The Official Winners of the Sabak Chess Open

 Below are the official winners of the Sabak Chess Open held last Sunday at Seri Bernam Hall, Sungai Besar Selangor.

Open category winners

Open category champion

Both the Open and the Under 18 categories were merged into one playing section. More than one hundred participants were playing in this one-merged section including GiLoCatur, Fikri and Anis Fariha. Ahmad Fadzil Nayan (above pix) was declared as the Open category champion after collecting 6.5/7 points. He won the one thousand Malaysian Ringgit money prize. Fikri who scored 6/7 points became the first runner up edging four other 6 pointers. Two Malaysian chess bloggers - Muhammad Arshad and Razali Hamzah aka Ng6 were among the Top 10 Open category winners.

Local (Sabak Bernam) Category

Sabak category winners

GiLoCatur's chess buddy and the vice chairman of Sabak Bernam chess association, Roslan Sulaiman, won the first prize in the Sabak Bernam category. Surprisingly, with 5 wins and 2 defeats GiLoCatur won the seventh spot in the Sabak Bernam category. A commendable feat for GiLoCatur in a chess tournament in own hometown.

Under 18 Category

Under 18 winners

IPT

Special Prizes

Girls are dominating the Top 3 in the Under 18 category. Laila Husna Sahadi of Kelantan who won against GiLoCatur was declared as the champion. Local boy and MSS Sabak Bernam District L18 player, Mohd Amiruddin Buang emerged as the first runner up. GiLoCatur's daughter, Anis, won the second runner up.  

Under 12 Category

Under 12

Under 12 category champion

In the Under 12 section, about 80 participants took part including GiLoCatur's youngest son, 10-year-old Fahim Al-Faqeh. He scored 6.5/7 points. He became the champion in this category and was 300 Malaysian Ringgit richer. Fahim who was so happy with his winning drew with his school mate, Raja Bazil Bot, in Round 6. Raja Bazil who also scored the same point with Fahim won the second place.

Shah Alam, 26th May 2012.

Tomorrow in Sungai Besar which is located in the Sabak Bernam district, there will be a chess tournament being held. The tournament which offers lucrative money prizes is organized by Persatuan Catur Daerah Sabak Bernam or simply PCDSA (in English - Sabak Bernam District Chess Association). 

GiLoCatur hopes the participants and chess parents are not confused between Sabak Bernam and Sungai Besar. Firstly, the tournament hall which is Dewan Seri Bernam (below picture) is NOT located in Sabak Bernam town. Instead, it is located in Sungai Besar town. Sabak Bernam is one of the nine districts in Selangor. It is located in the northern part of Selangor bordering to the Perak state. Its size is about 100,000 hectares. Secondly, Sabak Bernam and Sungai Besar are two towns in the Sabak Bernam district. Actually, the distance between both Kuala Lumpur and Kelang and Sungai Besar town are about 120 and 100 kilometers.

GiLoCatur and the kids will drive from Shah Alam to the tournament hall early tomorrow morning. It will take about two hours drive. We will leave home after the Subuh prayer. All the three GiLoCatur's children are quite familiar with the tournament hall. They were playing in the hall in the 2011 edition of the MSSSelangor chess championship.

the tournament venue 

Seri Bernam Hall, the venue of MSS Selangor chess competition in 2011

inside of Seri Bernam Hall

Selangor districts

GiLoCatur hopes below map gives the idea how to get to Sungai Besar to those who are not familiar with Sabak Bernam and Sungai Besar.

Map to Sungai Besar from KL

See you at Sabak Bernam Chess Open at Seri Bernam Hall, Sungai Besar!

Insofar Combined Tournament is one of the chess tournaments held last weekend. GiLoCatur and the kids did not take part in this tournament. Below is the winners of the tournament sent by Najib Wahab who was the arbiter.

Insofar winners

The Champion - Zaidan

Dr Zaidan (the above picture) emerged as the champion after collecting 6.5/7 points. Congratulation to all the winners.

A Chess Tourney In GiLoCatur's Hometown

Sabak Bernam is GiLoCatur's home town.

Where is this small town located? It is situated in the northern part of Selangor next to the Sabak Bernam river which separated the Selangor state and the Perak state.

Why GiLoCatur would like to mention Sabak Bernam?

Actually, there will be a chess tournament organized by PCDSB (a Malay abbreviation for Sabak Bernam District Chess Association). The tourney is called Sabak Bernam Chess Open or Pertandingan Catur Terbuka Sabak Bernam in Malay. It is the first ever chess open tourney as GiLoCatur recalls since GiLoCatur and the kids being involved in the Malaysian chess.

For sure GiLoCatur would like to participate in the tourney. But GiLoCatur has lots of matter to be settled down and taken care of first.

Anyway, on behalf of the organizer GiLoCatur would like to invite and welcome the Malaysian chess players and community to GiLoCatur's home town, Sabak Bernam on Sunday, 27th May 2012.

Come to SABAK BERNAM! Let's play chess.

MSSWP 2012 Secondary School Individual Day 2 Update

KUALA LUMPUR, Thursday 10th May 2012.

The 2012 MSSWP Chess Championship for the secondary school is entering its final stage. Today, three more rounds held making it total six rounds completed. The final seventh round will be played on the third day of the Individual event. 

So, who are the leaders after Round 6? Can they continue to win their final round to become the champions? 

In the L15 category, Faizal Roslan is the sole leader with 5.5/6 points. In the final round, his win over Tan Soon Wei at the top board will ensure him as the champion. The results of the top five boards will decide who are going to be on the podium. 

L15

In the L18 category, Yeap Eng Chiam is the sole leader also with 5.5/6 points like Faizal. Eng Chiam will surely emerge as the champion if he wins over his opponent, Tan Jun Feng. Wong Jianwen who is ranked second with 5/6 points is paired with Albert Ang Keliang  who is ranked third and the highest 4.5 pointer at table no 2. Fikri Saleh is playing white at table no 3 against Shawn Edgar Miranda. Both are also 4.5 pointers. Other two 4.5 pointers are Chong Yan Meng and Gabriel Soong Mun Hey. They face each other at table no 4. What would be their match up results? Stay tune to find out.

L18

Camelia Johari is the sole leader in the P15 section. She has 5.5/6 points. Four others are trailing half point. She will be declared as the champion provided that she wins over her opponent, Chua Yee Ler. At table no 2, Tan Li Ting is challenged by Natasha Kavina. Another 5/6 pointer, Siti Nadia Qarmila will play white against her opponent at table no 3. Can Yee Ler deny Camelia to be the champion? The answer will be known after the final round completes.

P15

It is quite interesting in the P18 category. GiLoCatur was wrong in the prediction that Pavitranayagi would have full points.She shares 5.5/6 points with Eunice Quah Yoo Li but has better tie break. Both of them will face each other at the top board in the final round to decide who will become the champion. It will be a 5-pointer battle at table no 2 between Low Pei Zhen and Zulaikha Noor Azam. Meanwhile, table no 3 and no 4 will be match ups between 4.5/6 pointers.

P18

MSSWP Chess Championship for secondary school 2012 edition will end tomorrow on Friday, 11th May. Some players including Fikri have camped at Sekolah Aminuddin Baki for the whole week. Some others were only playing in the team event while some others have participated only in the individual event for three days. It is a new experience for GiLoCatur following very closely and being part of the championship. GiLoCatur salutes MSSWP for the fast update on the pairings, results and interim rankings on the net. 

GiLoCatur is very proud being the parent of Fikri because he has led and helped his school chess team making a history in MSSWP Chess. GiLoCatur prays to the mighty Allah for Fikri to be among the winners in the individual event.

See you guys at the closing ceremony expected to begin at 11.00 am.

MSSWP 2012 Secondary School Individual Day 1 Update

KUALA LUMPUR, 9th May 2012.

Today is the first day of the Secondary School Individual Event for the MSSWP Chess Championship held at Sekolah Aminuddin Baki, Kampung Pandan. 232 KL school pupils from five zones are taking part in the championship in four different categories - L18, L15, P18 and P15. L stands for Boys while P stands for Girls. Both L18 and P18 are Form 4 and Form 5 players while both L15 and P15 are players who are in Form 1, Form 2 and Form 3. In short, the former is for higher secondary while the latter is for lower secondary.

GiLoCatur is very impressed with MSSWP for quickly publishing the Interim Ranking and pairings in its blog. Not only players but also parents can check the pairing for tomorrow from their home or hostel. It is good that MSSWP uses the internet and latest IT technology for its activities. Kudos to MSSPK (Perak) also for publishing its chess championship results at the chess-results.com website as per here. GiLoCatur wishes that all the MSS states in Malaysia do the same thing.

Back to MSSWP Chess Championship ...

Fikri, GiLoCatur's eldest son, who is this year in Form 4 is playing in the L18 category. He is joined by four of his school mates in this chess championship. Alhamdulillah, so far so good for him. Having national rating of 1600 Fikri is ranked seventh in his category. He won all his rounds today. He is among six players with full 3/3 points. Surprisingly to GiLoCatur, Fikri is ranked second after Round 3 after Eng Chiam among the full pointers due to better tie break.

Top 10 Rank after Round 3 for L18 category

Tomorrow, the "Big Boys" battle will begin. In Round 4, Fikri is paired against the top seed and one of the favourites to become the champion in L18 category, Jianwen at the top board. Fikri will play white while Jianwen will play black. At Board 2, Eng Chiam is challenged by Andrew Soong of SMK Wangsa Melawati. At the third table, it will be a repeat match between Soon Heng and Ken Yew in the Pudu Zone last month. Who will emerge victorious? Or will they draw again?

L15 Category

There are five players with full 3/3 points in this category including the top seed. Faizal Roslan. He will be challenged by Ting Yan of SMK Victoria who had won over Aziz Farhan in the third round at the top board. Can Faizal cruise through the next round with perfect score? At Table #2. Dilwen will play white against Yap Egin. Both of them are from Methodist school but different one.

P18 Category

In P18 category, GiLoCatur believes Pavitranayagi will cruise through to the next round with perfect score. Her opponent tomorrow morning will be Avitra Dhivia from SMK Seri Bintang Selatan. Another perfect scorer match up is between Zulaikha and Eunice at Table #2. Another five players are trailing half point. 

P15 Category

In the P15 category, both Li Ting and Camelia are still on course winning their respective rounds. Both of them are leading another five full pointers. GiLoCatur predicts that both of them will meet each other in the sixth round. Or will there be any upset?

Good Luck! to all the players in the MSSWP Chess Championship (Secondary School) tomorrow especially to Fikri and his other four ASiS gang.

The Girls section

The Boys section

Are you staying in Shah Alam or area nearby?

Do you want to get national rating?

Or Do you want to improve your national rating?

If the answer is YES, let's participate in the following chess tournament.

LET'S PARTICIPATE!

Click here for more details.

SM SAINS ALAM SHAH (ASiS) EMERGED 1st RUNNER UP IN 2012 MSSWP CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP!

Several states have completed their MSS chess championship including Selangor where two of GiLoCatur's children had taken part. Both Anis and Fahim were victorious in the team events in their respective categories. Anis, GiLoCatur's only daughter, became champion in the P15 (Under 15 Girls) category representing Kuala Selangor district. Along with the Azman Hisham sisters - Nur Nabila and Nur Najiha and Siti Aishah Alimuddin, the Kuala Selangor P15 team recorded an outstanding 19 out of the total 20 game points. Anis and her team mates won all their five rounds.

Meanwhile, her younger brother, Fahim, along with his two school mates - Afiq Mohd Jamil and Faqih Aminuddin, and Zulfikri Sulkifly teamed up for Petaling Perdana district to emerge as the champion in the L12 (Under 12 Boys) category. They managed to edge their rival team, Klang, which was also the favourite team.

Wilayah Persekutuan or simply WP is having its MSS chess championship this week. Even though WP also has two events - team and individual like Selangor, but the format is different. It is district for Selangor while it is zone for WP. Selangor has 10 districts while WP has 5 zones. The teams competing in the MSS Selangor are selected not necessarily from same schools in a particular district. But the teams contesting in the MSS WP represent a particular school who tops their respective zones.      

It is the first time GiLoCatur attended the MSSWP chess championship because Fikri, GiLoCatur's eldest son, is schooling in Kuala Lumpur. Fiki and his chess school team of SM Sains Alam Shah managed to be among the Top 6 (winners) in the Pudu Zone. It is a breakthrough for his school for making to the MSSWP chess championship for the first time in its history.

Along with two 5 Formers and another 4 Former in his school chess team, Fikri emerged the first runner up.  SM Sains Alam Shah chess team had won four rounds and drew one. It scored 9 Match Points. In the first round, Fikri's team drew with their Zone champion, SMK Seri Bintang Utara (SBU) which is one of the favourite teams in the championship especially to GiLoCatur.

In Round 2, Fikri and his team mates fought hard to win against Sekolah Seri Cempaka of Bangsar Zone. In the third round, SM Sains Alam Shah managed to win over the Keramat Zone champion, SMK St John. The opponent team that Fikri and his ASiS team mates had to face in the fourth round is SMK Kepong Baru of Sentul Zone. Alhamdulillah, they won. 

GiLoCatur gave a motivational pep talk before Fikri and his team mates entered the tournament hall for the final round. GiLoCatur's heartbeat was pumping faster when ASiS third board player came out so early telling that he drew. Actually, SM Sains Alam Shah was playing against SMK Seri Bintang Selatan (SBS) from the same zone in the final round. GiLoCatur was a bit worried and felt that the result might end up with 1.5 - 2.5 score favouring the opposing team. Then when the first two boards finished, the score was equal, 1.5  point each. So, it was up to the last board result. At last, Fikri and his team mates were smiling in joy when their team mate on the fourth board provided the very important and  critical one point. It was their fourth wins. 

Zuhaili (1st Board) sit on Fikri's right

Fikri (2nd Board), Wan Imran (3rd Board) & Norhadi (4th Board)  wearing jacket

Fikri (most right) with his ASiS team mates

Top 10 Final Ranking for the Boys category
click here for full Final Ranking

Bravo and kudos to the SM Sains Alam Shah 2012 chess team including its hard working manager that emerged as the first runner up in the MSSWP chess championship held at SMK Aminuddin Baki or popularly known as SAB. It is a very happy and proud moment for GiLoCatur as the father of Fikri who has led his team to his school glory. A history has been made on this day for SM Sains Alam Shah, Cheras Kuala Lumpur. KEEP IT ON!