Team Chess Challenge National Final 2022 – report
Fourteen schools from across the country sent teams to the National Final of ECF Team Chess Challenge at Imperial College on Wednesday 14 September. Wilson’s School won with 15.5/20, just ahead of Queen Elizabeth Hospital (Bristol) on 15 and Sutton Grammar School on 13 points (click the images for a larger view)
Team Chess Challenge is a competition open to any British school with pupils in any of years 7 to 13 (English year groups). Each team taking part consists of four pupils who attend the same school and are in year 6 or above. Team Chess Challenge has been developed as a chess tournament which ALL secondary schools might like to enter.
The structure of Team Chess Challenge is that regional finals will be held on afternoons during the Spring Term 2022. The winning school at each Regional Final will qualify for the one day National Final. The host school will decide the details of the Regional Final. Typically at each Regional Final, between four and sixteen teams will participate. The host school can decide how many teams schools can enter. They should ensure an even number of teams take part, by entering an extra team if necessary. Schools can enter more than one Regional Final but players in a winning team cannot play in a subsequent Regional Final that year. Schools can only send one team to the National Finals.
The regional final is organised as an afternoon tournament lasting between 2 and 3 hours. Each event shall have four rounds (unless only 4 teams are playing) each lasting about 25 minutes. Swiss pairings will be used so that in the later rounds, the leading teams play against each other, and similarly the weaker teams play each other. Every game counts, so the maximum score is 16 points. The winning team is the one that scores the most points (out of 16). The host school can decide the starting time of their final, which may be during afternoon school or after school has finished. The principal aim of the regional final is that large numbers of school teams enjoy playing chess. The production of a winner to play at the National Final is an important subsidiary to this main aim.
Some Regional Finals may be run on the internet using the Lichess.org Battle format.
There is no entry fee for the tournament, but the host school may make a small charge for the provision of the refreshments, and possibly trophies, at the Regional Finals. Games are not graded, and there is no requirement for your team players to be members of any chess organisation.
To enter just contact the relevant organiser as listed below. If you cannot see an event you could easily enter then contact the national organiser Neill Cooper Email: manager.secondary@englishchess.org.uk
Regional Finals
East Essex Region – St. Thomas More High School
Tuesday January 11th 2022
Winners: Westcliff High School for Boys A
8 teams from 4 schools
Devon Region – Torquay Boys Grammar School
Contact: Tim Onions Email: tim.onions@yahoo.co.uk
Tuesday 15th February
Winners: Exeter School A
11 teams from 6 schools
North London Region – Harrow School
Contact: James Hall Email: jpbh@harrowschool.org.uk
Friday 25 February starting at 2pm
Winners: Highgate A
10 teams from 5 schools
Cheshire Region – Sir Thomas Boteler, Warrington
Contact: Jonathan Miller Email: jmiller1@boteler.org.uk
Wednesday 16th March starting at 1pm
Winners: Bolton School
8 teams from 5 schools
South London Region – Wilson’s School
Contact: Neill Cooper Email: nsc@wilsonsschool.sutton.sch.uk
Friday 25th March at 4.00pm in the John Jenkins Hall
Winners: Wilson’s A
Also qualified: Tiffin A, Whitgift A, Sutton GS A
24 teams from 7 schools
West of England Region – Bristol Grammar School
Contact: Graham Iwi Email: giwi@bgs.bristol.sch.uk
Monday 14th March from 4.00 – 6.15pm in the Great Hall
Winners: Bristol GS A
Also qualified: Sir Thomas Rich A and Queen Elizabeth Hospital A
34 teams from 13 schools
North East Region – St Mary’s School
Contact: Paul Richardson Email: Paul.Richardson@st-marys.newcastle.sch.uk
Tuesday 29th March with a 4.00pm start
Winners: St Mary’s High A
Also qualified: RGS Newcastle A
16 teams from 9 schools
East Midlands Region – Nottingham High School
Contact: Ed Jones Email: jones.e@nottinghamhigh.co.uk
Tuesday 22nd March at 4.00pm
Winners: Nottingham High School A
5 teams from 2 schools
Team Chess Challenge National Final
Wednesday 14th September 2022
Play is in Rooms 341/342 of the Huxley Building, 180 Queen’s Gate, Imperial College, London SW7 2AZ
Organiser: Neill Cooper, ECF Manager of Secondary School Chess | Arbiter: Phill Beckett
From 10.30am – arrival, refreshments, Chess Problem Solving Challenge (organised by the British Chess Problem Society)
11.15 – chess activity with Professor Jonathan Mestel (grandmaster and former British Chess Champion)
12.00 – lunch (provided)
12.40 – Round 1; 13.20 – Round 2; 13.55 – Round 3; 14.35 – Round 4; 15.10 – Round 5
15.50 – Prizegiving
16.00 – Departure
There is no charge for participating in this event. Rate of play in the National final is all moves in 10 minutes + 2 second per move increment. In a change to previous years, the games at this event will be ECF rapidplay graded.
Directions
Maps and directions at http://www.imperial.ac.uk/visit/campuses/south-kensington/. The Huxley Building is shown in square A2 on the Map of South Kensington Campus map here – https://www.imperial.ac.uk/media/imperial-college/visit/public/SouthKensingtonCampus.pdf