Woman Candidate Master (WCM) Shemilah James scored a surprise victory in the Kenneth Phillip Annual Memorial Open Tournament and, in the process, became the first female to win an open senior tournament contested by both genders.
James played unbeaten in the six-round competition, organised by Paladins Chess Club some two weeks ago, at the Tunapuna Secondary School, with four wins and two draws.
The 19-year-old edged defending champion International Master (IM) Vishnu Singh – who finished on equal points – on the tie-break system. They both ended on five points.
Junior player Brad Munroe-Brown also had a surprise result, snatching third place, just a half point behind the top two. James, who lives in East Port-of-Spain, is a former national female junior and senior champion. She has represented T&T at the World Chess Olympiad on three occasions. Her personal coach Dev Soondarsingh, a certified FIDE Instructor, has been training her since she captured the national Under-10, 12, 14, 16, and 18 female titles.
Veteran players Doff Drayton, Prince Primus, Leonard Duncan and Andrew Bowles (president of Paladins), were close behind on four points each while Marlon Austin, who started strongly, finished on three and a half points.
Taking the junior prizes were Hillview College student Tristan Siewdass (four points), who got the better of Presentation College, Chaguanas student Kael Samuel-Bisnath (4 points) in the tie-break for the first place prize with Samuel-Bisnath settling for second and Trinity College East student Kevin Maharaj in third place.
Soondarsingh, president of T&T Chess Academy and Promotions, served as Chief Arbiter.
The annual tournament has been sponsored by the Kenneth Phillip Foundation, headed by Carlyle Maitland, over the past five years. The second prize is sponsored personally by Indarjeet Sahadeo who resides in Miami.
Paladins Chess Club, founded in 1968, has been organising the National Open Tournament for the past 30 years.