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The February edition of the Sunday/Junior Open took place at the Vancouver Bridge Centre on February 12.  Sixteen players took part in the Sunday Open, including five Washington juniors.  Fourth-ranked Vlad Gaciu survived a tense time scramble in the last round to win his game and claim first prize with a perfect score, half a point ahead of Lucas and Noam Davies, who had earlier agreed to a quick draw in their game.  Joe Roback won the U1600 prize, David Pash (Washington) the U1300.

 

The junior U1500 only had four entrants, so the usual four-round Swiss format was changed to a double round robin.  Foster Tom scored 4/6 to come in first, while Alex Sabaratnam was second with 3.5.  In the ten-player Booster Section Janak Awatramani gave up just a single draw in winning first prize, Max Allman was second, and Jacob Jensen and Kyle Zheng tied for third.

 

 

 

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Like many places in Canada, Vancouver experienced a boom following the cessation of hostilities in 1945.  Not surprisingly this prosperity spilled over into leisure activities, including chess.  Apart from a thriving economy, returnees from the war and immigrants help fuel the post-war growth of chess in Vancouver: within the next ten years Miervaldis Jursevskis, Gerhard Neufahrt, and Elod Macskasy would all move to the West coast, to name but three.  Another important factor was the chess column written by Dave Creemer in the Vancouver Province; this ran from 1947-1957, and did much to promote and popularize chess within B.C. (see Bulletin #31 for more on Creemer).

 

In those days chess life in Vancouver was predominately centred around the chess clubs.  There were three main clubs, the Vancouver Chess Club, the City Chess Club, and the Vancouver Jewish Chess Club; it is indicative of the post-war popularity of chess that two of these clubs had arisen since the end of the war.  The senior club was the Vancouver CC, founded in 1911; originally the club rooms were at various locations downtown, but in 1946 it moved to the Peretz Institute at 1173 West Broadway, sharing accommodations with the Vancouver Jewish CC.  This site was also often home to the B.C. Championship in the late 1940s and 1950s.

 

The Vancouver Chess Club in session at 1173 West Broadway (one might think the players were dressed up for the photographer, but apparently this was standard attire at the time).

 

When the Vancouver CC moved in 1946, a number of its members thought it was a mistake to leave the downtown area and instead formed the City CC; in 1948 they occupied rooms in the Fairfield Building at Granville and Pender.  The majority of Vancouver's stronger players eventually gravitated to the City CC, the predecessor of the club which now meets at the YMCA on Burrard Street.  The third club, the Vancouver Jewish CC, was a direct result of immigration, in this case from Winnipeg.  The Winnipeg Jewish Chess Club was one of the strongest clubs in the West; even Abe Yanofsky only managed to win its championship once.  Two former members of the Winnipeg club, Dave Creemer and Frank Atnikov, were already living in Vancouver when a third member, Abe Helman, arrived in 1945.  They formed the Vancouver Jewish CC in November 1945, presumably using the Winnipeg club as a model; one of the club's first official events was a match against visiting Soviet naval officers in December 1945 (see Bulletin #86).

 

Nearly all the chess activity in Vancouver in those years was club oriented; with the exception of the B.C. and Vancouver championships almost all the tournaments were organized by the clubs (the independant open Swiss did not appear until the 1960s).  The chess season paralleled the school year.  The club championships generally took place in the autumn, along with the Vancouver individual championship; the interclub championships took place from January to March, followed by the B.C. championship at Easter and the B.C. - Washington match (contested over 50 or 60 boards!) during the summer.  Interspersed between these events would be various club tournaments, sometimes restricted to club members, at other times invitational or open to all.  The City CC held a thematic gambit tournament one year, while handicap events (the giving of odds to players of lower strength) and informal team matches were also popular.  In 1948 the Vancouver Jewish CC won the interclub championship after a playoff with the City CC, Abe Helman repeated as B.C. Champion, B.C. retained the international match trophy it had won the previous year, and George Panton won the Vancouver championship.

 

Here are some selected games from these and other events:

Millar,C - Taylor,J [D02] City CC ch Vancouver, 10.02.1948

1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 e6 3.e3 c5 4.c4 Nc6 5.a3 Nf6 6.b3 cxd4 7.exd4 Bd6 8.Bd3 dxc4 9.bxc4 0–0 10.Bb2 Re8 11.Ne5 Qb6 12.Bc3 Qc7 13.f4 b6 14.0–0 Bb7 15.Nd2 Rad8 16.Ndf3 Ne7 17.Qe2 Bxf3 18.Qxf3 h5 19.a4 g6 20.a5 Nf5 21.axb6 axb6 22.h3 h4 23.Ra6 Rb8 24.Rfa1 Qb7 25.Nc6 Rbc8 26.d5 exd5 27.cxd5 Bc5+ 28.Kh2 Nxd5 29.Qxd5 Qxc6 30.Qxc6 Rxc6 31.Bb5 Rcc8 32.Bxe8 Rxe8 33.Ra8 Kf8 34.Bf6 Bd4 35.Rxe8+ Kxe8 36.Ra8+ Kd7 37.Rd8+ Kc7 38.Rxd4 Nxd4 39.Bxd4 1–0

Helman,A - Duval,L [D85] Interclub major ch playoff Vancouver, 04.1948

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 c5 7.Bb5+ Bd7 8.Bxd7+ Qxd7 9.Ne2 Bg7 10.0–0 cxd4 11.cxd4 Nc6 12.Be3 0–0 13.Qd2 Rfd8 14.Rad1 b6 15.f4 Qe6 16.e5 Qd5 17.f5 Rac8 18.fxg6 hxg6 19.Nf4 Qe4 20.Qf2 e6 21.Nh3 Rd7 22.Ng5 Qd5 23.Qh4 Qc4 24.Qh7+ Kf8 25.Qxg6 Kg8 26.Rxf7 Rxf7 27.Qxf7+ Kh8 28.Qh5+ Kg8 29.Qh7+ Kf8 30.Rf1+ Ke8 31.Qxg7 Ne7 32.Qf7+ Kd7 33.Rc1 Qe2 34.Qxe6+ Kd8 35.Nf7+ 1–0

Bever,V - Creemer,D [C59] BC - WA m Washington, 08.08.1948

1.e4 Nc6 2.Nf3 e5 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Be2 h6 9.Nf3 e4 10.Ne5 Qd4 11.Ng4 Nd5 12.c3 Qb6 13.d4 Bd6 14.0–0 Qc7 15.g3 0–0 16.Nd2 f5 17.Ne5 Bxe5 18.dxe5 Qxe5 19.Nc4 Nxc4 20.Bxc4 Be6 21.Qe2 Rad8 22.f3 Kh8 23.fxe4 Nxc3 24.bxc3 Qc5+ 25.Qe3 Qxc4 26.exf5 Bxf5 27.Qe5 Bh3 28.Rxf8+ Rxf8 29.Bf4 Qd3 30.Re1 Kh7 31.Qd4 Qf3 32.Qd2 Re8 33.Qc2+ g6 34.Qf2 Rxe1+ 0–1

Panton,G - Creemer,D [D40] Vancouver ch Vancouver, 09.1948

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 c5 5.Bg5 cxd4 6.Nxd4 e5 7.Nf3 d4 8.Nd5 Nc6 9.g3 Be7 10.Bxf6 Bxf6 11.Bg2 Be6 12.Nd2 0–0 13.0–0 Be7 14.a3 f5 15.e3 d3 16.Nxe7+ Qxe7 17.Bxc6 bxc6 18.Qa4 Rab8 19.b4 Bd7 20.Qb3 e4 21.f3 a5 22.c5+ Be6 23.Qc3 axb4 24.axb4 Bd5 25.f4 h5 26.Ra5 h4 27.Rfa1 hxg3 28.hxg3 Rf6 29.Kg2 Rg6 30.Rh1 Rf6 31.Rha1 Rff8 32.Ra7 Rb7 33.R7a6 Rfb8 34.R6a4 Kf7 35.Rh1 Rg8 36.Rh5 Qf6 37.Qa3 Rgb8 38.Ra7 Kg6 39.Rg5+ Kh7 40.Ra4 g6 41.g4 Rg7 42.Ra7 Bf7 43.Rd7 Rd8 44.Rxd8 Qxd8 45.Qc3 Qd5 46.gxf5 Qa2 47.Kh3 Kg8 48.fxg6 Bxg6 49.f5 Qc2 50.Qf6 Qxd2 51.Qd8+ Kh7 52.fxg6+ Kh6 53.Rg3 1–0

Taylor,J - Panton,G [D53] City CC ch Vancouver, 11.1948

1.d4 e6 2.Nf3 d5 3.c4 Nf6 4.Bg5 Be7 5.Nc3 c6 6.e3 Nbd7 7.Rc1 h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.Bg3 Nh5 10.Be5 Nxe5 11.Nxe5 Nf6 12.Bd3 Nd7 13.Nxd7 Bxd7 14.0–0 Bd6 15.e4 dxc4 16.Bxc4 Qa5 17.d5 Bf4 18.dxe6 fxe6 19.Qh5+ Ke7 20.Rcd1 Raf8 21.Rd3 Bd6 22.Rfd1 Be8

23.Rxd6 Bxh5 24.Rxe6+ Kf7 25.Rd7+ Kg8 26.Rg6# 1–0

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Site: Mollie Nye House, 940 Lynn Valley Road, North Vancouver, East of Kirkstone Dr., parking west of the site under the power lines.

Date: March 18-19, 2006

Format: 4 Round Swiss CFC rated

Time control:  90 minutes + 30 second increments

Entry fee: $25 for Adults; $17 for Juniors and Seniors

Registration: Pre-registration is recommended. Send cheques payable to Chess First! Enterprises to: Suite 408-1641 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver, BC, V7M 2J5.  Or Saturday in person 9-9:30 am

Rounds: 9:30am; 2 pm; 6 pm; Sunday 1:00 pm.

Prizes:  Entry fees-less expenses; 50% of that money.  First prize 12 Month ICC membership.  Best Junior prize is donated by Chess First! Enterprises www.chessfirst.com

Sponsors: Schlockbuster Video; Chess First Enterprises www.chessfirst.com ; ICC www.chessclub.com

Organizer and TD. : Joe Oszvald and Vas Sladek

Info: oszisakk@telus.net  or chessfm@telus.net

Bring sets and digital clocks  CFC membership required: $10 for the event or $48 for one year

 

Dates Friday, May 19 to Monday, May 22, 2006

Location Hungarian Cultural Centre, 728 Kingsway, Vancouver BC

Sections Open, Under 2000, Under 1600

Time Control 40/120, SD/60

Rounds Open: 7 Rounds; U2000, U1600: 6 Rounds

Round Times Friday 5:30 (Open Section only); 11:30, 5:30 / 10, 4 / 9, 3 or ASAP

Prizes Based on entries. Unrated players may play in any section, but are only eligible for prizes if they play in the Open section. Unrated players who place in the other sections will have their entry fee returned.

Entry Fees                               (Open / U2000 / U1600)

Before or on March 30, 2006      $110 / $95 / $80

Before or on May 12, 2006       $130 / $110 / $90

At site                                          $150 / $125 / $100

 

Discounts Born after May 20, 1986: 50% (proof of date of birth required)

            Born before May 20, 1941: 50% (proof of date of birth required)

            FIDE rated players w/o Titles 25%

            FIDE Titled Players Free entry

 

Surcharge $25 extra for those players who wish to play in the Open Section, but who have a lifetime highest rating under 2000

 

Registration please mail cheques (payable to BCCF) to: British Columbia Chess Federation, PO Box 15548, Vancouver, BC V6B 5B3

On-site Open Section: Friday, May 19, 3:00 to 5:00 pm

             U2000 and U1600: Friday, May 19, 3:00 to 10:00 pm, Saturday, May 20, 9:00 to 9:30 am

Those registering after the respective deadlines (5:00 pm Friday for the Open, 9:30 am Saturday for the other sections) will receive pot-luck pairings or a half-point bye in the first round

Miscellaneous CFC rated, Open Section also FIDE rated; half-point byes may be requested for all but the last round; sets and boards provided, please bring clocks.  The BCCF Annual General Meeting will be held at 9:00 am on Saturday, May 20

Contact Stephen Wright, swright2@telus.net , (604) 221-7148