The annual Marlon Williams Chess Tournament is set for next Sunday, April 7th, at the Catholic Life Centre in Brickdam. The time factor is 15 minutes per game for the duration of the tournament. There are three cash prizes in the Senior Open category and five for the Juniors. There are also cash prizes for the Best Female Overall and the Best Newcomer, male or female. The games will commence at 9:30 am and the tournament is supported by the Guyana Chess Federation.
The Marlon Williams tournaments have their genesis in the backyard of the law offices of a prominent city lawyer. The backyard was a hive of chess activity after work. When a player lost, he vacated his seat to accommodate a fresh player. It was serious chess, and, simultaneously, it was fun.
The first tournament was held in the backyard, a point which Marlon emphasised as I spoke to him. It was held in honour of his birthday. It was Rai Sharma who inspired him to host a chess tournament instead of having a party, Marlon noted. And from that time, the tournament has grown exponentially.
Meanwhile, in the recent Grand Prix 111, which qualifies a player to participate in the FIDE Olympiad, the placements were as follows:
Open category
1st – Kyle Couchman
2nd – Ethan Lee
3rd – Keron Sandiford
Female category
1st – Sasha Shariff
2nd – Jessica Callendar
3rd – Aditi Joshi
