1972 Evening Standard 8th Islington Open, 15-17 December, Islington Green School

Rank	1972 'Evening Standard' Islington Open	Total
1	Robert Bellin (£250)	6/6
2-7	Michael J Basman, Piet Van der Weide, Predrag Ostojic, Michael F Stean, Simon Webb, A Howard Williams (£45 each)	5
8-15	Goran Antunac (Yugoslavia), William R Hartston, Geoffrey J Nicholas, Amir Helman (Israel), Bernard M Rothbart, Daniel Wright, Brian F O'Sullivan, Brian R Eley	4½
16-50	Nick G Argyris, Alan P Ashby, Gerald H Bennett, Paul V Byway, Bernard Alan Carpinter (New Zealand), T C Chapman, George A Dickson, Michael J Franklin, Barry N Green, Thomas K Hemingway, Nigel J Holloway, David J James, Charles Kennaugh, William A Linton, Norman Littlewood, Stephen Macdonald-Ross, Dan E Mayers (USA), A C Melville, Hayri Ozbilen (Turkey), Ludek Pachman (Czechoslovakia), Arthur Pope (Australia), Keith B Richardson, Peter J Romilly, Seth Saverymuttu, Terrey Ian Shaw (Australia), Christopher C W Shephard, David Sherman, Gennadi Sosonko (Netherlands), Alan G Trangmar, Jaap Vogel (New Zealand, Dutch Open Champion), George W Wheeler	4
51st=	(Those on 3½ included...) A Jonathan Mestel, Colin S Crouch, David Parr, John D M Nunn, George S Botterill, Terry C Fox, Charles de Villiers, Jonathan I Century, MIchael W Wills, Michael V Lambshire, David E Rumens, Martin Fleury, etc	3½
	(Those on 3 included...) Mark H Horton, David B Pritchard, Richard C Lemon, Stefano Bruzzi (Italian master), Hugh MacGrillen (Ireland), Roger Webb, Johann P Sommerville, John M Quinn (British U-21 Champion), Jonathan S Speelman, Kevin J Wicker (winner of the Manchester Open with 6/6), David S C Goodman.	3

The table above is from CHESS, January 1973, Vol.38/665-6, p118. The crosstable below, as will be fairly obvious, is a long way from being complete and not entirely in score order, having been generated from the available games, but hopefully it will be useful to a limited extent insofar as it identifies players whose games appear in the file.

1972 Evening Standard Islington Open		Fed	Elo	1	2	3	4	5	6	Total
1	Robert Bellin	ENG	2328	◊ 1/48	♦ 1/47	◊ 1/7	♦ 1/21	◊ 1/12	◊ 1/4	6
2	Michael J Basman	ENG	2328	◊ 1/46	♦ 1/45	◊ 0/21	♦ 1/58	◊ 1/38	♦ 1/23	5
3	Michael F Stean	ENG	2328	◊ 0/45	♦ 1/96	◊ 1/95	♦ 1/94	◊ 1/89	♦ 1/93	5
4	Daniel Wright	ENG	2320	♦ 1/20	◊ ½/17	◊ 1/85	♦ 1/39	◊ 1/8	♦ 0/1	4½
5	Simon Webb	ENG	2336	♦ 1/87	◊ 1/41	♦ ½/22	◊ 1/56	½	◊ 1/15	5
6	Ludek Pachman	CZE	2512g	◊ 1/90	♦ 0/21	♦ ½/39	◊ 1/53	♦ 1/86	◊ 1/26	4½
7	Piet Van der Weide	NED	2310	♦ 1/97	◊ 1/10	♦ 0/1	◊ 1/40	1	◊ 1/41	5
8	Goran Antunac	CRO	2430m	½	◊ 1/61	♦ 1/26	◊ 1/22	♦ 0/4	◊ 1/46	4½
9	William R Hartston	ENG	2472	½	◊ 1/55	◊ ½/30	♦ 1/54	◊ 1/27	♦ ½/21	4½
10	Norman Littlewood	ENG	2328	◊ 1/13	♦ 0/7	◊ 1/91	0	◊ 1/98	♦ 1/60	4
11	David Sherman	USA	2200	♦ 1/71	◊ 0/22	♦ ½/75	◊ 1/100	♦ 1/99	◊ ½/49	4
12	Keith Bevan Richardson	ENG	2328	♦ ½/15	◊ 1/102	♦ 1/103	◊ 1/59	♦ 0/1		3½ / 5
13	Jonathan Isaac Century	ENG	2280	♦ 0/10	◊ ½/29	◊ 1/73	♦ 1/85	◊ 1/74	♦ 0/40	3½
14	David Parr	ENG	2152	♦ 1/38	◊ ½/28	♦ 1/104	◊ 0/16		◊ 1/105	3½ / 5
15	Gerald H Bennett	ENG	2232	◊ ½/12		◊ 1/29	♦ ½/18	◊ 1/108	♦ 0/5	3 / 5
16	Michael J Franklin	ENG	2320		♦ 1/27	◊ ½/18	♦ 1/14	◊ 0/19	♦ ½/72	3 / 5
17	Alan G Trangmar	ENG	2200	◊ 1/57	♦ ½/4			♦ 1/109	◊ ½/28	3 / 4
18	(Arthur) Howard Williams	WLS	2424	♦ 1/52	1	♦ ½/16	◊ ½/15	♦ 1/110	1	5
19	Predrag Ostojic	YUG	2440m			♦ 1/32	◊ 1/86	♦ 1/16		5
20	Martin Fleury	ENG		◊ 0/4		◊ 1/111	♦ 1/88	◊ 1/92		3 / 4
21	Brian Ratcliffe Eley	ENG	2296	1	◊ 1/6	♦ 1/2	◊ 0/1	1	◊ ½/9	4½
22	A Jonathan Mestel	ENG	2256	◊ 1/112	♦ 1/11	◊ ½/5	♦ 0/8		♦ 0/34	2½ / 5
23	A Melville	ENG	2024			♦ 1/63	◊ ½/24	♦ 1/87	◊ 0/2	2½ / 4
24	George Steven Botterill	WLS	2440		◊ 1/65	◊ 1/62	♦ ½/23		♦ 0/52	2½ / 4
25	Charles W Kennaugh	ENG	2064		◊ ½/31	◊ ½/51	♦ 1/45	◊ ½/71		2½ / 4
26	A J McDonnell	ENG		◊ 1/44	♦ 1/33	◊ 0/8			♦ 0/6	2 / 4
27	Peter J Romilly	SCO		◊ 0/64	◊ 0/16	♦ 1/77		♦ 0/9	◊ 1/106	2 / 5
28	Seth Saverymuttu	ENG	2344	◊ ½/43	♦ ½/14		♦ ½/79		♦ ½/17	2 / 4
29	Andrew J Morley	ENG	2088	◊ 1/114	♦ ½/13	♦ 0/15	♦ ½/50			2 / 4
30	William G L Adaway	ENG	2144	◊ 1/89		♦ ½/9	♦ 0/57		♦ ½/80	2 / 4
31	Michael V Lambshire	ENG	2280		♦ ½/25	◊ 1/88			♦ ½/38	2 / 3
32	Thomas Keith Hemingway	ENG	2104		♦ 1/90	◊ 0/19	♦ 1/51			2 / 3
33	David Brine Pritchard	ENG	2240		◊ 0/26	◊ 1/50		◊ 1/91	♦ 0/62	2 / 4
34	Geoffrey James Nicholas	ENG	2048		♦ 1/115		◊ ½/41		◊ 1/22	4½
35	Sean Thrower	ENG	2136	◊ 0/47			◊ 1/101		◊ 1/88	2 / 3
36	Andrew P Shepstone	ENG	2112	♦ ½/72	◊ ½/73	♦ 1/101				2 / 3
37	William A Linton	ENG	2160			◊ 1/92			♦ 1/116	2 / 2
38	Ronald JM Farley	ENG	2080	◊ 0/14			◊ 1/76	♦ 0/2	◊ ½/31	1½ / 4
39	Michael J Yeo	ENG	2120		♦ 1/107	◊ ½/6	◊ 0/4			1½ / 3
40	Brian F O'Sullivan	ENG	1992			◊ ½/42	♦ 0/7		◊ 1/13	4½
41	Geoffrey H James	ENG	2232	◊ 1/107	♦ 0/5	◊ 1/123	♦ ½/34	◊ 1/125	♦ 0/7	3½
42	John D M Nunn	ENG	2320	♦ ½/76	◊ ½/81	♦ ½/40	◊ 0/66			1½ / 4
43	Alexander Neil Brilliant	ENG	2120	♦ ½/28	◊ 0/62		◊ 1/117			1½ / 3
44	Maurice J Staples	ENG	2152	♦ 0/26	◊ ½/78				◊ 1/113	1½ / 3
45	Graham P Burton	ENG	2232	♦ 1/3	◊ 0/2		◊ 0/25			1 / 3
46	Terry C Fox	ENG	2224	♦ 0/2	◊ 1/106				♦ 0/8	1 / 3
47	G Kerr	AUS	2160	♦ 1/35	◊ 0/1					1 / 2
48	Richard C Lemon	ENG	2232	♦ 0/1	◊ 1/118					1 / 2
49	Terrey Ian Shaw	AUS	2392		♦ ½/51	◊ 0/54			♦ ½/11	1 / 3
50	S L Green		1720		◊ ½/82	♦ 0/33	◊ ½/29	♦ 0/55		1 / 4
51	Mark Howard Horton	ENG			◊ ½/49	♦ ½/25	◊ 0/32			1 / 3
52	Bernard M Rothbart	ENG	2248	◊ 0/18					◊ 1/24	4½
53	Augustine A Aaron				◊ 1/64		♦ 0/6			1 / 2
54	H Morphy	ENG	2024			♦ 1/49	◊ 0/9			1 / 2
55	Rene De Milliano	ENG	2160		♦ 0/9			◊ 1/50		1 / 2
56	Terence P D Chapman		2152			◊ 1/74	♦ 0/5			1 / 2
57	Jaap Vogel	GER		♦ 0/17			◊ 1/30			1 / 2
58	Donald G Mackay					♦ 1/119	◊ 0/2			1 / 2
59	Johann P Sommerville	ENG	2184		♦ 1/120		♦ 0/12		◊ 0/67	1 / 3
60	Richard W O'Brien	IRL	2008				◊ 1/78		◊ 0/10	1 / 2
61	Norman A Hutchinson	ENG	2120	◊ 1/121	♦ 0/8					1 / 2
62	Alan Peter Ashby	ENG	2080	◊ 1/94	♦ 1/43	♦ 0/24			◊ 1/33	3 / 4
63	Paul A Hutchinson	ENG				◊ 0/23		♦ ½/83	◊ ½/77	1 / 3
64	Stefano Bruzzi	ITA	2296	♦ 1/27	♦ 0/53					1 / 2
65	Philip V Wade	ENG	2152	◊ 1/122	♦ 0/24					1 / 2
66	Arthur Pope	AUS	2070				♦ 1/42			1 / 1
67	George W Wheeler		2024						♦ 1/59	1 / 1
68	James Stuart Emsley		2152		♦ 1/113					1 / 1
69	Edward G Lea	ENG	1968	◊ 1/123						1 / 1
70	David A Curnow	ENG							◊ 1/124	1 / 1
71	David E Rumens	ENG	2200	◊ 0/11				♦ ½/25		½ / 2
72	David J James	WLS	2168	◊ ½/36					◊ ½/16	1 / 2
73	D Kovic		2104		♦ ½/36	♦ 0/13				½ / 2
74	M D Osmond	ENG	2056	◊ ½/84		♦ 0/56		♦ 0/13		½ / 3
75	David G MacDonald	ENG	2024			◊ ½/11				½ / 1
76	Roger Webb	ENG	2240	◊ ½/42			♦ 0/38			½ / 2
77	David John Sully	WLS	2000			◊ 0/27			♦ ½/63	½ / 2
78	MJ Hall	ENG			♦ ½/44		♦ 0/60			½ / 2
79	JG Stainton	ENG	2152				◊ ½/28			½ / 1
80	P Seagroat	ENG							◊ ½/30	½ / 1
81	Anthony J Stebbings	ENG	2136		♦ ½/42					½ / 1
82	Nigel J Holloway	ENG	2264		♦ ½/50					½ / 1
83	George Szaszvari	ENG	1888					◊ ½/63		½ / 1
84	Kevin J Wicker	ENG	2128	♦ ½/74						½ / 1
85	L Harris					♦ 0/4	◊ 0/13			0 / 2
86	Dan E Mayers	USA					♦ 0/19	◊ 0/6		0 / 2
87	Charles De Villiers	RSA	2200	◊ 0/5				◊ 0/23		0 / 2
88	Boguslaw Okrzeja		1664			♦ 0/31	◊ 0/20		♦ 0/35	0 / 3
89	George A Dickson	ENG	2176	♦ 0/30				♦ 0/3		0 / 2
90	Jonathan S Speelman	ENG	2240	♦ 0/6	◊ 0/32					0 / 2
91	RS Johnson	ENG				♦ 0/10		♦ 0/33		0 / 2
92	R Pool	ENG	1968			♦ 0/37		♦ 0/20		0 / 2
93	Gennadi Sosonko	NED	2400						◊ 0/3	0 / 1
94	Nick Argyris	ENG	2144	♦ 0/62			◊ 0/3			0 / 2
95	D George	ENG	1680			♦ 0/3				0 / 1
96	Gerry M Hayes	ENG			◊ 0/3					0 / 1
97	Roy A Batchelor	ENG	2120	◊ 0/7						0 / 1
98	Maximilian Ernst Poolake	ENG	1960					♦ 0/10		0 / 1
99	Alan E Hanreck	ENG	2048					◊ 0/11		0 / 1
100	H Bigham						♦ 0/11			0 / 1
101	Larry E Marden	ENG	1880			◊ 0/36	♦ 0/35			0 / 2
102	D Morris	ENG	2128		♦ 0/12					0 / 1
103	MJ Gilhespy	ENG	1920			◊ 0/12				0 / 1
104	Anthony CP Milnes	ENG	2016			◊ 0/14				0 / 1
105	Peter Morrey	ENG	1968						♦ 0/14	0 / 1
106	Michael J Dymond				♦ 0/46				♦ 0/27	0 / 2
107	Hugh MacGrillen	ENG	2328	♦ 0/41	◊ 0/39					0 / 2
108	James Burnett	ENG	2016					♦ 0/15		0 / 1
109	John M Quinn	ENG						◊ 0/17		0 / 1
110	Chris CW Shephard	ENG	2160					◊ 0/18		0 / 1
111	DW Wilson	ENG				♦ 0/20				0 / 1
112	Robert S McFarland	ENG	2200	♦ 0/22						0 / 1
113	M Belt		1800		◊ 0/68				♦ 0/44	0 / 2
114	Paul V Byway	ENG	2152	♦ 0/29						0 / 1
115	W Sirk	ENG			◊ 0/34					0 / 1
116	DA Scott	ENG	1928						◊ 0/37	0 / 1
117	DJ MacIntyre	ENG					♦ 0/43			0 / 1
118	Stephen Macdonald-Ross	ENG	2048		♦ 0/48					0 / 1
119	T Howdle	ENG	1864			◊ 0/58				0 / 1
120	Vernon J Dilworth	ENG			◊ 0/59					0 / 1
121	David I Lister	ENG	2088	♦ 0/61						0 / 1
122	Bernard Alan Carpinter	NZL	2080	♦ 0/65						0 / 1
123	Hayri Ozbilen	TUR	2080	♦ 0/69		♦ 0/41				0 / 2
124	NN								♦ 0/70	0 / 1
125	Stephen John Ridout	ENG						♦ 0/41		0 / 1

Evening Standard London Chess Congress (BCM, February 1973, ppn 74-75)

(Report by Stewart Reuben)

Name a record and it seems we broke it at this event which took place at Islington Green School from December 15th to 17th. There were a total of 1208 entries for the five Swiss events, a world record for an adult congress. The 434 competitors in the Novice Championship was the largest Swiss ever held, the U.S. Open has never exceeded 400 players. This was the reason that we did not split the event, so as to have a world record for our sponsor.

484 seemed like a large entry for the 1971 congress. Why the dramatic increase? A 100 was expected for a natural increase, 25% increase has been reported everywhere due to the Spassky-Fischer match, the other 450 players must have been due to the tremendous pre-tournament coverage given by the Evening Standard in articles by Leonard Barden. More than any other English event this tapped the vast number of new players produced by the publicity this year.

Such numbers lead to great difficulties of organisation, more especially so as three weeks before the match I was still burying my head in the sand and expecting an entry of only 700! Conditions were too cramped but the school cooperated magnificently in closing the youth centre so as to give us maximum room. At the time of writing, several local education authorities are coming in for adverse criticism, The Inner London Education Authority was more helpful than we had any right or hope to expect.
The best controllers from all over England rallied to our desperate cries at the last moment. When I started the Islington congress in 1965, there were 24 competitors. I knew everybody by name, ran the congress practically single-handed and had time to go to the theatre in the evening. This time I did not even know all the organisers by sight!

There were 196 competitors in the London Open Championship, making it the largest ever open tournament outside the U.S. The 50 players graded over 200 also made it the strongest ever in western Europe. Ludek Pachman, who had only just left Czechoslovakia was the main star but a large question mark hung over his head. Grandmaster he may be, but could he overcome the problems of advancing age; several years without tournament practice and some time in prison (due to his bitter opposition to the Soviet invasion)? After he lost to Brian Eley in the second round, he was never in the running and the field was wide open.

Richard Bellin showed what a fine weekend Swiss competitor he is by winning with 6/6. This corresponded to a 257 grading result as he played nobody graded under 200 and beat Danny Wright in the last round (another of England's most uncompromising players), although a draw would have sufficed to win the £250 first prize (another European record for an open tournament). 2-6 winning £46 each, P Ostojic (Yugoslavia), P Van der Weide (Holland), M J Basman, M F Stean, S Webb, A H Williams with 5/6. 7-14 G Antunac (Yugoslavia), A Helman (Israel), W R Hartston, G Nicholas, B M Rothbart, D Wright, B F O'Sullivan, B R Eley with 4½.

These results show the advantage of using an ultra-sophisticated accelerated pairing system. Ordinary random Swiss pairings would almost certainly have produced at least one 5½/6 besides a player with 100%. This was impossible after 5 rounds, although still theoretically possible after 4. A Swiss can only be said to have been moderately successful if it was impossible for one player to draw clear of the field. The 1971 Islington Open produced a seven player tie, but it was a satisfactory result for the players could have scored more than 5/6 if they had been good enough.

Adjudications are also a great bug-bear in all these types of event. The problem was solved as best it can be by employing Ray Keene, Bernard Cafferty and Peter Clarke as professional adjudicators. This is a far better method than yielding to Mach 2 rates of play.

The Amateur Championship for players rated under 190 was won by Nigel Povah with 5½/6 and with it the BEA prize of a holiday for two in Holland during the USSR v Rest of the World Match next May [which never happened - JS]. T J Bean, J Johnson, R C Lynn, J Skilleter, A Surtees, D C Taylor all scored 5/6 in this 140 player event to win £20 each.

M Young won the £40 first prize in the Major Tournament (for players graded under 160) with 6/6 ahead of 210 other players. P Corbin, R Murphy and R C Pentecost all scored 5½.

P F Dyson also scored 6 to win the Minor Tournament (for players graded under 140) and first prize of £30. M Dunne, C H Gibbons, S V Graham and R L Povey scored 5½. The latter won the Hamley's prize of board, set and clock for the highest scoring under 18 in the congress.

It had been expected that there would be two players on 100% in both the Major and Minor. Both players were to win £40 and £30 respectively in that case, so as to overcome complaints about unresolved tournaments, but it did not prove necessary.

The Novice Championship, restricted to players graded under 120, had an unbelievable 434 competitors. We doubled the prize fund over that announced. M Farthing, J Stark, C Whittington scored 6/6, winning £33.50 each. A W Binks, A Marchant, M Schwartz, J Buttinger and M Charter all scored 5½. Marchant won a case of Pommery and Greno Champagne as the highest placed newcomer to competitive chess.

Association with the Evening Standard enabled us to obtain many other quite valuable prizes as well. There were over 100 book prizes from assorted publishers and prizes from Alexandra National Hotel, Carrier's restaurant, The Chess Centre, Cutty Sark, Games and Puzzles, The National Games Club, Mary Chess perfume, The Workshop. Most valuable of all was one year's free computer time for a school, donated by Time-Sharing Ltd., who also had a computer competing in the Minor Tournament which scored 2 points. St. Albans School won this £500 prize.

Hal Shaper donated £50 for the brilliancy prize which was won for the following game [Speelman-Hemingway, Rd 2]

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The Evening Standard London Chess Congress (8th Annual Islington Congress) by Kevin J. Connell

(Source: CHESS, January 1973, Vol.38/665-6, ppn 117-119)

An estimated 1,208 people took part in this mammoth congress (held again at Islington Green School from December 15th to 17th). This beat the previous world record for an adult congress by 260. The entry also represented an increase of a mere 700 over last year's event.

The congress was also a British first in that it was the first truly commercially sponsored chess event in this country. There has been sponsorship before (notable contributions coming from Jim Slater, The Times, Robert Silk, Cutty Sark and various municipalities.) But never so much publicity as was provided by the main backers, the Evening Standard, during and after the congress several pages were devoted to articles and advertising on the game. It was just this publicity that enabled so many prizes in kind to be secured, so that the prizes could be multiplied without increasing entry fees.

Stewart Reuben, reporting last year's congress in CHESS, stated that "such colossi present their own problems" in organisation. With the vastly increased entry organisation became a correspondingly greater problem. This was solved by enrolling about 30 controllers (as with the entry, no one really knows the exact figure) which included almost every available experienced Swiss system controller from all over England: the entire Manchester Open team of Richard Furness, Trevor Moth and Nigel Knowles and his wife; David Welch whose experience of the 1,400 plus Liverpool junior was obviously of great value; Harry Baines from Wolverhampton; Ron and Margaret Powis from Stroud; and of course many others from nearer London.

Another indication of the professional way the congress was run was the adjudication panel. In the past adjudications have proved cause for considerable concern. This was overcome by the use of a professional team of adjudicators: Bernard Cafferty, Peter Clarke and Ray Keene.

The £2,000 worth of prizes (another record of course for a British congress) was composed half of cash prizes, half special prizes. In all there were 102 prizes — as many prizes as most congresses have competitors !
'Connell.

The Open Championship had 196 players, an increase of 70 over last year. This was not a great increase compared with the growth of the entire congress, but the increase in strength was noticeable, with 43 players graded over 200 compared with 27 last year.

Grandmaster Ludek Pachman was the main attraction in this section; everyone was interested to see how he would play after four years away from international chess. Though his final score of 4/6 was disappointing, it must be largely attributed to the stamina-testing conditions of six games in a weekend proving just too much; Pachman is now 48 and his tribulations in Czechoslovakia have certainly taken toll of his stamina.

Most of the other favourites lived up to expectations, though the tournament provided the usual crop of surprises. In the first round the Yugoslav international master Predrag Ostojic was beaten by Mark Horton, while the other Yugoslav master, Antunac, was well held to a draw by London junior Somerville. George Botterill lost to Gennady Sosonko of the Netherlands. The latter result, however, was less of a surprise when it was discovered that Sosonko is a master who has emigrated from the Soviet Union.

The first real sensation occurred in the second round when the British Champion Brian Eley defeated Pachman in 24 moves, in a game that should add to the growing prestige of the deadly DERLD (Delayed Exchange Ruy Lopez Deferred).

By the end of the third round two favourites had emerged in Robert Bellin and Brian Eley who, full of confidence after his win over Pachman, beat Basman quite rapidly, while Bellin was on the receiving end of a time-trouble gift from van der Weide.

Bellin decisively beat Eley in Round four, thus achieving what can now be regarded as his "normal" position in the tournament; he had 4 out of 4 last year. His win over Keith Richardson in the fifth round left him sole leader with 100% to play Danny Wright, the only player with 4½. Thus, irrespective of the result, there would be a sole winner; in itself an improvement on last year's seven-way tie.

Meanwhile there was bound to be a tremendous struggle for the other prizes. The last round results were, with scores at start of the round in brackets:

1972 Islington Open, Round 6 pairings
Bellin (5)	1-0	Wright (4½)
Eley (4½)	½-½	Hartston (4)
Williams (4)	1-0	Pope (4)
van der Weide (4)	1-0	G H James (4*)
Ostojic (4)	1-0	Holloway (4)
S Webb (4)	1-0	Bennett (4)
Melville (4)	0-1	Basman (4)
Sosonko (4)	0-1	Stean (4)

(* the above table has an incorrect score for G H James who finished on 3½/6)

Van der Weide mated James. He also won another of his games by mate !

Thus Robert Bellin improved upon his last year's joint first place, with a really impressive display of talent and sustained aggression. His grading result in this tournament was roughly the same as Spassky's against Fischer! Although he probably doesn't want to be reminded of it again, this result makes his failure at the Athens World Junior Championship all the more unintelligible.

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The Amateur Championship for players graded below 190, attracted 142 entries. This was again run by Colin Tribe, but this year had more substantial help, mainly in the form of Ron Harman, than last year when he was assisted by a group of non-chess playing schoolboys.

Here also, despite the size of the entry, a sole winner emerged. Nigel Povah, of Streatham, runner up in the last national Under-21 championship, won the B.E.A. prize of a holiday for two during the next U.S.S.R. v World match in Holland.

(1) Nigel E Povah 5½/6; (2-7) Terence J Bean, J Johnson, John Victor Skilleter, Mike J Surtees, Daryl C Taylor, Robert C Lynn 5 (£20 each).

In spite of the regulation that no competitor could win more than one prize J V Skilleter succeeded in obtaining three! Apart from joint second prize in the Amateur, he also shared the Ron Harman swindle prize (with J Hart in the Open), and received the prize for the best score by a player over 50 in the Amateur — he was the only player to register as being eligible.

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The Major Tournament restricted to players graded under 160, had 227 players. Again there was a sole winner.

(1) Mel J Young 6/6 (£40 and a Lewis set and board); (2-4) P Corbin (15), R C Murphy, Robert C Pentecost 5½ (£17 each)

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There were 211 competitors in the Minor Tournament restricted to players graded under 140.

(1) P F Dyson 6/6 (£30); (2-5) M Dunne, C H Gibbons, S V Graham (18) 5½ (£13.50 each). R L Povey (15), Hamley's junior prize of a board, set and clock.

A new feature was the Novice Tournament. This event was restricted to players graded below 120 or ungraded, and attracted a phenomenal entry of 432. This section was deliberately not split up as it broke yet another record as the largest ever tournament. According to traditional principles it would require an eleven round Swiss to produce a clear winner, so a triple tie was not unreasonable.

(1-3) M Farthing, J Stark, C Whittington 6/6 (£33.50 each). A Marchant (equal 4th with 5½) was awarded the case of Pommery and Greno champagne for the top player with no published grade.

The most valuable of the £1,000 special prizes was that of Time Sharing Limited: a year's computer time worth £500 for the top school team of three. Four schools scored 12½ points. St. Albans School (Keith Howells 17, Douglas Ponton 15, and Timothy Pike 15) got the decision (after six recounts!) over St. Olaves, Orpington; Latymer Edmonton and Catford Boys.

The special Women's prizes were a pleasant and quite novel feature. Susan Caldwell 14, with 4/6 in the Major, won the first prize of £10 and a perfume presentation from Mary Chess. 2nd was Mrs. Dinah Wright with 3½ in the Amateur. All women and girl competitors received a sample of perfume from Mary Chess. The Girls' Prize was won by Susan Porter with 4/6.

When the congress closed Ludek Pachman said 'Very young, very international, very good for chess!' All this it undoubtedly was, but does anything more substantial remain? I think that the answer is yes.

A number of lessons have been learnt and many new possibilities have been opened up. Stewart Reuben and Leonard Barden have assembled a hard core of organisers with now at least some experience of controlling giant tournaments. This will, in itself, make it easier to stage more of these events. At least as important as this is that a number of possible sponsors have been spoken to with a view to future events.

One small item unearthed by an Evening Standard reporter may prove to be of special significance: Robert Bellin 'has the unusual distinction of getting a grant from his local education authority at Great Yarmouth — as a student of chess.' In the past most of our strong chess players have had to combine their chess with study of a more 'academic' nature in order to obtain a grant. Perhaps this may change in the future.

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File Updated

Date	Notes
11 December 1997	First uploaded in zipped file format
18 August 2022	Upgraded to modern standard, with viewer and crosstable, etc.
24 June 2023	Corrections made to two round six pairings, resulting from a mix-up between two players surnamed James: David J James drew with White vs MJ Franklin, while P van der Weide won with White against Geoffrey H James. My thanks to Brian Denman for first alerting me to this and David James for confirming that he drew with Michael Franklin and that the score of the game is correct.
27 December 2023	Added five more games: (1) A.P.Ashby 1-0 N.Argyris (rd 1); (2) A.P.Ashby 1-0 D.Pritchard (rd 6); (3) G.H.James 1-0 H.Ozbilen (rd 3); (4) G.J.Nicholas ½-½ G.H.James (rd 4); (5) G.H.James 1-0 S.Ridout (rd 5). The first two are from the collection of Alan Ashby's games at the Bristol & District Chess League's website, while the remaining three are from Brian Denman's collection, for which many thanks.