The 2024 British Chess Championships were held in Hull.
Due to the distance between Dorset and Hull which in some cases is in excess of 300 miles not many locals took part at this year’s British Chess Championships.
Following players from Dorset participated and played in different sections.
From left to right: Harshal Kulkarni, Finn Schell, Mike Waddington & Martin Clancy
All of them did perform well in an extremely competitive tournament.
The summary of results and corresponding links as below
- In the Weekender Under 1500, Harshal Kulkarni (Poole) scored 3½ points out of 5 and came equal 5th out of 37.
https://chess-results.com/tnr971526.aspx?lan=1&art=1&rd=5&turdet=YES&flag=30
- In the Major Open, Finn Schell (Southbourne) scored 5½ points out of 9 and came equal 22nd out of 124.
https://chess-results.com/tnr969133.aspx?lan=1&art=0&turdet=YES&flag=30
- In the Over 50s, Mike Waddington (Dorchester & Poole) scored 3½ points out of 7 and came equal 17th out of 42.
https://chess-results.com/tnr969137.aspx?lan=1&art=0&turdet=YES&flag=30
- In the Over 65s, Martin Clancy (Ringwood) scored 3 points out of 7 and came equal 34th out of 58. This was a great result for Martin as he was 48th seed.
https://chess-results.com/tnr969139.aspx?lan=1&art=0&turdet=YES&flag=30
- In the Under 16, Finn Schell (Southbourne) scored 4 points out of 7 and came equal 6th out of 19.
https://chess-results.com/tnr971478.aspx?lan=1&art=0&turdet=YES&flag=30
Congratulations to all the players!!
Harshal Kulkarni shares his experience at the British Chess Championships –
In March this year I happen to visit the ECF website for my renewal of ECF membership and saw the announcement of British Chess Championships 2024 to be held in Hull. I was excited to see it but was hesitant to participate due to the distance of the venue from Dorset.
After bit of thinking I decided to go ahead and participate reason being opportunity to face more challenging players and if possible, meeting some British masters, also to experience national level event for first time.
As the tournament date was nearing the entrants list and programme for social events were published.
The entrant’s list was packed with British and European masters and the social events were also interesting consisting of simul and masterclasses with the GM’s. This made me sure that my decision of participating in the British Chess Championships 2024 was correct.
I played in the Weekend Congress in U1500 section and finished equal 5th out of 37 participants, this section was always tricky as there were few non-rated players who were making comeback after a break but used to play competitive chess in the events such as 4NCL. I was happy with my performance since I did not lose any game and managed to save a lost position in one game.
Social Programme –
I participated in a masterclass – How to Analyse a Chess Position – the difference between professional and amateur players by GM Danny Gormally
This was a great experience and changed my outlook towards analysis and calculation of a chess position.
Meeting the Masters –
This was another factor driving my participation in British Chess Championships. The masters whom I follow – GM Simon Williams and WIM Natasha Regan were playing in the British Chess Championships, and I was hoping to meet them.
On the last day of my Weekend Congress, I did manage to meet WIM Natasha Regan and NI Matt Ball and they signed for me a personal copy of their book – Zwischenzug! – A Comprehensive Guide to Intermediate Moves
It was great to meet them, and we had good discussion about the book and how this topic was ignored over the years and needs to be essential part of tactics training.
It was great experience overall and would love to see more players from Dorset participating next year.
