Yesterday I came across my new year resolution that I made at the end of year 2015. One of them was to “be the official player at World Cadets Chess Championship (WCCC)”. I did not remember this list as I pretty much forgot about it really fast, perhaps in January. It is amazing to see 98% of my objectives on that list have been accomplished. The sensation of fulfilment has completely changed my view of the WCCC. Finally, I can talk about it without being overwhelmed.
The result of the Tournament wasn’t that satisfactory. The feeling of “Yay, I could have done better” has been haunting me ever since I got back to Montreal. But now, with my new year resolution list at hand, I realized how amazing it is even just by participating it, not to mention how the entire experience inspired me.
Tournament
It was a tournament of 11 rounds, one round per day. I won some, lost some and drew 2 rounds. Pitting myself against the best in the world in my age category was overwhelming at the time.
We had the same routine each day, which looks like these:
- The day started with a hearty breakfast at the hotel
- Then came the preparation session with the head coach which lasted 45 minutes. GM Cherniaev, Alexander is a very dedicated coach. I learnt a lot from him within the two weeks. He is punctual, very organized, tremendously passionate about chess and he is really serious about chess.
- Lunch at a restaurant nearby. Food was ok but often repetitive and boring.
- A power nap after lunch basically everyday. It was helpful to bring back my energy after rough nights (due to the jet lag)
- Game started at 3PM
- After the game, each player got to see the coach to analyse the game. Sometimes I got comments like “your mind is crystal clear today!” That felt great!
- I went swimming for around 45 minutes before the bed time.
With that flow, we basically had very tight schedule.
Overall, all the players that I played with are amazing. They are just so talented and you absolutely cannot underestimate any of them. At such tournament, there are no easy points. In fact, every point gained was celebrated with joy and pride.
Some of the games are thrilling encounters. They will forever glow in my memory.
- The fourth round I played was with Misiuk Ernest. It was a very intense battle towards the end when I had a winning rook endgame and I won.
- The fifth round was against Avila Pavas Santiago who had an FM title with a rating of 2154. We both played well in the opening but then he exposed his king. He made a rook sacrifice that I took but played not so accurately afterwards due to time pressure. Then it went to a draw position. I claimed draw on triple repetition to the arbiter but then was convinced that it wasn’t. Although it did not work, I was pretty proud of myself about bringing this up with the arbiter: I have had similar doubt in several games played before but never pushed myself to have it validated.
- At sixth round, I played with Sindarov who was initially ranked number 2 in this section, with a rating of 2411. I lost in a very bad way. I was simply not acting like me.
- At round 7 I played with CM Karthik who gave me a mouse pad as a gift. I played too aggressively and the game led to a losing endgame. He played very well and I think he should be rated higher than 1873.
- At round 8, I played with Ayoub Gaspard, who speaks French as well. I sacrificed a pawn and made a devastating attack on the kingside and mated him with my bishop when his king was on H3 (I was white).
Two of my games were broadcast live. My coach and my parents watched them live. One of the games was assessed by my coach as the best game that I played at the tournament. It was a draw against Avila. I was winning but I lost the momentum after a wrong move.
Canadian player Anthony Atanasov finished at fifth place in section U8. He got a tablet!
Lesson I learnt
- Sleeping is the most important. I was not able to sleep well due to jet lag and maybe pressure from the tournament.
Hotel Lobby – parents alike are waiting:
My opponent with a rating over 2400, who looks and is indeed younger than me:
I am in the news; the game led to a draw. It was a great battle:
QU was preparing:
The opponent speaks french too:
Proud Canadian players with certificate:
With head of delegation:
With the head coach, GM Cherniaev, Alexander:
Quebec players:
It was great experience. We played with the best players in the world in our age category; we shared splendid memory; we won and we lost. I hope this will repeat if it is possible.