BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//British Chess News - ECPv6.17.3//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-WR-CALNAME:British Chess News
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://britishchessnews.com
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for British Chess News
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:UTC
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0000
TZOFFSETTO:+0000
TZNAME:UTC
DTSTART:20190101T000000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201206
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201207
DTSTAMP:20211106T121121Z
CREATED:20191130T140838Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211106T121121Z
UID:2213-1607212800-1607299199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM John Hawksworth (06-xii-1963)
DESCRIPTION:We wish happy birthday to IM John Hawksworth born on Friday\, December 6th\, 1963. \nJohn Crofton Hawksworth was “born in Brighton\, England\, in December 1963 to Robert Marshall Hawksworth and Norah Connor Hawksworth née Crofton. He was baptised at St Saviour’s Church of England church in Pimlico\, London\, in 1964.[1]” \nThis was written about John who was 15 just prior to the Spassky vs the BCF Junior Squad simultaneous display in 1979 : \n“Bradford Grammar and Bradford. Rating 194. Yorkshire under-18 champion.” \nHe was awarded the IM title in 1986. \nAccording to ChessBase his highest FIDE rating was 2370 in January\, 1990 aged 27 which was the last year of serious competition at the 77th British Championships in Eastbourne. \nHe then pursued a highly successful career in the financial sector and is currently the Chief Economist for PriceWaterhouseCoopers. \nIM John Crofton Hawksworth (standing\,far left)\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIM John Crofton Hawksworth (standing\, second from right)\nAt the Lloyds Bank Masters : Front (l-r) : Joel Benjamin\, Ian Wells\, Rear : Peter Morrish\, Stewart Reuben\, Richard Beville\, Gary Senior\, Richard Webb\, John Hawksworth\, Andrew King\, Nigel Short\, Mark Ginsburg\, Daniel King\, David Cummings\, Erik Teichmann\, John Brandford and Micheal Pagden
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-john-crofton-hawksworth-06-xii-1963/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/hawksworth_john_480x640_0.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201209
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201210
DTSTAMP:20211109T181851Z
CREATED:20190822T222348Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211109T181851Z
UID:1014-1607472000-1607558399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of WGM Dr. Jana Bellin (09-xii-1947)
DESCRIPTION:Happy birthday WGM Dr. Jana Bellin on this day (December 9th) in 1947. \nJana Malypetrova\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976)\, Anne Sunnucks : \n“International Woman Master (1969)\, Czech Woman Champion in 1965 and 1967 and British Woman Champion since 1970. \nJana Malypetrova\nJana was born in Prague on the 9th December 1947 and learned to play chess at the age of eleven. She made her first appearance in the international field when she played 2nd board for Czechoslovakia in Women’s Chess Olympiad in Oberhausen in 1966. In the same year she represented Czechoslovakia in the Zonal tournament at Varna and came 11th. \nJana Malypetrova\nShe is now married to the British International Master\, William Hartston\, and played 1st board for England in the Women’s Chess Olympiad in Skopje in 1972 and represented England in the Zonal tournament in Wijk aan Zee in 1973 in which she tied for 1st place. In the same year she came =6th in the Interzonal Tournament. She is a doctor.” \nJana & Bill Hartston celebrate a family double at the British Championships in 1973 at Eastbourne\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“Born in Prague\, Czechoslovakia\, but moved to England in 1970 after her marriage to WR Hartston. Czechoslovak Woman champion in 1965 and 1967 (under her maiden name of Malypetrova) and British Ladies champion in the five years 1970 to 1974. International Woman master since 1969.” \nBill and Jana Hartston are shown with some of their many chess sets. CHESS\, August 1973\, page 323\nFrom British Chess (Pergamon Press\, 1983) Botterill\, Levy\, Rice and Richardson : \nHastings International Chess Congress 21 year old Jana Malypetrova From Czechoslovakia And Vassily Smyslov From Russia.  Mandatory Credit: Photo by Michael Fresco/ANL/Shutterstock (1876232a)\n“Jana Miles was born 9 December 1947 in Prague\, Czechoslovakia. She moved to England when she married Bill Hartston. Divorced from Hartston in 1978\, she subsequently married Tony Miles.  \nHastings International Chess Congress 21 year old Jana Malypetrova From Czechoslovakia And Vassily Smyslov From Russia.  Mandatory Credit: Photo by Michael Fresco/ANL/Shutterstock (1876232a)\nShe was Czech woman champion in 1965 and 1967 and has regularly been the British Ladies Champion since moving to this country. She is a doctor of medicine.” \nBill and Dr\, Jana Hartston (née Malypetrova)\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nSir Philip Stuart Milner-Barry OBE presents Dr. Jana Hartston with the ? prize\nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Jana Bellin (née Malypetrová; born 9 December 1947) is a British\, formerly Czechoslovak chess player. She was awarded the Woman International Master chess title in 1969 and the Woman Grandmaster title in 1982. \nMoment of concentration for reigning women’s champion of Great Britain Jana Hartston and some of the 30 Post Officer players – all men who challenged her at postal headquarters London on September 6. Jana beat seven\, drew with sixteen and lost to seven.\nBellin was born in Prague\, Czechoslovakia. She was the Czech Women’s Champion in 1965 and 1967 under her maiden name of Malypetrová. After her marriage to William Hartston she moved to England in 1970 and won the British Women’s Championship in 1970\, 1971\, 1972\, 1973\, 1974\, 1976\, 1977 (after a play-off)\, and 1979. \nMoment of concentration for reigning women’s champion of Great Britain Jana Hartston and some of the 30 Post Officer players – all men who challenged her at postal headquarters London on September 6. Jana beat seven\, drew with sixteen and lost to seven.\nShe has fifteen appearances in the Women’s Chess Olympiads\, representing Czechoslovakia in 1966 and 1969 and England thirteen times from 1972 through 2006\, seven times on first board. \nMoment of concentration for reigning women’s champion of Great Britain Jana Hartston and some of the 30 Post Officer players – all men who challenged her at postal headquarters London on September 6. Jana beat seven\, drew with sixteen and lost to seven.\nAt the Olympiad she earned individual silver medals in 1966 and 1976\, a team bronze medal in 1968 with the Czechoslovakian team\, and a team silver in 1976 with England. \nBritish Speed Chess Championship Grandmaster Nigel Short Playing Chess In The Park With L-r Susan Arkell Sheila Jackson And Dr Jana Miles. Courtesy of Shutterstock\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n“Bellin is a medical doctor specialising in anaesthetics\, and works in intensive care at Sandwell General Hospital\, West Bromwich\, England. \nJana with Sheila Jackson to her left\nShe is also Chairman of the FIDE Medical Commission\, which supervises drug testing of chess players. \nBritish Speed Chess Championship Grandmaster Nigel Short Playing Chess In The Street With Woman Grandmaster Dr Jana Miles : Credit : Shutterstock\nBellin was married first to International Master William Hartston\, then to Grandmaster Tony Miles\, and after that to International Master Robert Bellin. She and Bellin have two sons: Robert (born 1988) and Christopher (born 1991).[citation needed] \nDr. Jana Bellin\nShe is the granddaughter of thrice Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia\, Jan Malypetr. and cousin of author and human rights campaigner Jiří Stránský. \nWGM Dr. Jana Bellin\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-jana-bellin/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/jb4_7595_lv-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201210
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201211
DTSTAMP:20211210T095748Z
CREATED:20200402T173520Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211210T095748Z
UID:3986-1607558400-1607644799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Peter Batchelor (10-xii-1996)
DESCRIPTION:Best wishes to FM Peter Batchelor on his birthday. \nPeter J Batchelor was born on Tuesday\, December 10th\, 1996. “Breath” by The Prodigy was the UK Number One Single. His father is the player Guy Batchelor. \nPeter’s first recorded rapidplay event was on the 17th of July 2005 in the Barnet Knights Under-9 tournament where he scored 4/6 and his first (!) standard play event was on August 20th 2005 being the British Land UK Terafinal which was not such a happy result. \nHis first published ECF grading was 56E in July 2006 at the age of ten with a rapidplay grading of 57A. \nPeter played league chess in the Middlesex and London Leagues playing initially for Willesden & Brent and then with Wanstead & Woodford both with his father Guy. \nPeter attended the Capital City Academy which is a “specialist sports and arts Academy in Willesden\, North West London\, in the borough of Brent.” He has returned there post-graduation to teach chess and run the school chess club. \nPeter studied mathematics at the University of Warwick and now lives in London. \nAccording to Ben Purton : “I captain Peter in the 4NCL chess league\, he is one of the most professional and talented players on my squad. He is extremely smart and nice to be around. Peter would be an asset to any organisation in the future and any graduate scheme would be foolish not to take such a person on. \nI have seen him grow in to one of the best U21 chess players in the UK and hope to see him gain his IM title soon.” \nPeter became a FIDE Master in 2015 and\, according to Felice and Megabase 2020 his peak FIDE rating was 2365 in December 2016. \nFIDE rating profile for Peter Batchelor according to Megabase 2020\nPeter plays for Grantham Sharks in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). \nWith the white pieces Peter plays the Queen’s Gambit and the Trompowsky Attack. \nAs the second player Peter plays the Classical variation of the Caro-Kann and the Alartortsev Variation. \nOn chess.com Peter plays under the nom de plume of Pbatch. \nPeter Batchelor\, 4NCL Final weekend\, 2014\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFM Peter Batchelor at the 2013 British Championships\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-peter-j-batchelor-10-xii-1996/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,Player
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/jb4_9181_lv-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201211
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201212
DTSTAMP:20211209T112235Z
CREATED:20191209T163736Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211209T112235Z
UID:2261-1607644800-1607731199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Matthew Turner (11-xii-1975)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of GM Matthew James Turner (11-xii-1975)
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-matthew-james-turner-11-xii-1975/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_1257-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201211
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201212
DTSTAMP:20210807T163528Z
CREATED:20200410T112417Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210807T163528Z
UID:4331-1607644800-1607731199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Gawain Jones (11-xii-1987)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of GM Gawain Christopher B Jones (11-xii-1987) \nGawain was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 2012-13 season.
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-gawain-christopher-b-jones-11-xii-1987/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/JUZ_3014-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201211
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201212
DTSTAMP:20260817T135555Z
CREATED:20200411T223934Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T135555Z
UID:4523-1607644800-1607731199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Christopher Wood (11-xii-1940)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Christopher Baruch Wood (11-xii-1940)
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-christopher-baruch-wood-11-xii-1940/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201213
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201214
DTSTAMP:20201212T223944Z
CREATED:20191213T135517Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201212T223944Z
UID:2383-1607817600-1607903999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of David Shire (13-xii-1947)
DESCRIPTION:Happy Birthday to David Shire. \nDavid John Shire was born on Saturday\, December 13th 1947. On the same day “Ballerina” by Vaughn Monroe and His Orchestra hit #1 on the Billboard Best Sellers in Stores record chart.
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-david-j-shire-13-xii-1947/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Composer,Player,Problemist
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/JUA3089-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201213
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201214
DTSTAMP:20201213T110541Z
CREATED:20191213T140256Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201213T110541Z
UID:2387-1607817600-1607903999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of Colin Sydenham (13-xii-1937)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of Colin Peter Sydenham (13-xii-1937)
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-colin-peter-sydenham-13-xii-1937/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Composer,Player,Problemist
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/13.12-colin_sydenham.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201214
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201215
DTSTAMP:20201213T185406Z
CREATED:20191211T173844Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201213T185406Z
UID:2311-1607904000-1607990399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Brandon Clarke (14-xii-1995)
DESCRIPTION:Happy Birthday Wishes to IM Brandon George I Clarke born on this day (December 14th)\, 1995. “Earth Song” by Michael Jackson was the UK Number One single. \nIn the 2003 London Junior Championships he was =13 with 4/7 \nIn July 2004 he secured his first published standard play grading of 84D and 62D for rapid play.  His first recorded rapid  play tournament was on the 4th of October 2003 being the Mini Squad Under 8s. In this event he beat a certain Jamie Horton who had a grading of 45D at the time. \nIn 2006 Brandon won outright the London Under 12 title with 7.5/9. Marcus Harvey was a runner-up. This situation was repeated one year later. \nIn 2009 Brandon won the LJCC Under-16 title this time with Akash Jain as runner-up. His TPR for a score of 5/6 was 199. \nBrandon was a chess scholar at Wellington College\, Berkshire and was part of the strongest school / college team to play in the National Schools competition for many years that included James Holland\, Felix Jose Ynojosa-Aponte\, Alexander Galliano\, Latefah Meesam-Sparkes\, Akash Jain\, Adrian Archer-Lock and latterly William Foo and Richard Zhu. Despite being easily the strongest team they were denied the title by the antiquated age handicapping rules. \nFIDE rating profile for Brandon Clarke according to MegaBase 2020\nHe became an International Master in early 2019 and plays much chess in Australia\, New Zealand and England having lived in the USA for some time after leaving Wellington College. \nAged 24 Brandon has achieved his highest FIDE rating of 2445 and it shows every sign of increasing. \nIM Brandon Clarke\, British Championships (Major Open)\, Torquay 2019\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography\nWith the White pieces Brandon is almost exclusively an e4 player with occasional forays with the Queen’s pawn. Against the Najdorf he prefers 6.Bg5 and allows the Marshall against the Ruy Lopez. \nAs the second player he plays the Najdorf and the King’s Indian Defence most of the time. \nBrandon has his own YouTube Channel. \nOn Chess.com he plays under the handle of Biranidun with a blitz rating of 2847. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIn January 2019 Brandon scored a very impressive victory in the 126th (!) New Zealand Open. “The 2019 126th New Zealand Open is part of the 126th New Zealand Congress and is a 9-round Swiss event being held at the Waipuna Conference Centre in Auckland from 14-22 January 2019.” \nCross table from the 126h New Zealand Open\nBrandon made a welcome return to the UK and comfortably won the 2019 Major Open in Torquay with 8.5/9 as an IM. \nBrandon plays for Australia Kangaroos in the Pro Chess League. \nThe ECF grading web site shows his only club to be Littlethorpe (in Leicestershire) although Brandon played for Warwickshire Select in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). \nIM Brandon Clarke\, British Championships (Major Open)\, Torquay 2019\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-brandon-george-i-clarke-14-xii-2005/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/bct_4620_lv-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201214
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201215
DTSTAMP:20201030T162932Z
CREATED:20191211T174157Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201030T162932Z
UID:2315-1607904000-1607990399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Ian Thomas (14-xii-1967)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM Ian Thomas (14-xii-1967)
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-ian-thomas-14-xii-1967/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_1433-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201214
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201215
DTSTAMP:20201030T163058Z
CREATED:20191211T174833Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201030T163058Z
UID:2317-1607904000-1607990399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Karl CC Mah (14-xii-1980)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM Karl CC Mah (14-xii-1980) \nIM Karl CC Mah\nIM Karl CC Mah
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-karl-cc-mah-14-xii-1980/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_1070-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201216
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201217
DTSTAMP:20201030T164341Z
CREATED:20200408T130020Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201030T164341Z
UID:4193-1608076800-1608163199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Stephen J Cullip (16-xii-1973)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Stephen J Cullip (16-xii-1973)
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-stephen-j-cullip-16-xii-1973/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201217
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201218
DTSTAMP:20211217T150849Z
CREATED:20200408T124730Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211217T150849Z
UID:4181-1608163200-1608249599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Paul Cooksey (17-xii-1971)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Paul S Cooksey (17-xii-1971)
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-paul-s-cooksey-17-xii-1971/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201222
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201223
DTSTAMP:20211222T110618Z
CREATED:20191212T144348Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211222T110618Z
UID:2341-1608595200-1608681599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM David Eggleston (22-xii-1987)
DESCRIPTION:Best Wishes to IM David Eggleston on his birthday. \nDavid James Eggleston was born on Tuesday\, December 22nd 1987 in Sunderland\, County Durham to Ian and Janet Eggleston (née Robson). David has a brother\, Thomas A\, also born in 1987 who plays chess to a high standard (2178 in 2020). Thomas also plays for Durham City and for 4NCL North East England. \nThere is one game in Megabase between the brothers from round 5 of the Durham Open in 2003 which resulted in a 13 move draw. They shared the 1st prize with 4/5. \nDavid currently resides in Durham and plays for Durham City in the North East League and for Cheddleton in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). \nDavid became a FIDE Master in 2007 and an International Master in 2013. \nAccording to ChessBase David’s peak FIDE rating was 2434 aged 26 in December 2013. However\, this could easily be surpassed. \nHe has a plus score against Keith Arkell\, James Jackson\, Peter Sowray and Chris Ward to name but a few. \nIM David James Eggleston\nWith the white pieces David is a staunch e4 player playing open Sicilians\, the Italian Game and 3.Nc3 versus the French and the Caro-Kann. \nAs the second player David plays the Najdorf and the Nimzo-Indian Defence. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nDavid has one book\, published in July 2014 : Hacking up the King published by Mongoose Press : \nHacking Up The King\nIM David James Eggleston
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-david-james-eggleston-22-xii-1987/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/JB4_7645-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201225
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201226
DTSTAMP:20201224T161521Z
CREATED:20191212T161528Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201224T161521Z
UID:2345-1608854400-1608940799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Graeme Buckley (25-xii-1971)
DESCRIPTION:BCN sends best wishes to Graeme Buckley on his birthday. \nGraeme Noel Buckley born on Saturday\, December 25th\, 1971 in Wolverhampton\, West Midlands. \nHis first chess club was Bushbury which is also known as Bilston Sports & Social Club Ltd. His father David is the long time club President. \nGraeme’s first recorded games in Megabase 2020 were at the 1987 British Championship in Swansea were he scored a modest 4/11. \nGraeme married IM Susan Lalic in Sutton\, Surrey in 2001 and they reside in Sutton. They have two daughters\, Lucy and Emma who attend Nonsuch High School for Girls following in the footsteps of their mother. \nGraeme became a FIDE Master in 1994 and an International Master in 1995. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHe has played for Midland Monarchs and Wood Green in 4NCL\, Surrey CCA\, Wimbledon 4NCL Guildford and Bushbury (in Wolverhampton) \nAccording to ChessBase Graeme reached his highest FIDE rating in July 2003\, aged 32 of 2420. \nGraeme teaches chess in many Surrey Schools and in conjunction with Susan. \nGraeme has been a director of Surrey County Chess Association for four years resigning in 2011. \nGraeme was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 2009-10 season \nAccording to Easy Guide to the Queen’s Gambit Accepted\, Cadogan\, 1998 : \n“Graeme Buckley caused a stir in his first year as a professional player securing his International Master title in a matter of months\, quickly followed by his first grandmaster norm. More recently he has been involved in some major coaching projects. In 1996 he was manager of the English youth team\, who achieved the impressive double of winning both the Glorney and Faber Cups.” \nWith the white pieces Graeme playa the Queen’s Gambit nowadays with Nf3 appearing before c4 having flirted with the Trompowski in the early days. \nAs the second player he plays the Sicilian Scheveningen\, the King’s Indian and not the Queen’s Gambit Accepted despite authoring a book about it! \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nMultiple Choice by Graeme Buckley\nEasy Guide to the Queen’s Gambit Accepted by Graeme Buckley\nTrends in the Trompovsky\, Vol. 4\nIM Graeme Buckley\, Surrey Open\, 2013\, courtesy of John Upham Photography
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-graeme-noel-buckley-25-xii-1971/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/JEU0590-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201225
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201226
DTSTAMP:20201225T130823Z
CREATED:20200401T144556Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201225T130823Z
UID:3934-1608854400-1608940799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of WIM Rita Atkins (25-xii-1969)
DESCRIPTION:BCN wishes Happy Birthday (and seasonal greetings) to WIM Rita Atkins (25-xii-1969) \nRita Zimmersmann was born on Thursday\, December 25th 1969 in Hungary.  \nShe became a Women’s International Master in 1992. \nHer peak FIDE rating according to Felice was 2225 in January 1998 aged 29\, however according to MegaBase 2020 her peak rating was 2280 in July 1992 aged 23. \nRita has played for the Cambridgeshire CCA and 4NCL Blackthorne Russia. \nRita’s first recorded game in Megabase 2020 was runner-up the 5th Schoeneck Under-18 Girl’s Open with 5.5/7. \nIn 1990 she was =runner-up with 6/9 in the Aarhus Women’s tournament. \nShe was =1st in the Budapest Women’s IM tournament securing a norm. \nCrosstable for the 1991 Budapest IM Women’s tournament\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIn 1992 she became Hungarian Women’s champion with 8/11 : \nCrosstable for 1992 Hungarian Women’s Championship\nWith the white pieces Rita both 1.e4 and 1.d4 playing open Sicilians\, the Trompowsky Attack and the Accelerated London System. \nAs the second player she plays the Sicilian Four Knights\, the Modern Benoni and recently\, the Czech System. \nWIM Rita Atkins\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography\nIn 1997 Rita relocated to England and played in her first 4NCL weekend for Slough. She married IM Michael Hennigan and settled in London. \nBy 2014 Rita had transferred to Blackthorne in the Four Nations Chess League and had become Rita Atkins. \nIn the last few years Rita has become active in the field of chess education and has combined her interests of mathematics and chess especially in the teaching of children. She has presented at various London Chess Conferences and works with John Foley within ChessPlus. \nWIM Rita Atkins at the 2016 London Chess Conference  : The Didactics of Chess\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography.
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-wim-rita-atkins-25-xii-1969/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/jb4_7844_lv-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201226
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201227
DTSTAMP:20201223T150159Z
CREATED:20200411T130309Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201223T150159Z
UID:4431-1608940800-1609027199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday for IM Vaidyanathan Ravikumar (26-xii-1959)
DESCRIPTION:Vaidyanathan Ravikumar (“Ravi” to his friends) was born in Paramakudi\, Ramanathapuram\, Tamil Nadu\, India on Saturday\, December 26th\, 1959. On this day Nelson Rockefeller announced that he would not seek the Republican Party nomination for 1960. \nRavi credits his father N. Vaidyanathan for help with his early chess development. \nAn early image of Vaidyanathan Ravikumar from page 81 of Ulf Andersson’s Decisive Games\nIn 1978 Ravi won the Asian Junior Championships in Tehran and was awarded the International Master title as a consequence. Ravi was India’s second International Master : Manuel Aaron was the first in 1961. \n“Ravi” at the 2013 UKCC Terafinal at Loughborough Grammar School\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography\nHis earliest recorded game in Megabase 2020 was from the 3rd of September 1978 and was from the World Under-20 Championships in Graz\, Austria. The event was won by Sergei Dolamatov and Ravi finished =25th on 6.5/13. The following year (Norway\, 1979) Ravi improved to =12th with 7.5/13 and the title was won by Yasser Seirawan. James Plaskett was =3rd. \nRavi at the UKCC Southern Gigafinal 2014 at the Rivermead Leisure Centre\, Reading. Courtesy of John Upham Photography\nBy now ( 1979) Ravi had graduated from The University of Madras with a degree in commerce and relocated to England seeking more playing opportunities. He played in his first Lloyd’s Bank Open in 1979. \nRavi and IM Andrew Martin providing the commentary for the 2015 British Championships in Warwick. Courtesy of John Upham Photography\nRavi made his first appearance for India in an Olympiad at Valetta\, Malta 1980. In 1981 he was runner-up to Bjarke Sahl in the 6th North Sea Cup followed by a creditable equal 10th in the 68th British Championships at Morecambe won by Paul Littlewood. In round eight he played this attractive game against Daniel King. Notes by PC Griffiths : \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIM Vaidyanathan Ravikumar v. Vassily Smyslov\, Lloyds Bank Open\, round 6\, 30th August 1981. The game was drawn in 33 moves.\nIn 1982 Ravi scored a creditable =3rd at the 1982 British Championships (Mile’s year) in Torquay including wins over Basman\, Muir and Plaskett : \nCross table for the 1982 British Championship in Torquay\n1983 included an excellent win over James Tarjan at the Lloyds Bank Open but Danny King got revenge for his 1981 defeat! \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nRavi at the closing ceremony of the 2014 British Championships at Aberystwyth. Courtesy of John Upham Photography\nRavi’s second Olympiad appearance for India came at Thessaloniki\, Greece in 1984. This year provided Ravi’s highest FIDE rating of 2415 in January. \nIM Vaidyanathan Ravikumar and friends at the 1990 NatWest Young Masters\nRavi continued to be active as a player until 2000 when he started a career in coaching. He was the National Coach of the Emirates for eight years and has accompanied the ECF junior chess team to World Youth Chess Championships in 2014\, held in Al Ain\, UAE. \nRavi at the 2014 British Championships at Aberystwyth. Courtesy of John Upham Photography\nAccording to Spectrum Chess Calculation : “He is an experienced chess coach and provides chess coaching in 10 schools in Hertfordshire” \nHis first book was Karpov’s Best Games\, Chess Check\, 1984. \nFollowing that Ravi wrote a biographical work on Ulf Andersson : \nUlf Andersson’s Decisive Games\, IM Vaidyanathan Ravikumar\, Peja International\, 1985.\nand then \nPlay the Benko Gambit\, Vaidyanathan Ravikumar\, Pergamon Press\, 1991\nfollowed by \nThe Closed Sicilian\, Vaidyanathan Ravikumar\, Tournament Chess\, 1993\nChess Tactics Quiz Book\, Chess Check\, Vaidyanathan Ravikumar\, 2004\nand most recently \nSpectrum Chess Calculation\, Vaidyanathan Ravikumar\, Chess Check\, 2011\nThere were also works on Anatoly Karpov and Jan Timman as well as works on the Caro-Kann Defence.
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-for-im-vaidyanathan-ravikumar-26-xii-1959/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player,UKCC,Writer
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/IMG_0630-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201229
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201230
DTSTAMP:20260817T135529Z
CREATED:20200411T183358Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T135529Z
UID:4487-1609200000-1609286399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM  Nicholas Thomas (29-xii-1966)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM  Nicholas Thomas (29-xii-1966)
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-nicholas-thomas-29-xii-1966/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201230
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201231
DTSTAMP:20201229T175730Z
CREATED:20200412T131219Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201229T175730Z
UID:4543-1609286400-1609372799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Jonah Willow (30-xii-2002)
DESCRIPTION:Happy Birthday to FM Jonah Willow \nJonah B Willow was born in Nottingham on Monday\, December 30th 2002. Jacob was the most popular boy’s name in 2002. “Lose Yourself” by Enimem was number one. \nJonah’s first recorded graded standard play tournament was the 2010 Delancey UK Chess Challenge Terafinal and his first recorded rapidplay event was the Nottingham Rapidplay in 2011. \nJonah Willow at the 2012 UKK Terafinal. Courtesy of John Upham Photography\nJonah’s first published standard play grade was 96D in January of 2012 : \nJonah’s ECF grading progress\nJonah has represented West Nottingham\, 4NCL Wood Green\, Nottinghamshire CA and Syston (Leicester). \nFIDE rating profile for FM Jonah B Willow from Megabase 2020\nIt is a little curious as to the reason for the rating profile to halt at the end of 2018 since Jonah has played plenty of FIDE rated games since. Compare the above with : \nFIDE rating for FM Jonah Willow from fide.com\nJonah has plus scores against : Mike Surtees\, Richard Pert\, Peter Shaw\, Ranesh Ratnesan\, Shreyas Royal\, Keith Arkell and Ameet Ghasi to name but a few. \nWith the white pieces Jonah is a committed 1.e4 player but he has scored 83% with 1.Nc3! \nJonah plays the unusual Chekhover Variation  (4.Qxd4) in the 2…d6 Sicilian : this is an interesting alternative and is discussed by GM Ben Finegold : \n\nand  \nGM Varuzhan Akobian : \n\nJonah plays the Four Knights game with white. \nAs the second player he plays the Accelerated Dragon and the Modern Benoni. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHe has his own Twitch TV channel. \nOn chess.com he is JonahWillow and his highest chess.com rating has been 2863 on April 5th 2020.
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-jonah-b-willow-30-xii-2002/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,UKCC
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/utf_9875_lv-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR