UK Chess News
Chess Rising Stars

Yes, starting 7th May 2019, Hammersmith Chess Club will be running events tailored for women, aimed at beginners and intermediate players, seeking to encourage woman to participate in the game we all love!

The initiative is a first for Hammersmith and is a demonstration of our drive to become the club of choice for women chess players in London, and help redress the balance of underrepresented groups in the chess world. We are grateful to the English Chess Federation for their support and funding. Read on!

The following events will be FREE of charge to all women (and girls!) that wish to attend – please drop us an email to register your place at any of these events in May – john.white49@ntlworld.com

All players are welcome to attend – men and women – however we will be giving priority to women at all of these events:
7th / 14th / 21st May – Women’s Master Maria Manelidou

Tuesday 7th May, 6pm – A Chess Lecture from Women’s FIDE Master Maria Manelidou on “Opening Themes“
Tuesday 14th May, 6pm – A second lecture from Maria on “Check Mate Patterns“
Tuesday 21st May, 6pm – A third and final lecture from Maria on “Basic tactics“

FIDE Master Maria joins us at Hammersmith in May
21st May – Women’s Tournament – £250 Prize Money
After the final lecture on 21st May, we will then be hosting a women-only rapid chess tournament wth £250 of prizes on offer. It will be a Swiss tourney, 10 minutes per player for all moves, with cash prizes as follows:
Winner: £125
Runner-up: £75
Third: £50

Special Offer to Join Hammersmith in May
Finally, to round off Women’s Chess Month at Hammersmith, any female players who want to join the club can do so in May for the special price of £40, which will cover membership for the remainder of this season and all of next season – up until June 2020 – including ECF membership worth £15!

This gets you full club membership, and English Chess Federation membership, providing you with rated games, all club tournaments and activities, lectures, training, and much more!
It’s going to be great – please get in touch to register your interest and secure your places! john.white49@ntlworld.com

For more info visit www.hammerchess.co.uk

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Mar 02, 2026

Wimbledon Chess Rising Stars (5-8 y.o.)

Picture a room full of young children leaning over chessboards, sharing ideas and learning to think one step ahead. Chess at this age is less about competition and more about discovery. From April 2026, Wimbledon Chess Rising Stars will open a new Sunday club for 5 to 8 year olds taking their first steps into the world of chess.

The club will take place at William Morris House, Wimbledon on Sundays from 2:00 to 3:00 pm. It is specifically tailored for younger children who are new to chess and would benefit from an engaging introduction to the game. No prior knowledge of chess is required. However, to ensure children settle in comfortably and keep pace with the group, we recommend that complete beginners join by week 3 of the term.

Our experienced and enthusiastic coaches specialise in teaching young learners. Children will learn the rules, develop good habits and begin to think strategically in a supportive and encouraging environment. As students gain experience and confidence, we will recommend they progress to our main Wimbledon Rising Stars Club, which runs from 4:00 to 5:30 pm at the same venue.

Wimbledon Chess Rising Stars will be our fourth in-person Chess Rising Stars club and we are excited to bring this opportunity to more families in the area. We look forward to welcoming our newest young players to our chess community this April!

Full details

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UK Chess News
Jun 08, 2024

SW England v Wales – 26th May 2024

Match Report by Noah Bevis

I was really excited to be playing Board 1 for the SW England team in the fixture against Wales. It was my first fixture since being selected to join the England U11 team and it was brilliant to travel to Bristol with Aden, who is also a Chess Rising Star and my best chess friend.

Chris Strong, who is the team captain, met us when we arrived and showed us to our team waiting room where we were given our England t-shirts. I played a few friendly games against Aden and other members of the team to warm up. The atmosphere was quite exciting.

Each player played two standard-play games (60+10). I played Wales’s Boards 1 and 2, and Aden played their Boards 3 and 4 (as he was on Board 3) and our Board 2 played their Boards 1 and 2.

My first game, which was against their Board 1, was very rough as I made a losing mistake around move 20, but thankfully he could not punish my error. After that, it was very smooth for a while. Eventually, he got into time trouble in a complex position and ended up blundering a fork! He realised his mistake immediately and I smoothly converted the winning position that arose after that. Then there was a break between rounds for lunch and we took a whole team photo which was really fun!

I played some more friendlies before going in to Round 2. In this round, I played their Board 2. It was pretty even throughout because we both played very accurately. Like before, this opponent got into big time pressure in a key rook endgame. In the endgame he lacked technique and tried to rush to a draw. He made some poor choices in pivotal moments (admittedly, rook endgames are very hard!) which led to a resignation and that meant 2/2!

The final score overall was 10.5 England – 9.5 Wales in the U11s. Altogether, the day was a big success!

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UK Chess News
Jan 23, 2017

UK Chess Tournaments 2017: English Chess Challenge Qualifier

THE ENGLISH CHESS CHALLENGE SEMI-FINALS (ECC)
This is tournament was set up in 2001 to provide a tournament of its own type where ALL of CCF’s trainees (plus others who wish to enter) can take part with a properly accountable structure and where no legitimate qualifiers would be excluded from semi-finals and finals they had qualified for. Click the above link to go to the English Chess Challenge home page.

In most cases, pupils will qualify through a competition held in their school during the Spring Term. In addition, the CCF Junior Club runs a qualification event and these 2 open events are there for those at other schools who want the chance to qualify plus anyone that wants a 2nd or 3rd chance. Anyone qualifying twice provides another entry for others (usually players from their own school).

The finals are in age groups with boys and girls split:

UNDER 18 BOYS……..UNDER 18 GIRLS (Years 11-13)
UNDER 15 BOYS……..UNDER 15 GIRLS (Years 9-10)
UNDER 13 BOYS……..UNDER 13 GIRLS (Years 7-8)
UNDER 11 BOYS……..UNDER 11 GIRLS (Year 6)
UNDER 10 BOYS……..UNDER 10 GIRLS (Year 5)
UNDER 09 BOYS……..UNDER 09 GIRLS (Year 4)
UNDER 08 BOYS……..UNDER 08 GIRLS (Year 3)
UNDER 07 BOYS……..UNDER 07 GIRLS (Year 2)
UNDER 06 BOYS……..UNDER 06 GIRLS (Year 1 & below)

* School years are listed as a guide. Those who are not in the year their date of birth should put them in will be adjusted accordingly for the purposes of the competition.

Following the semi-finals in early June, we move onto the finals on the August Bank Holiday Monday.

A 7 round competition open to anyone under 18 on 31 August 2016. Everyone plays in one big section and the leaders boys and girls from each age group will qualify for the semi-finals.
English Chess Challenge Qualifier @ 84-90 Chipstead Valley Road, Coulsdon
Jan 29 @ 10:45 am – 6:00 pm
Contact: CCF Email: chess@ccfworld.com
Website

UK FIDE Tournaments Registered for 2017

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