Ehlanzeni players stand their ground
A handful players of the Ehlanzeni Chess Federation (ECF) recently participated in the South African Junior Closed Chess Championships at the University of the Free State.
They went up against the best of the best and stood their ground.
Some of the competitors were candidate masters but the Ehlanzeni team kept calm and concentrated on the game. “We are very honoured and proud to be called their home region.
“Also a big thank you and congratulations to the parents and coaches who travelled with them and sat through the nerve-racking hours of play, not knowing what was happening inside the hall.
“Some of these games lasted for over four hours,” the secretary of ECF, Karen Taljaard commented.
Any points scored during this tournament are worth gold as they were essentially competing with the 25 best chess players in South Africa.
This is what makes the results so much more valuable.
Three of the players ended in the top-10 positions. They were Dicken Nkosi (u/10) who ended seventh out of 25 players, Lindokuhle Bhila and Suné du Preez (u/12) ended seventh and ninth respectively out of 24 players.
These players have now qualified to represent South Africa in various tournaments.
“We wish them all the best with their preparations,” concluded Taljaard.
The seven players who represented ECF at the championships were:
• u/18 – Johan Valks
• u/12 – Lindokuhle Bhila, Suné du Preez
• u/10 – Dicken Nkosi, Joshua van Heerden
• u/8 – Arjun Sopanam, Michael van Heerden.
