Guernsey Chess Club and Federation Reports

Guernsey at the 38th World Chess Olympiad in Dresden, November 2008 written by Fred Hamperl.

The 38th Chess Olympiad commences on 13th November in the city of Dresden, Germany. It is a record breaking Olympiad for several reasons. The highest number of teams will be taking part, with 152 different countries being represented. Draws will not be allowed until after 30 moves have been made.

The Guernsey team is as follows:

BoardNameTitleRating
1Rowe, Peter 2053
2Hamperl, FredFM2076
3Ozanne, Mark SCM2042
4Kirby, Peter J 2049
ReserveBrookfield, TobyCM1763
CaptainBellin, RobertIM2405

Left to right - Mark Ozanne, Peter Kirby, Peter Rowe, Toby Brookfield and Fred Hamperl.

Peter Rowe (20 times island champion) heads up the team; he is the most experienced in his 9th Olympiad. Fred Hamperl with 4 Olympiads under his belt plays on board 2 after his excellent 6.5 points out of 9 last in last times event in Turin, Italy in 2006, which earned him the FIDE master title. Mark Ozanne is only in his 3rd Olympiad but his first one was in Novi Sad in 1990 when he was just 17 years old and the then current island champion. Peter Kirby's mother was born in Guernsey and is able to qualify for the team through birth right, it is his 2nd Olympiad. Toby Brookfield is in his 3rd Olympiad and will be looking for some good scalps to get his rating up.

International Master Robert Bellin is the team coach and captain for the 3rd time in succession. He will normally pick the team the night before. We normally find out which team Guernsey have been paired against for the next day, late each evening. Each player in turn will go to see the coach in the morning to prepare for their expected opponent. After play for the day is completed each player normally presents their game to the group and it is dissected so we all learn from what happened.

Rounds start at 3:00 pm CET each day. The German organisers have insisted players will be disqualified if they are not sat at their boards at the start time. This has never been a stipulation in any chess event before and is causing early controversy. The final 11th round will be held in the morning of 25th November.

Progress of the Guernsey team can be followed on the official Olympiad website: Watch Games Live!   Guernsey Results

Our hotel was really good the Sheraton Four Points (KonigsHof) at Wasaplatz about 20 minutes by tram or bus from the city centre and playing hall.

Mark Ozanne having just arrived. Ethiopia team in the background.

The playing hall was the massive Kongress Center. This picture was taken the day before play was due to start. The river Elbe was a beautiful view from the playing arena.

In round 1 13/11/2008 Guernsey faced the United Arab Emirates. Guernsey were black on the top board (colours alternate down the team). Peter Rowe was rested on board 1 and Fred Hamperl would lead the team in the opening round. Hamperl dug in well against his young Arab opponent and went into an endgame with a good advantage. Unfortunately he overlooked a complex winning plan after 5 hours of play and the game ended in a draw. On board 2 Mark Ozanne played an aggressive system with the white pieces against the French Defence but his opponent consolidated well to seal the victory. On board 3 Peter Kirby in an at least equal position took a well earned draw against an opponent that outranked him by a significant margin. Draws can only be offered after 30 moves at this Olympiad. On board 4 Toby Brookfield also faced the French Defence and his sacrificial line didn't leave him with the edge he'd hoped for, and he went on to lose. Guernsey were heavily outranked by the UAE team and the one point scored in losing 3-1 should be seen as a good result.

Round 1 on 2008/11/13 at 15:00
Bo. 82 United Arab Emirates (UAE) Rtg - 125 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg 3 : 1
46.1 Ali Abdulkhaleq 2176 - FM Hamperl Fred 2076 ½ - ½
46.2 IM Hassan Abdullah 2287 - CM Ozanne Mark S 2042 1 - 0
46.3 FM Othman A Moussa 2336 - Kirby Peter J 2049 ½ - ½
46.4 FM AlHuwar Jasem 2230 - CM Brookfield Toby 1763 1 - 0

The public transport in Dresden is second to none. Trams and buses pass by every 5 minutes. Olympiad people could travel free.

In round 2 14/11/2008 Guernsey faced Afghanistan and had a very disappointing result. After drawing with Afghanistan 2 years ago at the Torino Olympiad in 2006, Guernsey were defeated heavily this time. Peter Rowe on board 1, with the white pieces, played his favourite London System opening and had a good advantage out of the opening but let it slip away to lose in the endgame. Fred Hamperl on board 2 had his opponent completely pinned down and switched into a winning endgame only for the second day in a row to let in fizzle out to a draw. On board 3 Peter Kirby seemed to be doing fine but was also defeated. On board 4 Toby Brookfield played the Dutch defence and get a good set-up but his opponent was able to create a passed pawn that was in danger of queening so Toby went on the offensive and very nearly mated his opponent but after a long think the Afghan clever found an only move zwischenzug check to win the game. So Guernsey had only scored a disappointing 1 1/2 points out of a possible 8. But there's a long way to go with 9 more rounds remaining.

Round 2 on 2008/11/14 at 15:00
Bo. 127 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg - 139 Afghanistan (AFG) Rtg ½ :3½
69.1 Rowe Peter 2053 - Fedaee Habibullah 0 0 - 1
69.2 FM Hamperl Fred 2076 - Anit Tahah 1881 ½ - ½
69.3 Kirby Peter J 2049 - Farazi Khaibar 2207 0 - 1
69.4 CM Brookfield Toby 1763 - Sharify Aziz 2118 0 - 1

In city centre the huge Frauenkirche was a wonderful sight. After being bombed flat in the war it had to be reconstructed piece by piece. Much of the masonery had to be replaced. All the players were given a watch that had a piece of the original Frauenkirche masonery in.

At Theatreplatz was the famous Sempre opera house.

In round 3 15/11/2008 Guernsey beat Rwanda 3 -1. Guernsey beat Rwanda in 2006 so it was important to notch up another victory and lift team spirits. Peter Rowe on board 1 manoeuvred his knights with great skill and bamboozled his opponent, Peter was able to win material and the game soon after. Fred Hamperl's opponent failed to show-up so the game was defaulted to Guernsey. Peter Kirby on board 4 was the first game to finish with him winning in only 20 moves. He had a mate in 4 at the end that his opponent had failed to see. Mark on board 3 had outplayed his opponent and was in a good position a pawn-up and ready to seal a 4 - 0 win for Guernsey, however when your opponent still has heavy pieces on the board anything is possible. Under time pressure to reach the 40 move time control Mark made a couple of not so accurate moves and all of a sudden he fell into a trap from which he would be unable to escape.

Round 3 on 2008/11/15 at 15:00
Bo. 148 Rwanda (RWA) Rtg - 128 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg 1 : 3
70.1 Murara Maxence 1682 - Rowe Peter 2053 0 - 1
70.2 Ruzigura Alex 0 - FM Hamperl Fred 2076 - - +
70.3 Kabera Godfrey 1949 - CM Ozanne Mark S 2042 1 - 0
70.4 Ngendo Joseph 0 - Kirby Peter J 2049 0 - 1

The players would enter the hall through a side entrance which would be locked just after 3 pm.

The playing hall was massive. As usual the final touches weren't quite finished

There was a kids tournament in part of the playing hall. One poor kid had to represent Guernsey and was playing Spain.

.

Peter Kirby talks to his friend Rupert Jones who plays for the Papua New Guinea team.

In round 4 16/11/2008 Guernsey faced Australia. After a good victory the day before, unbelievably Guernsey have been upfloated to face the might of Australia. Surely to hope to even score one draw is an impossible task. Fred Hamperl on board 1 played the young Chinese grandmaster Yuan Zhao Zong who recently moved to Australia. The rest of the Guernsey team also faced grandmasters or international masters. Guernsey valiantly held out for 4 hours but inevitably lost 4 - 0.

Round 4 on 2008/11/16 at 15:00
Bo. 128 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg - 53 Australia (AUS) Rtg 0 : 0
54.1 FM Hamperl Fred 2076 - GM Zhao Zong-Yuan 2567
54.2 CM Ozanne Mark S 2042 - IM Solomon Stephen J 2470
54.3 Kirby Peter J 2049 - GM Johansen Darryl K 2446
54.4 CM Brookfield Toby 1763 - IM Xie George Wendi 2403

After eating in the RatsKeller each evening the team would normally frequent a kneiper (pub) in the Weisse Gasse quarter. Fred used to get quiet happy when happy hour starteed after 10 pm. Mai Tai 2 would be his recommendation..

In round 5 17/11/2008 Played Namibia. With a realistic chance of winning Guernsey decided to field their top 4 players. The plan was to draw the top 3 boards against their strong players and Peter Kirby win on board 4. However Peter Kirby duly agreed a draw in a level position not long after the 30th move. So the remaining 3 players knew one of them had to win in order to seal a victory. Peter Rowe on board 1 then agreed a draw. Fred Hamperl on board two playing Fide Master Leonhart Mueller (a German as Namibia is a German African state) caught his opponent after playing 20 moves of a prepared line, however Mueller had used his experience to work his way into a superior position and it wasn't clear the Guernsey man could hold out. After 5 hours of play Mark Ozanne on board 3 created an outside passed pawn and his African opponent had no choice other than to resign. So a crowd gathered around the Hamperl - Mueller board 2 to see if the Guernsey could draw. In immense time pressure after 6 hours of play the German Namibian overlooked a seemingly obvious win and Hamperl swindled him into the draw. Guernsey had sealed their 2nd team victory going into the first rest day and the infamous Bermuda Party. Unfortunately Hamperl had to attend his grandfather's funeral in Austria the next day so wasn't able to celebrate as he had a 5 hour drive south.

Round 5 on 2008/11/17 at 15:00
Bo. 128 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg - 137 Namibia (NAM) Rtg 2½:1½
61.1 Rowe Peter 2053 - CM Nakapunda Otto 2083 ½ - ½
61.2 FM Hamperl Fred 2076 - FM Mueller Leonhard 2199 ½ - ½
61.3 CM Ozanne Mark S 2042 - Eichab Charles 2066 1 - 0
61.4 Kirby Peter J 2049 - Khoa Goodwill 0 ½ - ½

Mark and Toby were sharing a room. Mark found it very difficult to sleep with Toby's snoring (Snarchen in German) here Peter Kirby helps him to insert earplugs at midnight.

18/11/2008 Rest Day. The Bermuda party was as good as ever and the Guernsey Captain/Coach maintained his record of being the last person to leave. Guernsey discovered the reward for their second team victory was to play Syria 67th seeds, lambs to the slaughter again, could Guernsey get any points out of this.

Our hotel had a really magnificent dining room in it. Although we ate in a different dining room.

In round 6 19/11/2008 Guernsey lost 4 - 0 to Syria. Peter Rowe and Fred Hamperl's opponents on boards 1 and 2 cleverly played something completely different to what they normally do and all the Guernsey players preparation went out the window. Mark Ozanne on board 3 went into a prepared line but his opponent tricked him with a tactic in a seemingly sterile position. Toby Brookfield on board 4 got a good set-up against a sicilian dragon system, but took time out to make one quiet waiting move and his International Master Syrian opponent pounced on him with a sudden mating attack. Fred Hamperl on board 2 was the last to finish attempting to sacrifice into a drawing line but it was not to be.

Round 6 on 2008/11/19 at 15:00
Bo. 86 Syria (SYR) Rtg - 128 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg 4 : 0
44.1 FM Bakr Jwan 2338 - Rowe Peter 2053 1 - 0
44.2 FM Hamad Ahmad 2287 - FM Hamperl Fred 2076 1 - 0
44.3 Raes A 2202 - CM Ozanne Mark S 2042 1 - 0
44.4 IM Hakki Imad 2422 - CM Brookfield Toby 1763 1 - 0

When we'd lost we thought this sculpture of a skull and chessboard fairly represented our feelings.

In round 7 20/11/2008 Guernsey face 107th seeds Bolivia. The Bolivians rested their top board grandmaster expecting to sweep Guernsey aside without him. On board 1 Peter Rowe had the London system played against him, he talked himself out of a tactic in the opening and regretted it and was slowly ground down to defeat. Fred Hamperl on board 2 allowed a pawn to drop off for the initiative. In a very tactical position his Bolivian opponent had to really sweat for the win, Hamperl had drawing chances right to the end. On board 3 Mark Ozanne fought valiantly and ended end in a very complex knight and pawn ending, the Bolivian found a really nice endgame tactic to seal the win. On board 4 Peter Kirby faced a womens FIDE Master, Peter played very authoritatively and kept complete control over his opponent and won in style. So Guernsey ended up losing the match 3 - 1 but it was much closer that than and could have easily ended up a tie.

Round 7 on 2008/11/20 at 15:00
Bo. 85 Bolivia (BOL) Rtg - 128 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg 3 : 1
52.1 IM Cueto Jonny 2320 - Rowe Peter 2053 1 - 0
52.2 FM Campero Ronald 2255 - FM Hamperl Fred 2076 1 - 0
52.3 Gemy Jose Daniel 2200 - CM Ozanne Mark S 2042 1 - 0
52.4 WFM Luna Raisa 2133 - Kirby Peter J 2049 0 - 1

Guernsey team against Bolivia.

In round 8 21/11/2008 Guernsey faced 120th seeds Angola. Peter Rowe on board 1 swapped-off into an bishop ending which neither side had a chance of winning so a draw was agreed. Tobey Brookfield on board 4 had troubles holding his dragon defence and lost. Mark Ozanne on board 3 caught his opponent in the opening with a good attack on the enemy king. In a fairly long game he was able to seal the victory. Fred Hamperl on board 2 then knew a win would give Guernsey a match victory, however that was not going to so easy with two knights, king and pawn against rook, king and pawn. After a lot of moves the draw was eventually agreed and Guernsey had a match draw.

Round 8 on 2008/11/21 at 15:00
Bo. 128 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg - 102 Angola (ANG) Rtg 2 : 2
64.1 Rowe Peter 2053 - IM Agnelo Amorin 2168 ½ - ½
64.2 FM Hamperl Fred 2076 - Domingos Ediberto 2198 ½ - ½
64.3 CM Ozanne Mark S 2042 - Oliveira Luciano 0 1 - 0
64.4 CM Brookfield Toby 1763 - IM Sousa Armindo 2210 0 - 1

21-22/11/2008 it snowed overnight and everything was white in the morning.

Peter Rowe walking in the snow as a stretch limo stops at the crossing.

Peter Kirby's bear hat had seemed a bit over the top until the snow came.

In round 9 22/11/2008 Guernsey face 90th seeds the deaf team. There are 3 special teams like this at the Olympiad. The blind, disabled and deaf. The teams are comprised of players from all over the world and are therefore are very strong. It snowed in the night and everything was white in the morning.

Round 9 on 2008/11/22 at 15:00
Bo. 128 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg - 90 ICSC (ICSC) Rtg 0 : 4
64.1 Rowe Peter 2053 - IM Georgiev Veselin 2372 0 - 1
64.2 FM Hamperl Fred 2076 - Parfenov Pavel 2252 0 - 1
64.3 CM Ozanne Mark S 2042 - IM Salov Sergej 2269 0 - 1
64.4 Kirby Peter J 2049 - FM Zaynidov Sirojiddin 2035 0 - 1

In round 10 23/11/2008 Guernsey beat 140th seeds the Gabon. At last a team Guernsey was expected to beat. Fred Hamperl has travelled back to Guernsey having played in all of the first 9 rounds, in order to make things a bit easier for the other Guernsey players going for titles (Fred already got the FM title in Torino). Peter Kirby won his game and has now achieved the CM title.

Round 10 on 2008/11/23 at 15:00
Bo. 149 Gabon (GAB) Rtg - 128 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg 1½:2½
70.1 Moulain Ayombo Jean Pierre 0 - Rowe Peter 2053 1 - 0
70.2 Bongo Akanga Ndjila Barthelemy 0 - CM Ozanne Mark 2042 ½ - ½
70.3 Alain Alfred Marguerite 0 - Kirby Peter J 2049 0 - 1
70.4 Brett nicht besetzt 0 - CM Brookfield Toby 1763 - - +

24/11/2008 is the second rest day.

In round 11 25/11/2008 Guernsey faced 126th seeds the Zambia. Zambia defaulted boards 2 and 4. Peter Rowe on board 1 lost. Peter Kirby on board 3 looked like he was heading for a draw but in a same colour colour bishop ending he lost. So the match was tied 2-2.

Round 11 on 2008/11/25 at 10:00
Bo. 126 Zambia (ZAM) Rtg - 128 Guernsey (GCI) Rtg 2 : 2
59.1 IM Simutowe Amon 2463 - Rowe Peter 2053 1 - 0
59.2 Kayonde Andrew 0 - CM Ozanne Mark S 2042 - - +
59.3 Jere Daniel 2240 - Kirby Peter J 2049 1 - 0
59.4 Chumfwa Kelvin 2224 - CM Brookfield Toby 1763 - - +

The team's final standings were as follows.

BoNameTiRtg1234567891011PtsGmsRpRtg+
1Rowe, Peter 2053 01 ½00½000291805-4.1
2Hamperl, FredFM2076½½+0½00½0  392034-9.8
3Ozanne, Mark SCM20420 0010010½+3.5101861-18.0
4Kirby, Peter J 2049½010½ 1 010491912-3.2
RBrookfield, TobyCM176300 0 0 0 ++271600-8.3

The Jersey team playing Hong Kong.