Chess Success with All the Right Moves

Four Knox students placed in the Top Six – Edward (6th), Ishaan (4th), Brian (2nd) and Savin (1st).

Outside of school competition, Knox students had a hugely successful term break.

The Doeberl Cup is widely regarded as Australia's most prestigious chess tournament. An annual Easter event held in Canberra that has run almost uninterrupted since 1963, making it the country's longest-running weekend chess competition. It regularly draws more players than the Australian Chess Championships, attracts international grandmasters, and runs across four sections, with the Top 60 players competing in the Doeberl Cup Premier. Three of our students appeared in the Premier section: Year 9 students Harvey, Lucas, and Reyaansh, who joins us in Term Two. The boys distinguished themselves throughout, with Harvey notably finishing 9th overall and taking away the Bedi Cup (for Best Australian Junior). Ishaan and Savin also competed in the Doeberl Cup Minor and Major, respectively. A special mention to Alexis Vargas Arteaga, one of Knox's two chess coaches from the Sydney Academy of Chess, who finished second overall in the Doeberl Cup Premier.

Two of our students also competed in the Oceania Youth Championship U12-20. Both had phenomenal tournaments, with Ethan (Year 10) finishing 7th and Lucas coming 4th out of 163 juniors across the Oceania continent. Ethan then won the NSWJCL Sydney Autumn Two-Day Challenge, with Daniel (Year 9) finishing fourth in the same competition.

In Terms 2 and 3, the boys will continue to compete in the ICC as well as the NSWJCL Regional competition, defending our Junior and Senior titles. Within the School, we will also be holding a House Chess competition. We wish the boys luck as they compete for individual and team success. The boys are strongly motivated to make Knox Grammar Australia's top school for chess over the coming years.