20-01-2006 chess
From Malaysia Encyclopedia
Friday January 20, 2006
New lease of life
By QUAH SENG SUN
Over the past three to four years, there are signs of more life returning to junior chess. We may not be producing any new exceptional junior chess talent yet but yes, more parents are now encouraging their children to learn the ropes of the game.
In a way, there is now an unprecedented proliferation of chess tutoring services, especially in the bigger chess centres like the Klang Valley and Penang. But whether the tutors are competent enough for the job is another matter altogether. As a result of this new lease of life for junior chess, it is not uncommon to see children turning out en masse to overshadow the adult players in chess tournaments nowadays.
For instance, juniors made up the majority of the 190-odd participants in last weekend’s USM Open in Penang. Maybe, because at the start of the new year, the pressures of studies have not seeped in yet. This trend is certain to continue well into March or even April.
The schools and the universities are at their most enthusiastic when it comes to organising chess tournaments. In Penang, for instance, the chess calendar is already more or less ready. After the USM team event this weekend, players will have the Union High School age group events for individuals and teams on Feb 4-5, Chung Ling High School open on Feb 11 and the Union High School open on March 19.
It is healthy growth but amidst all these activities at the ground level, there is an age-old problem which many organisers have yet to master: the inability to manage late entries that delays the start of the first round.
Ask any seasoned chess player and invariably, there will be the horror story of a tournament beginning half an hour, one hour or even longer after the published start of the first round. Most times, blame is placed on the chess players who submit entries at the last minute. Last-minute entries invariably cause delays in the pairings. But the culture is such that many chess organisers are sub-consciously promoting this habit instead of curtailing it.
There are some events that impose cut-off dates and cut-off times, thinking that they will resolve the problem of delays, but these rules are meaningless if a player registers early for a tournament but pays the entry fees late on the date of the event itself.
How then can organisers discourage last-minute entries or payments? The simplest is not to accept any last-minute entry but many organisers will not do this because the success of an event is often measured by the number of entries it attracts.
There are associations that slap penalty fees on late entries or payments made after the cut-off time. As a deterrent, it is good - especially if the penalty is high enough to hurt the player’s pocket. Then there are organisers who will insist that the entry fees be paid directly into their bank account and the payment slip then posted or faxed with the entry form to the organisers. Some will even allow e-mail registrations provided a scanned copy of the payment slip is attached.
Of course, there may be other solutions but whatever the solution chosen, both players and organisers alike should realise that both have their part to play in ensuring the success of events.
When organisers give their time to organise events, chess players have a reciprocal responsibility to help the organisers fulfil their organisational objectives, one of which is to start the event on time.
Quah Seng Sun can be contacted at ssquah@gmail.com. Join Malaysia’s biggest chess mailing list by registering yourself at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chess-malaysia
Up Next
CAS 1st quarter open
The Chess Association of Selangor (CAS) will organise their First Quarter allegro tournament this Sunday at The Chess Network, Wilayah Complex, Kuala Lumpur.
The first category will be for unrated adults and players with national ratings of at least 1400 points, while the second category is exclusively for unrated under-18 players and those with national ratings of less than 1400 points. There are 10 cash prizes in each category. Entry fees for the first category event are RM15 for CAS members and RM25 for others.
For the second category event, entry fees are RM10 for CAS members and RM20 for others. Players interested in taking part are required to pre-register by e-mail to chessmate@cas.com.kg and tsepin@gmail.com. Walk-in players will be charged an additional RM5 as a penalty fee.
Pesta catur USM
The 12th Universiti Sains Malaysia chess festival concludes this weekend with a sevenround team tournament. Eight main cash prizes are on offer.
Entry fees are RM40 for under-12 teams, RM50 for university and school teams, RM65 for family teams and RM80 for all other teams. Details: Ooi Chee Khoon (012-4287262), Chan Jun Jie (012-6150071), Lam Siew Zi (012-5344202) or Lim Kah Bee (012-4485546).
Chess workshop
If you are a beginner or an intermediate-level player, you may be interested to attend a chess workshop that the Persatuan Catur Melayu Malaysia and the Majlis Sukan Sekolah-sekolah Kuala Lumpur are jointly organising at The Chess Network, Wilayah Complex, Kuala Lumpur, on Jan 28-29.Participants in this workshop will be coached on the chess openings, middle game and endgame play. Fees are RM40 per person and only the first 40 registrants will be accepted. For more details, contact Gregory Lau (012-9020123) or Ahmad Azaly (016-2435163).
