Chess Federation to host first ever Blitz Championship

The St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) Chess Federation will host its first ever Blitz Open Chess Championship on Sunday, April 27, 2025, at the Music Centre Hall, Kingstown.

The Federation said in a release that chess players from across SVG will gather for the Blitz Chess Championships, a fast paced version of Chess, also known as speed chess, and often times called Rapid chess where players have typically 10 minutes or less to make their moves.

For this championship the SVGCF said it will have a time control of 30 minutes with no increment. There is a registration fee for adults and youths.

The championship will be played in three distinct categories: Youth, Women, and Open. Both youth and women players can register in the Open category if they so choose but will not be allowed to register in more than one category.

This Federation said the championship is intended to sharpen the skill set of current chess players where speed and strategy converge as players try to outfox each other within a limited period of time.

Following this event the SVGCF said it will continue its programme of distributing chess sets to educational institutions across SVG, and this will be followed by demonstrations and practical sessions to be coordinated between the respective school or college and the Federation.

During the summer break it hopes to conduct several short summer Chess programmes on the Windward and Leeward areas of the mainland, as well as in Kingstown, and in the Grenadines aimed at maximising participation in the Chess Development Programme.

The SVGCF said it also intends to partner with the Ministries of Sports and Education with a view to hosting the first ever Inter-school Chess Championship before the end of the 2025 calendar year.

The Federation also said it is looking to compete in the CARICOM Chess Championship slated for Guyana later this year, and to close off the chess calendar for 2025 with preparations for the 2026 Tyrone Jack Memorial National Chess Championship.