Chess Age Preliminaries start on Saturday.
One of the biggest competitions in mental sports in Cyprus, the Chess Age Firsts Championship, starts this weekend at Kyrenia Acapulco Hotel. The championship, organized by the Northern Cyprus Chess Federation (KKSF) and sponsored by Türkiye İş Bankası, will start with a magnificent opening ceremony at 15.00 on Saturday. In the tournament where 399 children from the 7-18 age group will compete, young talents will have the chance to represent the TRNC in the age group championship in Turkey.
KKSF states that the tournament, which will be held with record participation this year, reflects the interest in chess, emphasizing the many benefits of chess such as mind development, analytical thinking, patience and concentration. The Federation welcomes the increasing popularity of chess among children, which is offered as an elective course in schools, and says that this interest is promising for the future of chess.
“In the Age Groups Championship, which is the largest participated tournament in Turkey, national team players are selected for each age group. Players who are champions in their age group win the right to compete in Europe’s largest age group championship to be held in Turkey.” While this tournament stands out as an important platform for young chess masters to showcase their skills, it also offers the opportunity to represent the TRNC at national and international level.
December 1 Program
The flow of the day will start with registration check-in at 12:00 and will end at 13:30. Participants will get important information about the tournament at the technical meeting at 13:30. At 14:00, the names of the athletes who will participate in the tournament will be announced with the announcement of the athlete lists. Immediately after this important announcement, 14:15 is the deadline for objections to the athlete lists. At 14:30, the highly anticipated Round 1 pairings will be announced and at 15:00, the official opening ceremony will greet all participants and spectators. Immediately after the opening ceremony, at 15:30, the first round of the tournament will begin.
