kandirikirira came in third place with 4 points. The tournament, which attracted 52 chess enthusiasts, took place in the UN Plaza hall and not the traditional open-air amphi-theatre for fear of rain.

The various winners shared N$ 3,000 and all top three finishers received certificates. Meanwhile, the Namibia Chess Federation (NCF) has announced that the long-awaited Annual General Meeting (AGM) will take place on the 16th April 2011 at the Village Courtyard Suits, 18 Liliencron Street . Motions and nominations for executive members should be forwarded to the NCF no later than Friday, 8th April 2011.

FINAL STANDINGS

1. James Dimba 10

2. Otto Nakapuhnda 9.5

3. Charles Eichab 8.5

4. Goodwill Khoa 8

5. Glenville Kapuire 7.5

6. Max Nitzborn 7

7. Toivo Nangula 7

8. Attiel Mbaha 7

9. 8. Fremantle Kuhanga 7

10. Calvin Eixab 7

**Mbaha & Kuhanga share 8th spot even after all tie-breaks were applied.

2011 Namsports Independence Blitz Chess Tournament this weekend 19 March 2011

Dear Chess Friends, Everybody are invited to the 2011 Namsports Independence Blitz Chess Tournament, this weekend, 19 March 2011 at the UN Plaza Hall at the Corner of Independence Avenue and Penning Street, Katutura.

The Blitz Champion James Dimba will defend his title this year against Candidate Masters, Otto Nakapunda, Charles Eichab and runner up of last year Goodwill Khoa who almost won the event. The organizer of the event has promised that this year we will witness a chess event unlike any seen before in Katutura.

For registration: contact Mr. Otto Nakapunda at 0812116463. His fax number is +264 61 261899. Registration fees are N$30.00 for Adults and N$20.00 for Scholars. The event starts Saturday at 9h15-15h00. TOTAL PRIZE FUND: N$3,000.00. We are looking forward to see you there. You may download the tournament regulations here.

KATIMA MULILO CHESS CLUB

The small town of Katima Mulilo has much to offer both residents and visitors…boating, fishing, game drives, and much more. One activity not available was the game of chess. Malcolm Williamson, recently from Windhoek, started a very small weekly chess meeting and game with just one other interested party – Helen.

Christoph, who previously taught chess at a local school, joined and since our inauspicious beginning, we have grown enormously. Katima Mulilo Chess Club now boasts ten members and numbers are increasing.

Wednesday evening in Katima has become a date to look forward to as chess enthusiasts meet and enjoy two hours of a most enjoyable and interesting sport.

The Katima Mulilo Chess Club members thank the Namibian Chess Federation for their tremendous support and sponsorship. Although distance is a problem, hopefully one day we will meet and play against other clubs.

As the saying goes “from small acorns…” and this small chess club will soon hold their first AGM and apply to become an official member of the Namibian Chess Federation. And from there, who knows?

In the picture above we have: Front Row L to R Helen and Erica
Back Row L to R Malcolm, Doug, Christoph and Dick.
Story and picture contributed by Malcolm.