The DeSinco National Under-12 Rapid Championships concluded last
Saturday, January 12 th, with Alexander Zhang winning the Open
Category and Kristin Xavier winning in the Girl’s Category.
A total of 45 competitors (16 girls and 29 boys) under 12s came out
and played with skill and competitive spirit.
The championship hosted online on the Tornelo.com platform,
featured seven rounds of games in the swiss format with a time
control of 15 minutes with a 2-second increment with every move –
supervised by FIDE Arbiter John Lee.
Alexander Zhang came in first with six (6) points after winning five
of his matches and drawing his games against Nicholas Zhang and
Arysh Raghunauth drew the most spectators of the entire
tournament. This principled game in round 6 took place between the
two veteran players, with rehearsed opening theory from both. A
solid game sprinkled with tactics gave Raghunauth a major
advantage against Zhang. With precision, Raghunauth led the game
to the end where, unfortunately, Raghunath's time had elapsed. The
players agreed to a draw with Zhang having insufficient pieces for
an outright win, and Raghunauth low on time.
Nicholas Zhang finished second with 5½ points, only losing to Mayas
Khan secured the third-place spot with 5 points.
In the under-10 open category, 6-year-old Landon Mohabir upset
the field with his 5 point finish which guaranteed him the number
one slot in this category.
In his Round 7 game against Mahir Rajkumar, Landon Mohabir
fashioned a clean win against his veteran opponent. The game
exploded with tactics and opportunities for both sides at the very
start but concluded after 19 moves with Mohabir victorious.
Adam Rahaman and Alek Ubaldo–Singh came in second and third
respectively.
In the under-8 category, Vir Narine came in first and Javier
Davenand won second place.
Girls’ Tournament winner Kristen Xavier held a wonderful game
against Anaya Lall. In the face of attacks of brutal appearance by
Lall, Xavier persevered. The double-edged position was soon turned
to Xavier's favour, ending the tactical nightmare set by her
opponent. Kristin cemented her status as the first-ever Under 12
Girls’ Rapid Champion by defeating all of her opponents. Anaya Lall
was a close second with 6 wins, only losing to the overall winner. 8-
year-old Kataleya Sam was third on five points, conceding two
matches to Kristin Xavier and Anaya Lall.
The young Anaya Lall and the even younger Kataleya Sam battled it
out in intense Round 3. The advantage shifted hands back and forth
in what could only be a sign of equal skill. Sam's fierce aggression
had been matched by Lall's experience. The advantage fell to Lall as the tactical mid-game ended, who ended it swiftly by checkmating
her opponent in what could only be the most impressive game of the Girl's Tournament.
For under-10 females, Skyler Gurchuran was awarded first place. In
second was Nemisha Jagmohan and third place was Saudia Deo.
The winner for under-8 females was Isabella Shariff.
Notable games from the tightly contested Open category came from
Jacob Frank Mcdonald, Mahir Rajkumar, Arysh Raghunauth, Julian
Mohabir, Tejasvarun Kandavel, Omar Shariff, Ethen Pompey and
Vivek Persaud.
And from the Girls’ Tournament, impressive displays from Alayna
Ally, Faraa Gaskin, Ariana Munroe, Daivya Jagmohan, Aditi Joshi,
Athena Gilkes, Mira Kivik and Neeharika Shetty.
