AN inaugural Online Lions International Chess 2021 for the differently-abled community will be held tomorrow with participants from 10 states vying for honours.
The tournament is jointly organised by the Lions Clubs of Penang – Lions Club Penang Armenian, Lions Club Georgetown Island and Lions Club Tanjung Sri Pinang. It is supported by the Kiwanis Club of Penang Central and managed by Penang Chess Association (PCA) with assistance from the Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF).
PCA president See Swee Sie said this is a historic event for the para chess community this year.
“We have participants from Sarawak, Johor, Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Melaka, Kedah, Kelantan and Penang.
“I would like to thank state Youth and Sports Committee chairman Soon Lip Chee, Penang State Sports Council director Harry Chai, Malaysian Chess Federation, Kiwanis Penang Central and all the Lions clubs involved for their support, and all the coaches and players from the various states for their participation without which this event would not be able to be held,” See said.
She said the event is divided into two categories, namely Open and Ladies. A total prize money of RM2,300 is up for grabs, with the top prize of RM500 for the Open winner and RM300 for the Ladies winner.
The competition will be based on the Swiss system (maximum of seven rounds), but the format of play may be changed to round robin if there are less than eight players.
All games will be played online via TORNELO platform with four rounds to be played before lunch and the balance three rounds after lunch. The time control is 15 minutes + 10 seconds per game.
Story by K.H. Ong