BCCF E-MAIL BULLETIN #38

A plea to organizers: don't forget to submit reports of your tournaments!
Several prominent events have taken place lately of which we have no news.
Think of it as advanced advertising - if players read about your last event,
they are more likely to come out to the next one.

To subscribe, send me an e-mail (swright2@telus.net) or sign up via the BCCF
webpage (www.chess.bc.ca); if you no longer wish to receive this Bulletin, just
let me know.

Stephen Wright

[back issues of the Bulletin are available on the BCCF web site:
www.chess.bc.ca/newsletters.html]


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VANCOUVER CLASS CHAMPIONSHIPS

Crosstable: http://www.chess.ca/xtable.asp?TNum=200402005

The Vancouver Class Championships attracted a total of 46 participants to the
Vancouver Bridge Centre on the January 30 - February 1 weekend.  The players
were paired as per the regular Swiss rules for the first three rounds, but were
paired by class for the last two rounds, ensuring that the class prizes were
determined by games between those competing for them.  While more players in the
Open Section would have been nice, the field divided up into classes
surprisingly evenly, averaging eight players per category.

Lucas Davies had one of his best results ever, winning the title of Vancouver
city champion with a perfect score, including a last-round victory over junior
archrival Fanhao Meng.  Former B.C. champion Dragoljub Milicevic came second.
There was a first and second prize for each class; the CFC crosstable (above)
only lists the players by final score, but a more accurate view by class follows
(prize winners in bold):

Open

1 Lucas Davies  5.0
2 Dragoljub Milicevic 4.5
3 Fanhao Meng  3.5
4 Gavrilo Bojovic 3.0
5 Gerhard Neufahrt 3.0
6 Slaven Mandic  3.0
7 Vaclav Sladek  2.5
8 James Chan  2.5

Class A

1 Valentina Goutor 4.0
2 Alvin Chung  3.0
3 Mehrdad Yousefzadeh 3.0
4 Noam Davies  3.0
5 Greg Churchill 2.5
6 Richard Reid  1.5
7 Christopher Fletcher 1.0

Class B

1 Andrey Kostin  4.0
2 Ernest Krzyzowski 3.5
3 Benedict Daswani 3.5
4 William Jung  3.0
5 Jason Feng  2.0
6 Manuel O. Escandor 2.0
7 Marionito Jose 2.0
8 Eduardo Azmitia 2.0
9 Peter Stockhausen 1.5

Class C

1 Paol Hadden  4.0
2 Lara Heppenstall 3.5
3 Richard Gaulin 3.0
4 Stewart Paulson 2.5
5 Lesley Cheng  2.5
6 Jamie Harper  2.0
7 Tiffany Tang  2.0
8 Louis McCusky  1.0

Class D

1 Louie Jiang  3.0
2 Sam Churchill  2.0
3 Farley Cannon  2.0
4 Richard Huang  1.5
5 Laura Harper  1.5
6 Aaron Cosenza  1.0

Class E

1 Vlad Gaciu  3.0
2 Alexandra Botez 2.5
3 Omar Jessa  2.0
4 Dharu Ravi  2.0
5 Clinton Hosford 2.0
6 Nivedha Ravi  1.0
7 Arifa Jessa  0.5
8 Richard Beauchamp 0.5

Congratulations to all!  The result of Paol Hadden was particularly impressive:
returning to tournament chess after a five-year absence and with an initial
rating of 1444, he beat players well above his "C" Class and achieved a
performance rating of 2015.

A selection of games follows; many thanks to the players who took the time to
provide annotations.

Meng,F - Neufarht,G [C77] Class ch Vancouver (3), 31.01.2004
[Fanhao Meng]
This tournament was my worst tournament in a long time. After I drew Dragoljub,
I just kept thinking about that game, and I couldn't concentrate well enough in
the game against Lucas. This was a very chaotic game, where at the end I was
fortunate that my opponent was in time trouble 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4
Nf6 5.Qe2!? [The main line 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6] 5...d6 6.c3 Bg4?!
[Better is 6...Be7 7.0-0 0-0] 7.0-0 Be7 8.Rd1 0-0 9.d3 Nd7?! 10.h3 Bh5? A
mistake [10...Bxf39 11.Qxf3] 11.g4! Bg6 12.Nbd2 Nb6 13.Bb3 Qd7 14.Nf1 h5 15.Ne3
I was very satisfied with my position at the moment. Now I think I was maybe a
bit over confident, because the game didn't turn out as well as I hoped.
15...Rae8 16.Kg2 Bd8 17.Nh2 hxg4 18.hxg4 Na5 19.Bc2 d5 20.Rh1 c5 21.b3 d4
22.cxd4 exd4 23.Nc4 Nbxc4 24.bxc4 Nc6?! [24...b5 This is what I thought my
opponent would do 25.cxb5 axb5 26.f4 f5 unclear] 25.f4 f5 26.gxf5 Qxf5?!
[26...Bxf5 27.Qh5 g6 28.Qh6±] 27.Nf1 Qd7 28.Kg1 Nb4 29.Bb1 Rf6 30.a3 Nc6 31.Qg2
[31.Qh2 Qg4+ 32.Qg2 Qxg2+ 33.Kxg2=] 31...Ref8 32.Bc2 Bc7 33.Nh2 Bh5 34.f5 Ne5
35.Bg5 Rb6 36.Qh3 Qf7? [Better is 36...g6] 37.Bd1 g6 38.Ng4 Nxg4 39.Bxg4 Rb3
40.Bxh5 gxh5 41.Bh6 Re8 42.Qg2+?? [42.Kf2! Rb2+ 43.Kf3 Kh7 44.Qxh5 Qxh5+ 45.Rxh5
Rh2 46.Rh1+-] 42...Kh7 43.Rxh5 Rg89 This was the move I missed 44.Rg59 Rxg5
45.Qxg5 Rxd3 46.Kf2?? This loses immediately [46.Qh49 Bg3 47.Qg4 Kxh6 48.Kg2 Qh5
49.Rh1 Bh2 50.Qxh5+ Kxh5 51.Rxh2+ Kg5 52.Rh7 Re3 unclear] 46...Bg3+?? Missing
probably the only chance in the whole game to win [46...Rh3 Black just wins
because the bishop is trapped] 47.Kg2 Be5 48.Qh4 Rg3+ 49.Kf2 Kg8 50.Bf4?? This
makes it so much harder to win [50.Qd8+! Kh7 51.Rh1+-] 50...Bxf4 51.Qxf4 Rg7
52.Rh1 Qc7 53.Kf3 Qxf4+ 54.Kxf4 Now my opponent only has about 5 minutes left,
and there was just too many calculations to be made. 54...b5 55.cxb5 axb5 56.f6
Rg2 57.e5 Kf7 58.Rh7+ Ke6 59.Re7+ Kd5 60.f7 d3? [60...Rf2+ 61.Kg3 Rf1 62.e6 d3
63.Re8 d2 64.e7 Rg1+ 65.Kf2 Rf1+ 66.Ke3+-] 61.Kf3 1-0

Milicevic,D - Meng,F [A13] Class ch Vancouver (4), 01.02.2004
[Fanhao Meng]
1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 c5 5.0-0 Nc6 6.b3 e5!? I came up with this move
at the board [6...Be7 7.e3 0-0 8.Bb2 b6 9.Nc3 Bb7 10.cxd5 Nxd5 11.Nxd5 Qxd5
12.d4] 7.cxd5 Nxd5 8.d3 f6 9.Bb2 Be6 10.Nc3 Qd7 Now the position looks kind of
like the Dragon, and I have not played the Dragon ever, but I was not too
worried because I knew that Dragoljub doesn't play the Dragon either. 11.Qd2 Be7
12.Ne1? [12.Rac1 g5 13.Nxd5 Bxd5] 12...g5 13.Nc2 Nxc3 14.Bxc3 h5 15.b4 h4 16.b5
Nd8 [16...Nd4 17.Nxd4 (17.Bxd4 cxd4 18.Rfc1 Bd6-/+) 17...exd4 18.Bb2 Qxb5-/+]
17.e3? In my opinion, this move loses a pawn for insufficient compensation
[17.a4 Bh3 18.e3 Bxg2 19.Kxg2 Ne6-/+] 17...Qxb5 18.d4 Qd7 19.dxe5 Qxd2 20.Bxd2
fxe5 21.Bc3 Bd6 22.f4 gxf4 23.gxf4 [23.exf4 hxg3 24.hxg3 Rg8 25.fxe5 Rxg3
26.exd6 Rxc3-+] 23...Rg8 24.Kh1 [24.fxe5?? h3 25.Rf2 Bc7] 24...exf4 25.exf4 Rf8
26.Rae1 Rxf4 27.Rxf4 Bxf4 28.Bxb7 Nxb7 29.Rxe6+ Kd7 30.Rf6 Bd6 31.Kg2 Re8 32.Rf2
Re4 33.Bd2 Ra4-+ 34.a3 Nd8 35.Kf3 Nc6 36.Ke2 Ke6 37.Bc1 Ne5 38.Rf4?! This move
loses, but what else? [38.h3 Re4+ 39.Be3 a6-+] 38...Rxf4 39.Bxf4 Kf5 40.Bd2 Nc4
41.h3 Nxd2 42.Kxd2 Ke4 Now I thought it would be an easy win for Black, and I
led my guard down. If only I hadn't been so careless...... 43.Ke2 Bf4 44.Ne1 c4
45.a4 a5 46.Nc2 c3 47.Na3 Kd4 48.Nc2+ Kc4 49.Ne1 Kb3 50.Kd3 Be5 51.Nc2 Bg3 Right
here I saw two ways to win. First, I could just take the pawn on a4 and I would
be up 2 pawns. Second, I could move my bishop to f2 and my king to b2, then the
white knight would have nowhere to go from c2 [Better is 51...Kxa4 52.Kc4 Bf6
53.Ne3 Ka3-+] 52.Ne3 Bf2?? I thought White could only move his knight to c2
[52...Be1! 53.Nc2 Bf2 54.Na1+ Kb2 55.Nc2 Bb6 56.Ne1 Ba7 57.Nc2 Bf2 THIS was the
position I was working on] 53.Nc4! After Nc4, I was stunned. I realized in
horror that if Dragoljub sacrificed his knight for the a5 and c3 pawn, then I
couldn't win because his king can make it to h1 in time. 53...Be1 [53...c2
54.Nxa5+ Kxa4 55.Kxc2 Kxa5 56.Kd2 This is a draw because the queening square is
a white square and I have a black-squared bishop!; 53...Kb4 54.Nxa5! Kxa5
55.Kxc3 Kxa4 56.Kd3 This is also a draw!; 53...Kxa4 54.Kxc3 draw because I could
not stop the knight to take my pawn on a5] 54.Nxa5+ Kxa4 55.Nc6 Kb3 56.Nd4+ Kb2
57.Nc2 Bg3 58.Ne3 Kb3 59.Nc2 Be5 60.Ne1 Kb2 61.Nc2 Kc1 62.Ne3 Kb1 63.Nc2 Bf6
64.Ne3 Kc1 65.Nd5 Kd1 [65...c2 66.Ne3=] 66.Nxc3+ Bxc3 67.Kxc3 Ke2 68.Kc2 [68.Kc2
Kf3 69.Kd3 Kg3 70.Ke3 Kxh3 71.Kf3=] ½-½

Mandic,S - Davies,L [A02] Class ch Vancouver (4), 01.02.2004
[Lucas Davies]
1.f4 Nf6 2.e3 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.b3 Bd6 5.Bb2 0-0 6.Bd3 Nbd7 7.0-0 Nc5 8.Ne5 Nxd3
9.cxd3 [9.Nxd3 c5 10.Qf3 Bd7 11.Nc3 Bc6 12.Qh3 Qc7 13.Ne2 Ne4 14.Rad1 c4 15.Nf2
Nxf2 16.Rxf2 Rae8=+ 9...Qe7 10.d4 Nd7 11.Nc3 c6 12.d3 [12.e4 dxe4 13.Nxe4 Bc7
14.Qh5 f6 (14...Nb6 15.Rf3 Nd5 16.Rh3 h6 17.Rf1+=) 15.Nc4 Nb6 16.Ba3 Qf7
17.Qxf7+ Rxf7 18.Ncd6 Rd7=+12...f6 13.Nxd7 Bxd7 14.e4 Bc7 [14...e5 15.dxe5 fxe5
16.f5 Qh4=+] 15.Qh5 f5 16.e5 [16.exf5 Rxf5 17.Qg4 Be8-/+] 16...a5 Possibly going
for a4 and making a square on a7 for my bishop. [16...Qb4 17.Na4 Qd2 18.Rad1
Qe3+ 19.Kh1 Be8 20.Qf3 Qxf3 21.gxf3=] 17.Rac1 h6 18.Nb1 b5 19.a3 Bb6 Possibly
going for c5 as he can't take it at the moment. I'm also just trying to tie down
his bishop to the d4 pawn. 20.Rf2 Kh7 21.Rfc2?!=+ Kind of pointless at the
moment, it doesn't threaten anything and White would do better to just develop
his knight first. [21.Nd2 g6 22.Qh3 g5 23.fxg5 Qxg5 unclear] 21...Rg8 22.Qf3 g5
23.fxg5 Rxg5 24.Kh1 Rag8 25.g3 [25.Rg1 Rg4 26.Qf2 Qh4 A) 27.Qe3 Qg5-/+
(27...Bxd4?? 28.Bxd4 Rxd4 29.g3 Qg4 30.h3 Qxh3+ 31.Rh2+-) ; B) 27.g3 Qg5=+]
25...Rg4 26.Qf2 Qg5 27.Rxc6??-+ A blunder played due to time trouble on White's
part. It's difficult to find anything decent for White anyways though. [27.Rf1
Qh5 28.Qf3 Qh3 29.Rg1 f4 30.Rcg2 Rxg3 31.Rxg3 fxg3 32.Rg2 Qh4 33.Rxg3 Rxg3
34.Qxg3 Qxg3 35.hxg3 Be8 36.Kg2 Bg6 37.Nd2 Bxd3-+] 27...Bxc6 28.Rxc6 Qh5 29.Rxe6
[29.Kg2 Rh4 30.Kh1 Qd1+ 31.Kg2 (31.Qg1 Qf3+ 32.Qg2 Qxd3 33.Nd2 Rxg3-+) f4-+]
29...Rxg3 30.Re7+ Kh8 31.Nd2 Qd1+ 32.Nf1 Qf3+! 0-1

Yousefzadeh,M (1973) - Davies,N (1948) [D98] Class ch Vancouver (4), 01.02.2004
[Noam Davies]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Qb3 dxc4 6.Qxc4 Nc6 7.e4 0-0 8.Be2 Bg4 As
played in Yousefzadeh - North, northshorechess.com inv (2), 26.10.2002. 9.Be3
Bxf3! 10.Bxf3 e5 11.d5 [11.Rd1!? exd4 12.Bxd4 Nxd4 13.Qxd4 (13.Rxd4 Nd7=+)
13...Qxd4 14.Rxd4 Rfd8 15.Rxd8+ Rxd8 16.Ke2 unclear] 11...Nd4 12.Bd1 [12.Bxd4
exd4 13.Qxd4 (13.Ne2 Re8 14.Qd3 Qe7-/+) 13...Nxe4] 12...b5!? Irrational. The
Yousefzadeh-North game continued 12...c6 13.dxc6 Nxc6 14.0-0 Nd4 15.Rc1 a6 16.a3
b5 17.Qa2 Qd7 18.f3 Rfd8 19.b3 h6 20.Rf2 Rac8 21.Qb2 Qe6 22.Rd2 Kh7 23.b4 Ne8
24.Nd5 Rxc1 25.Qxc1 Rc8 26.Qb1 Nd6 27.Ra2 Nc4 28.Bf2 f5 29.a4 fxe4 30.fxe4 Rf8
31.axb5 axb5 32.Qa1 Qf7 33.Qc3 Nd6 34.Qe1 Rd8 35.Nc3 Qb7 36.h3 Qc6 37.Kh1 Qc4
38.Rb2 Qd3 39.Qd2 Qf1+ 40.Kh2 Nc4 41.Be2 Qxf2 42.Bxc4 Nf3+ 0-1 [12...Ne8 13.0-0
Nd6 14.Qd3 f5 unclear] 13.Nxb5 Nxb5 14.Qxb5 Nxe4 [14...Rb8 15.Qe2] 15.0-0 Rb8
[15...Nd6 Better to just try to solidify.] 16.Qe2 Qxd5 17.Bxa7 Weakening c7
17...Rb4 18.Bb3 Qd2?? [18...Qb7 but still pretty bad.] 19.Qxd2 Nxd2 20.Bc5+- Rb5
21.Bxf8 Nxb3 22.axb3 Bxf8 23.Ra2 [23.Rfc1 Is more flexible] 23...Rxb3 24.Rc1 Rd3
25.Ra8 [25.Kf1 using White's other piece.] 25...Rd2 26.b4? Almost a blunder.
[26.Kf1 is much better.] 26...Kg7 27.Kf1 Finally 27...Bxb4 28.Rxc7 Rd1+ 29.Ke2
Re1+ Giving Black the offensive. 30.Kd3 Rd1+ 31.Ke4 [31.Kc2 Rf1 32.f3 Bd6 33.Rd7
Bc5 protecting the important square a7.] 31...Re1+ 32.Kf3 [32.Kd5 Rd1+ 33.Kc6
Rd2 the king's gone too far away from the kingside pawns. 34.f3 (34.Raa7 Rxf2)
34...Rxg2 35.Raa7 Rc2+ 36.Kd5 Rxc7 37.Rxc7 with a chance of drawing.] 32...e4+
33.Kg4 Re2 34.Rc4 Bd6 35.Kh3 f5 Strengthening everything, with h7 being hard to
get at with 2 rooks 36.Rd8 Be5 37.Rc5 Bb2 38.Kg3 h5 39.h4 Ba3?! [39...Bf6
40.Rd7+ Kh6 41.Kh3 Rxf2 42.Rc6 Bxh4! 43.Rdd6 Kh7 44.Rxg6 Be7 is interesting, of
course not all this is forced] 40.Rd7+ Kf6 41.Rc6+ Ke5 42.f4+ exf3 43.Kxf3 Re4
44.g3 Rg4! Asserting the rook in the middle of the pawns. 45.Rd3 f4 Gaining the
initiative. 46.gxf4+ Rxf4+ 47.Kg3 Rg4+ 48.Kh3 Be7= Finally I can feel safe.
49.Re3+ Kd5 50.Ree6 Rxh4+ 51.Kg3 Rg4+ 52.Kf3 g5 I forget what he played. I was
probably better here, but too tired and concerned with the risk.
½-½

Davies,L - Meng,F [C99] Class ch Vancouver (5), 01.02.2004
[Fanhao Meng]
During this game, I could not concentrated well enough since I kept thinking
about the morning draw I had. I think I need to work more on my personal
psychology 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.Re1 0-0
8.c3 d6 9.h3 Na5 10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 cxd4 13.cxd4 Bb7 The last time
Lucas played d5 14.Nf1 Rfc8 15.Re2 Nd7 16.Ng3 Bf8 17.Bd3 Nc6 18.Be3 Rd8
[18...exd4 19.Nxd4 Nxd4 20.Bxd4 Nc5] 19.d5 Ne7 [19...Nb4 20.Rc1 Qb8 21.Bb1 a5
22.a3 Na6 23.Bd3 b4] 20.Rc2 Qb8 21.a4 f5 22.axb5 axb5 23.Rxa8 Bxa8 [23...Qxa8
24.Nxf5 Nxf5 25.exf5 Bxd5 26.Bxb5 Bxf3 27.gxf3 Nf6+=] 24.Bg5 fxe4 25.Bxe4 g6?!
This might've been a mistake, since it led to the sac later in the game. [Better
is 25...Nc5 26.Bf5 Bxd5 27.b4 Na6 28.Rd2 Nxb4 (28...Bf7 29.Nxe5) 29.Rxd5 Nbxd5
30.Be6+ Kh8 31.Bxd5 unclear] 26.b4 Rc8 27.Rxc8 Qxc8 28.Qd3 Qc4 29.Bxe7 Bxe7
30.Bxg6 I saw this line in my calculations but I under-estimated it 30...Bxd5
[30...hxg6 31.Qxg6+ Kf8 32.Nf5 Qc1+ 33.Kh2 Bf6 34.Nxd6 Ke7 35.Nf5+ Kf8 White has
compensation for his sacrifice, but Lucas can just force a three-move repetition
with Nd6, and I had to win to tie for first. 36.Nd6 Ke7 37.Nf5+ Kf8 38.Nd6 draw]
31.Bxh7+ Kh8 32.Qg6 Bf7 33.Qb1 [33.Qh6? Bf8 34.Qg5 Kxh7 35.Qf5+ Kg8 36.Qxd7
Qxb4=] 33...Nf6 34.Bd3 Qc6 35.Ng5 Bg8 36.Nf5 Bf8 37.f3 Qc3 38.Bxb5 d5 39.Bd3
Bxb4 [39...Qd2 40.h4 Bxb4+=] 40.Nh6 Qd4+ [40...Bc5+ 41.Kh1 Be3±] 41.Kh1 e4
42.fxe4 dxe4 43.Nxe4 Bh7 44.Nxf6 Bxd3 45.Qa2 Bc4?? [45...Qc4 46.Qxc4 Bxc4
47.Nhg4+-] 46.Qa8+ Kg7 47.Nf5+ Kxf6 48.Nxd4 1-0


Yousefzadeh,M - Goutor,V [E84] Class ch Vancouver (5), 01.02.2004

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 0-0 6.Be3 Nc6 7.Nge2 a6 8.Qd2 Rb8 9.Nc1
e5 10.Nb3 Ne8 11.d5 Ne7 12.g4 c5 13.dxc6 bxc6 14.0-0-0 Qc7 15.c5 d5 16.exd5 cxd5
17.Nxd5 Nxd5 18.Qxd5 Be6 19.Qd3 Qb7 20.Be2 Nc7 21.Bf2 Bd5 22.Qc2 e4 23.Bc4 Bc6
24.Bd4 Bh6+ 25.Kb1 e3 26.Na5 Qa8 27.Nxc6 Qxc6 28.Be2 Ne6 29.Be5 Rb7 30.Rd6 Qxc5
31.Qxc5 Nxc5 32.Rc1 Ne6 33.Rxa6 Bf4 34.Ra5 f6 35.Bxf4 Nxf4 36.Bc4+ Kg7 37.Re1
Re8 38.Ra3 Rc7 39.Rc3 e2 40.Bb5 Rxc3 41.bxc3 Re3 42.Kc2 Rxf3 43.Kd2 Rh3 44.Bxe2
Rxh2 45.a4 Nxe2 46.Rxe2 Rh4 47.Rg2 f5 48.Ke3 fxg4 49.a5 g3 50.Ra2 Rc4 51.Kd3 Rc7
52.c4 Ra7 53.Ke3 Kf6 54.Kf3 Ke5 55.Kxg3 Kd4 56.Ra4 Ra6 57.Kf4 h5 58.Kg5 Kc5
59.Kf4 Kd4 60.Kf3 g5 61.Kf2 g4 62.Kg3 Ke4 63.Kh4 Kd4 64.Kg3 Ke4 65.Kf2 h4
½-½




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2004 INTERSCHOOL TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP by Bruce Harper
On January 31, 2004, the first stage of the 2004 B.C. Interschool Team
Championship, the Elementary School Preliminaries, was held at West Point Grey
Academy, which generously donated its senior school facilities for the event.
Thirty-nine teams and almost two hundred players attended, nearly double last
year's total.

The support of West Point Grey Academy was an important factor in the success of
this event.  The event took place in the West Point Grey Academy senior school
cafeteria, which is accessible, well lit and conveniently located.  Classrooms
were opened as analysis and skittles rooms.  Most of all, Fiona MacFarlane, who
teaches at the senior school, provided invaluable assistance both prior to the
event and throughout the day of the tournament.

Discussions are already underway with West Point Grey Academy with respect to
the 2005 event, which will likely be held in the school gymnasium, as the senior
school cafeteria was very close to capacity.

As for the tournament itself, six teams qualified for the finals.  The winner
for the last three years, Our Lady of Perpetual Help A (the "A" signifies two
teams from the same school), had to fight to qualify this year, as parity ruled
the day.  Westcot A finished first with 16 points, followed by St. George s A
and St. John s A at 15.  St. George s B was half a point back with 14.5,
followed by Our Lady of Perpetual Help A with 14 and Vancouver Christian A with
13.5.  Lord Roberts just missed the cut, with 13.5.

Four of these teams made the finals last year.  The finals will be held at St.
George s Senior School on February 28, 2004, in conjunction with the Secondary
School Championship.  As it happens, the host school will have two teams in the
Elementary School final - but only one team can win!

The most impressive game of the event was Christopher Hui's (St. George's A) win
over Bryan Young (Our Lady of Perpetual Help A).  You decide whether it should
termed an "upset":

Christopher Hui - Bryan Young, Elementary School Preliminaries Vancouver (4),
31.01.2004

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.0-0 Nf6 5.d3 h6 6.Nc3

After Black's fifth move, White should try 6.c3, which would probably be best
met by 6...Qe7.

6...d6 7.h3 0-0 8.Nd5 Nxd5 9.Bxd5 Nd4 10.Nxd4 Bxd4

The position is completely symmetrical.  Any advantage White might have because
he moves first is marginal.

11.Re1?! c6 12.Bb3 Qf6 13.Be3? Bxb2 14.Rb1 Bc3 15.Re2 Qg6

15...Qe7, to defend the b7-pawn, followed by 16...Be6, is more logical.

16.g4 h5 17.f3 hxg4 18.hxg4 Be6 19.Bxe6?! Qxe6?

Much better was 19...fxe6!, and Black has an immediate threat of 20...Rxf3.
Black is following the principle that "doubled pawns are bad", but there are so
many exceptions to this (and many other) chess "rules" that you can often get
into serious trouble following them.

20.Rh2!?

White plays for the attack, which turns out to be the right decision.  20.Rxb7
Qxa2 leaves Black with a dangerous passed a-pawn, but 20.Rb3!? was very close to
being equal.

20...b6

This is necessary to keep White's rook off the seventh rank, but now things
happen on the kingside.

21.Kg2 f6 22.Qh1 Kf7 23.Rh7 Ke8?

Black panics.  Both the materialist 23...Qxa2 and the sane 23...Rg8 let Black
keep his advantage.

24.Rxg7 Rf7? 25.Qh8+?!

White can win immediately with 25.Rh8+ Rf8 26.Rf8+ Kxf8 27.Qh8+ Qg8 28.Qxf6+,
but the move played still leaves Black with insurmountable problems.

25...Rf8 26.Qh7 Rf7 27.Rh1

White can win a rook with 27.Qg8+ Ke7 28.Rxf7+ Qxf7 29.Qxa8.

27...Ke7 28.g5!

While White has missed some faster wins (and misses one later on), this is a
fine move which shows a real understanding of the position.  White intends to
bring his last piece, the e3-bishop, into the attack.  Black, who is played
without his c3-bishop, is, for all practical purposes, a piece down.

28...Rxg7 29.Qxg7+ Qf7 30.gxf6+ Ke6 31.Qg4+! Kxf6 32.Qf5+ Ke7 33.Bg5+ Kf8
34.Rh8+ Kg7 35.Qxf7+

35.Qh7 is mate.

35...Kxh8

All Black can do is choose his poison.

36.Bf6# 1-0


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BCIT JUNIOR OPEN

The 10th Annual BCIT Junior Scholastic tournament took place on January 25th and
attracted 133 players, including a large contingent from Washington State.
There were 25 trophies up for grabs, one for each grade (including Kindergarten)
and three to the top-place finishers in each of the four sections; in addition
each participant received a medallion.  When the dust had settled the trophy
distribution was as follows:

Kindergarten to grade 2

1st  Tanraj Sohal
2nd  Anokh Dhillon
3rd  Alex Sabaratnam

Grades 3-4

1st  Kristof Juhasz
2nd  Alexandra Botez
3rd  Foster Tom

Grades 5-6

1st  Richard Huang
2nd  Brianna Reid
3rd  Thomas Chow

Grades 7-12

1st  Jason Lee
2nd  Lucas Davies
3rd  Lane van Weerdhuizen

Grades trophies

 K  Tiegan McDougall
 1  Donovan Zhao
 2  Joward Tabucol
 3  Malina Hapchina
 4  Ryan Chang
 5  Thomas Witecki/Duncan Dauvergne
 6  Kyle King
 7  Noam Davies
 8  Sterling Dietz
 9  Alexander Reid
10  Jamie Harper
11  Ivan Petrov
12  Glen Nogayev


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EXHIBITION MATCH

Everybody is welcome to attend an exhibition match between the teams of the
Croatian Chess Club and Little Mountain Chess Club on Sunday February 8th (1:00
P.M.) at the Croatian Cultural Centre, 3250 Commercial Drive, Vancouver, B.C.
(enter through the Members Lounge or Restaurant). A casual Blitz Tournament and
a party will follow the match.  Special prizes for the winners of the Blitz
tournament courtesy of First Chess Enterprises (www.northshorechess.com)

For more information contact:

Robert Topic (604) 298 - 0543 (bernardtopic@shaw.ca)
Eduardo Azmitia (azmitia@interchange.ubc.ca)


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TD'S CORNER

This column will examine the Laws of Chess, to remind and/or educate players and
tournament directors alike of some of their details.  The full Laws of Chess can
be found in the CFC Handbook at www.chess.ca, and should be consulted for the
exact wording of each Article mentioned.

If anyone has a specific question they would like answered in this column, just
e-mail me (swright2@telus.net).


There is one golden rule that underlies many of the Laws of Chess - here it is:
Article 12.5: It is forbidden to distract or annoy the opponent in any manner
whatsoever.  This includes unreasonable claims or offers of a draw.

Some examples: incorrect draw offers, finger drumming, playing with captured
chessmen, sighing loudly, using a Walkman with the volume turned up too high,
talking to your opponent, talking to friends after your game is over but
disturbing others who are still playing, cell phones, candy wrappers, chip bags,
etc.

When your opponent is thinking, you should not disturb him.  If you want to say
anything to your opponent, you should do so when it is YOUR move:

If you wish to adjust a piece, do so when it is YOUR turn to move.

If you wish to offer a draw, do so when it is YOUR turn to move.

If you wish to claim a draw, do so when it is YOUR turn to move.

Spectators should be mindful they do not disturb the players.  Don't stand too
close to a game in progress, avoid talking at all in the playing area (even in a
whisper), and NEVER get involved in a game in progress (that's the tournament
director's job).  And one of my pet peeves: do not play with loose change in
your pocket!  Many people do this unconsciously, but it can be very distracting
to the players!


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THIRTY YEARS AGO by Bruce Harper

Thirty years ago Canadian Champion Peter Biyiasas demolished Washington State
Champion Viktors Pupols in a match by the score 6-1.  Peter didn't lose a game,
conceding two draws.

Back then I didn't fully appreciate Peter's play, but now I understand just how
well he played.  In the fifth game, given below, the players followed the main
line of the Archangel variation of the Ruy Lopez until the fifteen move, when
White varied with 15.dxe5.

Biyiasas,P - Pupols,V [C70] Match (5) Vancouver, 1974

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 b5 5.Bb3 Bb7 6.0-0 Bc5 7.c3 Nf6 8.Re1 d6 9.d4
Bb6 10.a4 0-0 11.Bg5 h6 12.Bh4 Re8 13.axb5 axb5 14.Rxa8 Bxa8 15.dxe5 dxe5?!

Black should recapture with his c6-knight, which would open the diagonal for his
a8-bishop and relieve some of the congestion in his position.  After 16.Nxe5
Rxe5!, Black is fine.

16.Qe2

White gets an edge with 16.Qxd8, followed by 17.Bxf6, but he wants more.

16...Na5 17.Rd1 Qe7 18.Bd5 c6 19.Ba2 Nb7 20.Bg3!

Beginning a very nice maneuver to bring his f3-knight to f5.

20...Bc7 21.Nh4 Kh7?! 22.Nf5 Qf8 23.Bh4 Bd8 24.Qf3 Nc5?

A mistake, probably in time trouble.

25.Nd6! Nfxe4 26.Nxe4! Bxh4 27.Nxc5 Qxc5 28.Qe4+ 1-0

And, just like that, it s over.  Black actually played on for a while, but with
no real hope.  Is chess really as easy as it sometimes seems?


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COMMISSION ON THE UNION CLUB, ELKS CLUB, EUREKA CLUB, CHESS CLUB, PLAYGOERS CLUB
AND RAILWAY PORTERS' CLUB

In 1905 a commission was established to investigate the activities of various
clubs, the City of Vancouver alleging that the clubs were not carrying out "any
objects contemplated by the Benevolent Societies Act or Charitable Associations
Act, but are being conducted in a manner adverse to the intention of the said
statutes."

In his report of September 29, 1905, Hugh Archibald MacLean had the following to
say about the Vancouver Chess Club:

"This Club was incorporated under the Benevolent Societies Act in September,
1901.  Notice of the incorporation appears in the Gazette of the 19th of
September 1901.  The objects of the association were stated to be to promote
social intercourse, rational recreation and good fellowship among the members.

According to the evidence of Mr. Sass, who has been secretary of this Club since
it was first organized, the Club has been practically out of existence for a
year and a half.  On the 13th of June, 1905, thirteen men were convicted, in the
Vancouver Police Court, of gambling in the Chess Club rooms.  It appears that in
March, 1904, the Club had ceased to occupy the rooms in question and had
practically gone out of existence.

The evidence presented before the commission, however, convinced me that
gambling was extensively carried on at the Chess Club rooms while the Club was
in existence.  One witness testified that, before March, 1904, the Club was
frequented by all classes of men and by men of different races, such as Chinese,
Japanese, and Negroes.

The same witness, who was made use of by the police to obtain information as to
the character of these clubs, states that games, such as poker and blackjack,
were generally played, and that, although he frequently visited the place, he
never saw a chess board there.  I would recommend that the charter of this Club
be revoked and that the society or association be dissolved."

[From the original report, now in the B.C. Archives.  We hasten to add that this
report in no way reflects on the other entities which have held the name
'Vancouver Chess Club' since 1905!]


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UPCOMING EVENTS

To save space, from now on I will only give basic information for events - date,
place, and type.  Full details for all the events listed here may be found on
the BCCF site, www.chess.bc.ca.

Junior Events

Feb 8    Island Junior Open #5, Victoria
Feb 15  Grand Prix #5, Vancouver
Feb 28  Elementary Finals and Secondary School Team Championship, Vancouver
Mar 6    South Fraser Valley Elementary Chess Challenge, Surrey
Mar 7    Grand Prix #6, Vancouver
Mar 7    Victoria Regional Chess Challenge

For full details see www.chess.bc.ca or http://members.shaw.ca/victoriachess/

Individual Chess Matches

Players interested in participating in rated individual chess matches with other
players of comparable or dissimilar ratings can contact Luis E. Azmitia at
azmitia@interchange.ubc.ca  Please make sure to include in the e-mail: your
name, your rating, type of game preferred (i.e. active), and the rating range of
possible opponents.  Note that the games will be held in the Vancouver area.

Vancouver Saturday Night Chess (1)
Dates: Saturdays February 7, 14, 21, 29 and March 6.
Place: Vancouver Bridge Centre, 2776 East Broadway (at Kaslo), Vancouver
Type: 5-round Swiss


Little Mountain's Regular Swiss - February
Dates: February 9, 16, 23 and March 1.
Place: Little Mountain Neighbourhood House, 3981 Main St., Vancouver, BC (near King Edward Ave.)
Type: 4-round Swiss

UBC Tuesday Night Chess February/March 2004
Dates: February 10th, 17th, 24th, March 2nd, 9th
Place: UBC Student Union Building, Room 211
Type: 5-round Swiss

Kelowna Winter Fest

Date: February 14-15th 2004
Place: Sandman Inn, 2130 Harvey Avenue, Kelowna, B.C. Tel: 250-860-6409
Type: 5-round Swiss
Kamloops Grand Prix #2
Date: Feb. 21, 2004
Place: South Kamloops Secondary School Cafeteria, 821 Munro Street, Kamloops, B.C.
Format: 4-round Swiss

Little Mountain's Regular Swiss - March

Dates: March 8, 15, 22 and 29.
Place: Little Mountain Neighbourhood House, 3981 Main St., Vancouver, BC (near King Edward Ave.)
Type: 4-round Swiss

Vancouver Saturday Night Chess (2)
Dates: Saturdays March 13, 20, 27, and April 3, and 17
Place: Vancouver Bridge Centre, 2776 East Broadway (at Kaslo), Vancouver
Type: 5-round Swiss

UBC Tuesday Night Chess March/April 2004
Dates: March 16th, 23rd, 30th, April 6th, 13th
Place: UBC Student Union Building, Room 211
Type: 5-round Swiss

Love Me Tender Open

Date: Saturday, March 27, 2004
Place: Fatima Church (315 Walker St. Coquitlam)
Type: Regular 4-round Swiss
Little Mountain's Regular Swiss - April
Dates: April 5, 12, 19 and 26.
Place: Little Mountain Neighbourhood House, 3981 Main St., Vancouver, BC (near King Edward Ave.)
Type: 4-round Swiss

B.C. Championship

Dates: April 9-12
Place: Vancouver Bridge Centre
Type: 8-player round robin

Kamloops Grand Prix #3
Date: April 9,10, 2004
Eligibility: for < 2200 only
Place: South Kamloops Secondary School Cafeteria, 821 Munro Street, Kamloops, B.C.
Type: 6-round Swiss

What a wonderful world

Date: Saturday April 24
Location: Fatima Church, Coquitlam (315 Walker st.)
Type: Regular 4-round Swiss

29th Paul Keres Memorial

Date: May 21-24 2004
Location: Croatian Community Centre, Vancouver
Type: 6 or 7-round Swiss
http://www.keresmemorial.com/
Western Canadian Open
Date: July 9-18 2004
Place: Vancouver Airport Conference Resort
Type: 10 round single section Swiss
Kamloops Grand Prix #4
Date: Sept. 18, 2004
Place: South Kamloops Secondary School Cafeteria, 821 Munro Street, Kamloops, B.C.
Type: 4-round Swiss
Kamloops Grand Prix #5
Date: Oct. 23, 2004
Place: South Kamloops Secondary School Cafeteria, 821 Munro Street, Kamloops, B.C.
Type: 4-round Swiss
Kamloops Grand Prix #6
Date: Nov. 20, 2004
Place: South Kamloops Secondary School Cafeteria, 821 Munro Street, Kamloops, B.C.
Type: 4-round Swiss