This time he led early, had a wobble with three draws and a loss, but was strong in the final two rounds. It was a long way for me, he said. I was very close every time and I failed year after year. I'm extremely happy to finally be able to win this tournament and to win in a very nice style.
Interest in English one-day blitz tournaments is growing rapidly. They offer the chance to compete in officially ranked events with many rounds without the financial pressures of overnight accommodation, and give amateurs and juniors a rare chance to take on established masters, with a chance of an upset result. This year the English Chess Federation has doubled the number of qualifying events for the UK Blitz Championship, whose final is at Leamington in November, from eight to 16,