Wilson wins CAC Youth chess title

Hannah Wilson produced a dominant performance to comfortably capture the Under-16 girls’ title at the CAC Youth Chess Festival in Trinidad and Tobago.

The top seeded Wilson, a student of Queen’s College and the island’s highest-rated junior, lost just one of her nine games on her way to finishing on eight out of a possible nine points when the competition concluded over the weekend.

After winning her first four games, Wilson suffered a setback when she lost to number four seed, Gabriella Watson of Jamaica in the fifth round.

However, that was to be her only
blemish as she closed out the tournament in fine style with four consecutive victories, to finish 1.5 points ahead of Watson, who was second on 6.5 points on the tiebreak. Panama’s Esther Lobo also scored 6.5 and finished
third.

The other Barbadian in the field, Leshay Springer finished 15th out of the 18 competitors on three points.

In the Under-14 girls’ division, Chanon Reifer-Belle finished a commendable third on the tiebreak after ending on seven points from her nine games.

Cuba’s Liennys Ferrer easily won the title, finishing on 8.5 points, while Diana Bobadilla of Honduras was second also on seven points.

Reifer-Belle had the distinction of being the only player not to lose to Ferrer after drawing with her much higher rated opponent in the fourth round.

Meanwhile, her sibling Chaz Reifer-Belle finished fourth in the Under-10 Open division. (RB)