My first International Tournament Part 1

Introduction

After over a year of playing chess not very competitively and mainly for fun my parents decided to test my skills in a trip to Greece for the European School Chess Championship U7 boys in 2016.

(Editor's note: CM Shreyas Royal, one of the top players in the U.K., has already been on the ChessKid streaming channels several times. You may have seen him in the 2020 ChessKid Youth Speed Chess Championship, the USA vs. U.K. match, or in his show with FunMasterMike. He's now our newest article writer!)

This tournament had a really big impact on my confidence and helped me put time, effort and hard work into the brilliant game.

Games

Round 1: I was playing against a very friendly kid who I assumed was Russian because he gave a souvenir related to Russia, his name was Dunaev Kiril and I was playing with white. It was an easy game in which I won a lot of material very quickly. After round 1: 1/1 which is always a pleasing start to have.

Round 2: I was playing my own country mate Shlok Verma who I had good results against at the time even though he was the higher rated for that round. I was a particularly good friend with him and knew both of us would not stop smiling in the game. My coach for that trip IM Andrew Martin had come up with some very solid preparation, a type of hedgehog and Queen’s Indian breed. On the 23rd move my opponent, who would become 5th later in the tournament, offered me a draw and since it was very blocked and because he was my teammate I accepted. After round 2: 1 and ½ /2 which I was incredibly happy with.

 

 Preparation for Round 2 with IM Andrew Martin

Round 3: I was playing a strong Russian player who was the third seed named Shmyrev Nikolai. This game was a real struggle for me. Since I did not have a FIDE rating at the time I did not know how to play against advanced openings like the King’s Indian. Therefore, I lost a piece quite easily but fortunately after a long toil from him I persisted and managed to create a passed pawn in a B+N vs B endgame. Fortunately, he did not realize he had the better position and accepted my draw. After round three I had 2 out of 3.

Round 4: I was playing a Greek guy called Gkogkolas Georgios. It was not a challenging game because I managed to win a pawn easily and the Queen endgame did not require too much effort either. After Round 4: I had 3 out of 4 which was surprising, and I even thought I might come in top five if lucky. I had a good night’s sleep; I would need it…

                                    

                                   Shreyas getting ready for Round 4.

Stay tuned for part two!