Canadian Youth National Chess Team At 2009 World Youth Chess Championships in Antalya - Turkey

The end by Elizabeth Sherman Graif

2009-11-22T14:59:00.001-08:00

The last round began this morning at 10:00 , and everyone truly played their best, even after ten challenging rounds in the previous days. Now it is time to relax on the beach, and say good-bye to the Mediterranean Sea, new friends and old friends, and all the teammates who made up Team Canada this year –

Congratulations to all the players of Team Canada 2009 – you all did a great job.

Warmest thanks to coach Artiom Samsonkin and delegation head Andrei Botez, and to the parents, friends and supporters of the team who made participation in this event possible.

Richard Wang, Boys Under 12 3rd place, with Melissa & Rebecca Giblon

2009-11-22T13:21:00.001-08:00

Richard Wang was rated #27 out of 142 in Boys Under 12 going into the tournament, and finished tied for 2nd place (3rd place after tie-breaks were applied). According to the WYCC web site, Richard was projected to win 5.5 / 11 based on his rating, but he actually won 8.5 / 11. If Richard had won his final round instead of drawing, he would have become world champion.

Richard is in his junior year of Boys Under 12, so watch out!

Round 11 pictures

2009-11-22T09:21:00.000-08:00

Have a Safe Trip Home

2009-11-21T17:38:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is the last day of the tournament. Many people will leave the next day. Hopefully people can remind each other to get up early and catch the 4am flight.

I believe every one has added some wonderful experiences to their chess career. Now we are looking forward to seeing everybody safe and sound at home.

An unfortunate incident, and a difficult lesson learned for 10 year old Melissa Giblon

2009-11-21T16:00:00.001-08:00

In round 10 for Girls Under 10, Melissa Giblon (CFC 1253 rating) was paired with white pieces against Nisan Ulosoy from Turkey (FIDE 1612 rating) and the pre-tournament #16 rated player out of 83 girls in this section.

We had predicted that Melissa's opponent would play the French Defence based on her games to date at this tournament. It was clear from her opponent’s earlier games that she knew the main line of 3.Nd2 very well until at least 15-20 moves, so we prepared with coach Artiom a different variation (5.f4) to try to get her opponent out of her comfort zone. Melissa played the opening very well. Amazingly, not a single piece or pawn was captured until move 27, when Melissa made a mistake to drop one pawn. However, her opponent did not appear to see how to make progress despite being up a pawn.

From moves 34-39, the girls repeated the same position three times, which is a draw. After Melissa made her 39th move, she raised her hand for the arbiter, the clock was stopped, and Melissa claimed a draw. Her opponent said it wasn’t “threefold repetition” because she had made a move to a different position in the middle of that sequence of moves. Melissa correctly said that it didn’t matter, the positions didn’t have be repeated on consecutive moves, just any three times during the game. Nevertheless, the arbiter declined Melissa’s claim of a draw, without any explanation.

The girls continued in a see-saw battle for a couple of more hours into an end game which should have been a draw, due opposite coloured bishops. However, the girls each got very low on time (Melissa had 4 minutes left, her opponent had 2 minutes left at one point, although they each later gained back a few more minutes), and Melissa made a mistake to let her opponent win one of her pawns, and then promote her extra pawn into a queen and checkmate her. At 5 hours and 15 minutes, this was longest game by far that Melissa has every played in her life.

After the game, I was entering the moves into Fritz, and it popped up a message about threefold repetition of the same position. I immediately asked Melissa what happened, so she told me about the incident. I rushed with Andrei to meet with the head arbiter before the one hour deadline had passed since the game had ended. They explained that Melissa’s draw was declined due to a technicality of the rules. When claiming a draw due to threefold repetition of the position, the player cannot make their move and then claim a draw (because it’s technically no longer their turn once they have moved). They must first write down their intended move, then stop the clock and call the arbiter to claim the draw. This is an obscure and very non-intuitive rule (having to claim a draw before it has actually happened) that I suspect most tournament players are not aware of. As well, the arbiter did not explain her decision at the time, because an arbiter is not allowed to explain the rules during the game; doing so in and of itself could give one of the players additional information that they did not already have and could be used later in the game, which could be considered an unfair advantage.

This outcome really is a shame, and Andrei and I told Melissa that in our hearts we know that she got a draw against a much higher-rated player (almost 400 points higher).

Round 10 pictures

2009-11-21T15:29:00.000-08:00

We need your help with preparation!

2009-11-21T14:20:00.000-08:00

Hello,

Richard Wang is playing tomorrow on board 2 for a chance to a gold medal at the World Youth Chess Championship:

Wang Richard 2044 CAN 8 8 FM Duda Jan-Krzysztof 2079 POL

Is late here and the tomorrow game is early for us at 10AM, if any fan from back home has time and can send any lines that might help Richard it will be greatly appreciated.

Please use this email address:
2009CYCT@gmail.com

In behalf of Canadian Team in Antalya Turkey
Andrei Botez
Reply With Quote

Round 10 video

2009-11-21T14:19:00.001-08:00

Round 10 video emailed and posted on my facebook account.

Andrei Botez

Day nine by Elizabeth Sherman Graif

2009-11-21T14:17:00.000-08:00

Day Nine:
This is the last day that visitors and coaches can walk through the playing halls throughout the games. For the last two games, visitors and coaches are permitted for the first hour only. Following that hour, only the heads of delegation from each country are permitted to stay.
By now, even the younger players are comfortable with both the routine and the layout. There is no comparison to the chaos of the first day. Everyone arrives on time for their rounds, sets up, and the rounds begin right on time.
With the exception of the top boards, which can be followed online, the boards are set up in rows on long tables, each one with board number, chess board and pieces, electronic clock, notation sheets (with both names, and FIDE ratings if applicable, typed in), and a small acrylic stand displaying each player’s name, nationality and flag.
Everything here is well-run and well-organized. If only the internet connection were more reliable! Everyone here has been struggling with the capricious internet connection: at most hours, it does not work at all, or at best intermittently. At odd hours, one is almost guaranteed communication with the outside world, but not everyone is motivated to stay up early – or late – enough to get a connection.

Day 7 by Elizabeth Sherman Graif

2009-11-21T14:15:00.000-08:00

Day Seven:
For those trying to find the tournament on the map, Turkey is in Asia Minor, the bridge between Europe and the Middle East, with neighbors as diverse as Greece, Armenia and Syria. Antalya is a region in southern Turkey, and much of Antalya borders the Mediterranean Sea. The Hotel Limra, host of the tournament, is just outside of the town of Kemer, which is about an hour’s drive from the city of Antalya.
With its long stretches of beaches, sunny skies and fascinating historic and natural sites, is a popular summer destination for tourists. Many signs are written in Turkish, English, German and Russian.
We are here just after the summer season, so the weather is sunny and clear, but not beach weather. Some people choose to eat breakfast outdoors, which is pleasant and sheltered from the Mediterranean breeze. By the time the players are finished their games, it is dark and surprisingly chilly.
After a free day, it is difficult for most players to return to the playing hall. Even the arbiters, coaches and parents admit that it is hard to be back and focused again. But the players settle in, determined to play their best: there are only five games left in the tournament.

Round 9 pictures

2009-11-20T14:05:00.001-08:00

Video from round 1 to 9 emailed/posted

2009-11-20T13:39:00.000-08:00

I email and uploaded all the video on line.

Andrei

Round 8 pictures

2009-11-19T12:48:00.000-08:00

Round 6 Video posted

2009-11-18T22:56:00.000-08:00

Also on my facebook account.

Andrei Botez

Day Five by Elizabeth Sherman Graif

2009-11-18T22:25:00.000-08:00

Today is certainly the most grueling day of the tournament. With two games – the first at 10:00 a.m. and the second at 5:00 p.m. – the players are up early and working hard until late in the day.

Due to the fact that the pairings for the games cannot be prepared and posted until after the last players in a section have completed their game, the older players’ pairings for the second round were not posted until about an hour before the game. While this was nerve-wracking for the players who like to analyze their opponents’ games and prepare opening strategies, it did put everyone at an equal disadvantage: no one had much time to prepare.

At this point, there are many familiar faces in each section. Many of the Canadian players stop by the board of a previous opponent, to wish them luck before the round. Not only is this a sign of friendship, and a truly wonderful sign – but the players are also, more pragmatically, hoping their previous opponents do well for reason of tiebreaks when the final results are tallied –

At lunch today, a group of players from the Canadian team were listing the countries their opponents represented, from the previous five rounds. Turkey, Greece, Iran, Romania, Hungary, Latvia, Russia, Moldova, South Africa, Kenya and so on - their informal list included countries from every populated continent. What an extraordinary opportunity for these kids – not only a chance to meet people from everywhere, but also the top chess players from each of these countries –

Rebecca Giblon's comeback win in round 7

2009-11-18T13:13:00.001-08:00

See if you can find the game-saving move for white to move in this position and win material. Rebecca (CFC 1503) was losing but found this nice sacrifice, and subsequently went on to defeat Anastasya Paramzina from Russia (FIDE 1712). This was Rebecca's third consecutive win - seven of her first eight opponents were rated 200 points or more above her.

Round 7 pictures

2009-11-18T13:09:00.001-08:00

Round 5 video - posted

2009-11-18T04:06:00.000-08:00

Also available on my facebook.

Andrei

Games from the last Turkish Youth Championship

2009-11-18T03:16:00.000-08:00

Can be downloaded from this page:

Link

Right top corner "PGN"

Round 6 pictures

2009-11-18T01:14:00.000-08:00

Round 5 pictures

2009-11-17T23:45:00.000-08:00

Round 5

2009-11-16T04:22:00.000-08:00

Under 8 Open

40 127 ZHANG Yuanchen 0 CAN 2 1 - 0 2 GANJALI Hossein 0 IRI 52

43 19 AKIN Kadir 0 TUR 1½ 0 - 1 2 WAN Kevin 0 CAN 122

Under 8G

11 75 TURMUNKH Munkhzul 0 MGL 3 1 - 0 3 LIU Jiaxin 0 CAN 48

Under 10 Open

Both boys won

Under 10 G

7 52 Meskenaite Rugile 0 LTU 1 0 - 1 1 Giblon Melissa 0 CAN 37

Under 12 Open

16 68 Sheykhhasani Bardia 1894 IRI 3 0-1 3 Wang Richard 2044 CAN 27

64 100 Choi Daehyun 1577 KOR 1 0-1 1 Qian Jack 0 CAN 135

Under 12G

48 77 Giblon Rebecca 0 CAN 1 1-0 1 Samudin Elina 0 KGZ 100

Under 14 Open

11 Terentjev Vladislav 2232 RUS 3 1-0 3 Kaminski Thomas 2112 CAN

18 Zhang David 1998 CAN 2½ 0-1 2½ Sahoo Utkal Ranjan 2219 IND

57 Itkin David 0 CAN 1 .5-.5 1 Munasinghe Shanaka 1811 SRI

Under 14G

29 Jain Radha 1880 ENG 2 0-1 2 WCM Botez Alexandra 0 CAN

Under 16 Open

37 94 Pastar Slaven 1880 BIH 2 0-1 2 Szalay Karoly 2128 CAN 61

52 112 Mahehu Brian 0 KEN 1 0-1 1 Wang Jesse B J 1976 CAN 88

Under 16G
31 36 WFM Petrova Irina 2010 UKR 1½ .5-.5 2 Kagramanov Dalia 1835 CAN 67

48 88 Mcdonald Maryann 1530 SCO ½ 1-0 ½ Lam Karen 0 CAN 97

Under 18 Open

3 23 FM Hansen Eric 2409 CAN 3½ 0-1 3½ GM Salgado Lopez Ivan 2562 ESP 2

25 35 FM Jorczik Julian 2368 GER 2 0-1 2 Kaminski Victor 2235 CAN 57

46 89 Rasovic Uros 1914 MNE 1 0-1 1 Me Kevin 2119 CAN 75

Under 18G

18 60 Du Jasmine (yaoshen) 0 CAN 2 0-1 2 Agrest Inna 2180 SWE 16

Video for rounds 1-4

2009-11-15T20:37:00.000-08:00

I am able to email a link with the video I got from round 1-4. If you would like to see them, post your email as a comment. Also you can find a link on my facebook account.
For the parents who are home, they can log in to 2009CYCT@gmail.com , enter the same password as the one for this blog, and use the invitation that is sent there.

Andrei Botez

Double rounds for tomorrow

2009-11-15T12:01:00.000-08:00

Fifth round will start at 10.00AM (local time) followed by the sixth round at 17.00PM (local time). I will post the results in 4 hours after the rounds starts.

Andrei

Round 4 results

2009-11-15T11:22:00.000-08:00

Under 8 (Open)

27 122 WAN Kevin 0 CAN 2 0 - 1 2 JABER Koochaki 0 IRI 61

30 71 KUCUK Dogukan 0 TUR 2 1 - 0 2 ZHANG Yuanchen 0 CAN 127

Under 8G

9 48 LIU Jiaxin 0 CAN 2 1 - 0 2 AYAN Bengu Sena 0 TUR 8

Under 10 (Open)

38 44 NIKITENKO Mihail 1740 BLR 1½ 0 - 1 1½ KONG Dezheng 0 CAN 103

62 143 VIGNA Leo 0 TUR 1 0 - 1 1 GRAIF William 0 CAN 88

Under 10G

33 37 Giblon Melissa 0 CAN 1 0 - 1 1 Salah Nadya Ahmed 0 YEM 65

Under 12

21 27 Wang Richard 2044 CAN 2 1 - 0 2 Naoum Spyridon 1885 GRE 70

135 Qian Jack 0 CAN 0 1 - - Bye

Under 12G

32 34 Lagunow Elina 1735 GER 1 1 - 0 1 Giblon Rebecca 0 CAN 77

Under 14 (open)

25 Kaminski Thomas 2112 CAN 2 1 - 0 2 Garnazhenko Dmytro 1947 UKR

41 Modi Jaishil Bhadrashil 1646 RSA 1½ 0 - 1 1½ Zhang David 1998 CAN

52 Karabayir Mustafa Yilmaz 1864 TUR 1 1 - 0 1 Itkin David 0 CAN

Under 14G

37 WCM Botez Alexandra 0 CAN 1 1 - 0 1 Cemhan Kardelen 1767 TUR

Under 16 (Open)

23 61 Szalay Karoly 2128 CAN 2 0 - 1 2 Petenyi Tamas 2273 SVK 36

40 63 Huseyn Orkhan Samir Oglu 2121 AZE 1 1 - 0 1 Wang Jesse B J 1976 CAN 88

Under 16G

21 67 Kagramanov Dalia 1835 CAN 2 0 - 1 2 WFM Ognerubova Anastasia 2077 RUS 30

50 97 Lam Karen 0 CAN 0 ½ - ½ 0 Demartini Maysa Lais 0 BRA 92

Under 18 (Open)

7 14 GM Salem A.R.Saleh 2472 UAE 2½ 0 - 1 2½ FM Hansen Eric 2409 CAN 23

26 57 Kaminski Victor 2235 CAN 1½ ½ - ½ 1½ Stankovic Milos 2379 SRB 33

45 75 Me Kevin 2119 CAN ½ ½ - ½ ½ Margarido Ricardo Emanuel Torr 1966 POR 88

Under 18G

17 23 WFM Dudas Eszter 2147 HUN 1½ ½ - ½ 1½ Du Jasmine 0 CAN 60

Day one by Sherman Graif Elizabeth

2009-11-15T11:20:00.000-08:00

Round 1 - commentary

Day 1 (by Elizabeth Sherman Graif)

There are about 1500 children competing in this year’s World Youth Chess Tournament, from close to 100 countries, in six age categories (Under 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18), with separate sections for boys and girls. This year, Team Canada has 21 players, ranging in age from 7 to 18 years old. For some, it is their first experience at an international tournament of this scope; others are veterans of the circuit. With the first game of the World Youth 2009 under their belts, Team Canada is settling into the rhythm of competition.

Team Captain Andrei Botez, father of three-time Canadian team member Alexandra Botez, is enthusiastic about the team’s potential. “They are a great bunch of kids, and I hope they all play hard and have fun.”

The players have been working hard, preparing for their games and analyzing their results. Many are working with coach Artiom Samsonkin, one of the top-ranked players in Canada. It is his first year with the team, and his dedication and positive outlook are infectious. After breakfast each morning, there is a knot of Canadian players encircling Artiom on the comfortable red leather sofas of the Hotel Limra’s lobby, intently listening to each player working with Artiom on their ideas and potential strategies for the upcoming game.

For ten-year-old William Graif, it is his second experience representing Canada at the World Youth. “It is great to see kids I remember from last year,” he says. “And it is really cool to meet other chess players from all over the world.” An added bonus for William – drinking the delicious fresh pomegranate juice that is traditionally served in Turkey, and learning and trying out new words in Turkish. His favourite new word is “satranç” (pronounced “suh-TRUNCH”), which is Turkish for “chess.”

Even with just one game under their belts, some kids have already had an experience that they will always remember. Eleven-year-old Rebecca Giblon of Thornhill played a thrilling four-hour game against WFM Liza Kisteneva of Russia that ended in a draw. “This was the best result of my life!” burbled Rebecca to her friends and family at a late dinner after the match. “What a great way to start the tournament!”

Day Three by Sherman Graif Elizabeth

2009-11-15T11:04:00.000-08:00

Day Three

From the main building, it is a short walk outdoors to the building that houses the tournament games. The walkway is covered, and beautiful displays of purple and pink flowers climb the walls of the buildings we pass. Before 3:00 p.m., it is a pleasant walk: on the way back, the sun has set and there is a sharp chill in the air. After sunset, you can feel the bite of the Mediterranean breeze.

They younger children compete in a large room on the main floor, and the older ones are divided into a series of smaller rooms downstairs, accessible only by a small spiral staircase. After the chaos and mayhem surrounding the first day’s game, which started late because the officials could not remove the adults from the playing floors to start the games, parents are not permitted past a gate at the edge of the playing hall. They look like a throng of paparazzi, pushing and shoving in front of a pair of implacable Turkish guards at the entrance.

Now, apart from arbiters and players, only coaches, heads of delegation, members of the press and FIDE executives are permitted in the playing halls. Parents of the Canadian team members share a badge for ten-minute shifts so that they can go in and check on the progress of the games. It is much more civilized, in terms of crowd control, but it is more difficult for the younger kids, who have to navigate the hall and set up for their games alone. Fortunately, Canada has a few people inside, and we can check on all the kids to make sure that they are prepared and comfortable.

Having people in the playing hall is key. Dalia Kagramanov had a nasty start to Game Three, when just a few moves into the game, her opponent announced that Dalia’s pieces were incorrectly set up (the black queen and king were reversed). The player called over the arbiter to say that according to FIDE rules, Dahlia was required to play out the game with her two pieces reversed. Fortunately, Canadian delegation head Andrei Botez and coach Artiom Samsonkin arrived within moments and intervened. For those of us who do not have the rule book memorized - it is certainly not a FIDE rule, but it may have been a questionable tactic. A rattled Dalia Kagramanov regained her composure and went on to win her game –

Video from first 3 rounds

2009-11-14T14:14:00.001-08:00

I have the files ready but it is impossible to load them on the blog with the internet speed available. I tried to load them on youtube but the site is banned by the Turkish government. If anyone has any idea where else I can load them, please let me know.

Andrei

Round 3 pictures

2009-11-14T13:11:00.001-08:00

Round 3

2009-11-14T10:55:00.001-08:00

Under 8 (Open)

WAN Kevin CAN 1-0 JANNESAR Rad IRI
ZHANG Yuanchen CAN 1-0 KARACAN Can Berk TUR

Under 8 (Girls)

WIJESURIYA G. P. Y. SRI 0-1 LIU Jiaxin CAN

Under 10 (Open)

KONG Dezheng CAN 0-1 KAPLUN David 1831 GER
GRAIF William CAN 0-1 SAVENKOV Konstantin 1808 RUS

Under 10 (Girls)

Tokhirjonova Gulruhbegim UZB 1-0 Giblon Melissa CAN

Under 12 (Open)

Vaibhav Suri 2344 IND 1-0 Wang Richard 2044 CAN
Qian Jack CAN 0-1 Dali Mohamed Souhaib TUN

Under 12 (Girls)

Giblon Rebecca CAN 0-1 Bulmaga Elena 1732 MDA

Under 14 (Open)

Zhang David 1998 CAN 0-1 Adelberg David 2201 USA
IM Berbatov Kiprian 2463 BUL .5-.5 Kaminski Thomas 2112 CAN
Melnik Igor 1969 UKR 1-0 Itkin David CAN

Under 14 (Girls)

WCM Botez Alexandra CAN 1-0 Liao Jo-Yu TPE

Under 16 (Open)

Wang Jesse B J 1976 CAN 0-1 Kozganbayev Erken 2213 KAZ
Tello Chavez Hermes A MEX 0-1 Szalay Karoly 2128 CAN

Under 16 (Girls)

Karabayeva Zhanna 1994 KAZ 0-1 Kagramanov Dalia 1835 CAN
Diril Isil 1585 TUR 1-0 Lam Karen CAN

Under 18 (Open)

FM Hansen Eric 2409 CAN 1-0 Eiti Bashir 1813 SYR
Margarido Ricardo Emanuel Torr 1966 POR 0-1 Kaminski Victor 2235 CAN
Celis Joel Chang 1698 MAC .5-.5 Me Kevin 2119 CAN

Under 18 (Girls)

Du Jasmine 0 CAN .5-.5 Hannes Diana 2125 GER

Round 3

2009-11-14T10:55:00.000-08:00

Under 8 (Open)

WAN Kevin CAN 1-0 JANNESAR Rad IRI
ZHANG Yuanchen CAN 1-0 KARACAN Can Berk TUR

Under 8 (Girls)

WIJESURIYA G. P. Y. SRI 0-0 LIU Jiaxin CAN

Under 10 (Open)

KONG Dezheng CAN 0-1 KAPLUN David 1831 GER
GRAIF William CAN 0-1 SAVENKOV Konstantin 1808 RUS

Under 10 (Girls)

Tokhirjonova Gulruhbegim UZB 1-0 Giblon Melissa CAN

Under 12 (Open)

Vaibhav Suri 2344 IND 1-0 Wang Richard 2044 CAN
Qian Jack CAN 0-1 Dali Mohamed Souhaib TUN

Under 12 (Girls)

Giblon Rebecca CAN 0-1 Bulmaga Elena 1732 MDA

Under 14 (Open)

Zhang David 1998 CAN 0-1 Adelberg David 2201 USA
IM Berbatov Kiprian 2463 BUL .5-.5 Kaminski Thomas 2112 CAN
Melnik Igor 1969 UKR 1-0 Itkin David CAN

Under 14 (Girls)

WCM Botez Alexandra CAN 1-0 Liao Jo-Yu TPE

Under 16 (Open)

Wang Jesse B J 1976 CAN 0-1 Kozganbayev Erken 2213 KAZ
Tello Chavez Hermes A MEX 0-1 Szalay Karoly 2128 CAN

Under 16 (Girls)

Karabayeva Zhanna 1994 KAZ 0-1 Kagramanov Dalia 1835 CAN
Diril Isil 1585 TUR 1-0 Lam Karen CAN

Under 18 (Open)

FM Hansen Eric 2409 CAN 1-0 Eiti Bashir 1813 SYR
Margarido Ricardo Emanuel Torr 1966 POR 0-1 Kaminski Victor 2235 CAN
Celis Joel Chang 1698 MAC .5-.5 Me Kevin 2119 CAN

Under 18 (Girls)

Du Jasmine (yaoshen) CAN .5-.5 Hannes Diana 2125 GER

Relax, Jesse. Sleep well, exercise more, and don't forget your homework.

2009-11-13T18:31:00.000-08:00

Thanks for the post on chesstalk. Your dad and I are so proud of such a considerate son! Do you best and enjoy the rest of the tournament. We'll continue to try to call you. Mom.

Message from former World Champion for our team

2009-11-13T16:10:00.000-08:00

Antoaneta Stefanova (Bulgarian: Антоанета Стефанова) (born April 19, 1979) is a Bulgarian chess grandmaster, and a former Women's World Chess Champion. She became the twelfth titleholder in 2004 in a 64-player knockout tournament held in Elista, Kalmykia under the auspices of FIDE. Stefanova's FIDE rating of 2535 on the July 2009 list makes her eighth in the world among active female players.

Round 2 pics

2009-11-13T16:08:00.000-08:00

More round 1 pics

2009-11-13T16:04:00.000-08:00

Round 1 - commentary

2009-11-13T15:44:00.000-08:00

ROUND 2

2009-11-13T02:41:00.000-08:00

The round will start in 2h and 15min from now I will try to update the results as fast as I get them.

Under 8 (Open)

ERENBERG Ariel ISR 0-1 WAN Kevin CAN
ZHANG Yuanchen 0 CAN 0 Bye

Under 8 (Girls)
LIU Jiaxin CAN 1-0 BULBUL Doga Su TUR

Under 10 (Open)

AZIMI Khashayar 1796 IRI 0-1 KONG Dezheng CAN
GRAIF William CAN 1-0 SIROKOV Jevgenijs LAT

Under 10 (Girls)

Giblon Melissa CAN 1-0 Romo Herrera Ibarrola Maria Fe MEX

Under 12 (Open)

FM Wagdy Andro 1895 EGY 0-1 Wang Richard 2044 CAN
Samardzic Nikola 1713 CRO 1-0 Qian Jack CAN

Under 12 (Girls)

Baghirova Khatin Mahammad Qizi 1809 AZE .5- .5 Giblon Rebecca CAN

Under 14 (Open)

Kaphle Sebastian 2152 GER .5-.5 Zhang David 1998 CAN
Vicente Joao Vasco Reis 1736 POR 0-1 Kaminski Thomas 2112 CAN
Itkin David CAN 1-0 Boztuna Mehmet 1785 TUR

Under 14 (Girls)

Bea Boglarka 2042 HUN 1-0 WCM Botez Alexandra CAN

Under 16 (Open)

Raznikov Danny 2290 ISR 1-0 Wang Jesse B J 1976 CAN
Szalay Karoly 2128 CAN 1-0 Litvinov Konstantin 1841 RUS

Under 16 (Girls)

Kagramanov Dalia 1835 CAN 1-0 Kane Marta LAT
Lam Karen CAN 0-1 WFM Gameel Amal 1825 YEM

Under 18 (Open)

FM Karayev Assylkhan 2275 KAZ .5-.5 FM Hansen Eric 2409 CAN
Kaminski Victor 2235 CAN .5-.5 Kristinsson Bjarni J 2023 ISL
Me Kevin 2119 CAN 0-1 Wais Abdul Khalid AFG

Under 18 (Girls)

WGM Vojinovic Jovana 2319 MNE .5-.5 Du Jasmine CAN

Team picture

2009-11-12T12:37:00.001-08:00

Round 1 results

2009-11-12T12:26:00.000-08:00

Under 8:

58 122 WAN Kevin 0 CAN 0 0 - 1 0 HALLMAN Valo 0 FIN 58

63 63 KAMKIA Davit 0 GEO 0 1 - 0 0 ZHANG Yuanchen 0 CAN 127

Under 8 G:

6 6 ARPITA Mukherjee 0 IND 0 1 - 0 0 LIU Jiaxin 0 CAN 48

Under 10:

29 102 KONG Dezheng 0 CAN 0 ½ - ½ 0 SAVENKOV Konstantin 1808 RUS 29

14 14 SALIM Riza 1895 ROU 0 1 - 0 0 GRAIF William 0 CAN 87

Under 10G:

37 78 Vescovi Katherine Lemos 0 BRA 0 1 - 0 0 Giblon Melissa 0 CAN 37

Under 12:

27 27 Wang Richard CAN 1 0 Vural Murathan 1657 TUR 97

64 134 Qian Jack CAN 0 1 Gheorghiu Calin 1897 ROU 64

Under 12G

23 77 Giblon Rebecca CAN 0 ½ - ½ 0 WFM Kisteneva Liza 1797 RUS 23

Under 14

35 35 Kaminski Thomas 2112 CAN 0 ½ - ½ 0 Yang Ching Wei Austin 1725 TPE 104

Zhang David

1998

CAN

+ - -

Saidov Umed

TJK

132

57 57 Ly Daniel 2024 AUT 0 1 - 0 0 Itkin David 0 CAN 126

Under 14G

27 27 Kuchava Ana 1932 GEO 0 1 - 0 0 WCM Botez Alexandra 0 CAN 76

Under 16

2 2 IM Nyzhnyk Illya 2494 UKR 0 1 - 0 0 Szalay Karoly 2128 CAN 61

29 88 Wang Jesse B J 1976 CAN 0 1 - 0 0 Baghdasaryan Vahe 2294 ARM 29

Undre 16 G:

16 16 WFM Baciu Diana 2173 MDA 0 1 - 0 0 Kagramanov Dalia 1835 CAN 67

46 46 Edes Zsofia 1959 SVK 0 1 - 0 0 Lam Karen 0 CAN 97

Under 18

5 5 GM Chirila Ioan-Cristian 2510 ROU 1 0 Kaminski Victor 2235 CAN 57

23 23 FM Hansen Eric 2409 CAN 1 0 Me Kevin 2119 CAN 75

Under 18 G

6 60 Du Jasmine (yaoshen) 0 CAN 0 ½ - ½ 0 WFM Ziaziulkina Nastassia 2128 BLR 27

IMPORTANT: Re-confirm your flight at least 72 hours

2009-11-06T13:51:00.000-08:00

Please be sure to re-confirm your flight at least 72 hours prior to scheduled departure (72 hours prior for flights international destinations). You may check your flight status and departure gate online, or contact the airline directly. Seat assignments, meal preferences, and special requests must be confirmed with the airline.

You can do it NOW!

Andrei

Check list for the trip of WYCC

2009-11-03T07:56:00.000-08:00

Don't forget these important things for your trip:

1. Passport
2. Visa
3. Invitation letter
4. Euro
5. Air ticket
6. A chess book
7. Important phone numbers to you
8. Chess set and clock
9. Talk with your teacher and bring some of your homework with you
10. Some summer/spring clothes

These are items in my mind and I hope it can help. Welcome to add more on the list and see you all soon.

Lianhua (Karoly's mom)

Gift exchange!

2009-10-31T09:19:00.000-07:00

This is a practice more for the younger groups and not everyone is doing it, but we are Canadians! Everybody knows and agree that we are one of the nicest nation on the glob.
Before the game starts, you can give a small souvenir to your opponent, sometimes they have something for you too. All to have something related with Canada.

Here are some suggestions:

- key chain
- pens
- pins (you can get Canadian/provincial flag shape from the office of your local politician - go and mention where you going and they will offer you for free)
- postcard

You can get all those at your local dollar store. Remember that you will play 11 games and you might want to give some to your future friends from all over the world!

Andrei

UNOFFICIAL PARTICIPANT & PLAYER LIST 26.10.2009

2009-10-29T07:07:00.000-07:00

The new list from OCT 26 is posted on the main website.You can download it clicking HERE. Also you can use the top tabs in the excel to sort by country, categories..and so on.

On the next list it will say "YES" on the PICTURE column.

Team pictures

2009-10-25T09:42:00.000-07:00

Hello,

I posted the pics I got from you, and 2 that are from 2005 WYCC.
Andrei

.

FIDE arbiters courses

2009-10-22T22:14:00.000-07:00

I asked the organizer if they can have any FIDE arbiter courses during the championships.

Here is his reply:

Fide Arbiter seminar will held during to the tournament.
Best regards,

Mr.Melih SAGIT

Turkish Chess Federation

2009 WYCC Tournament Director

There are 2 types of titles (certifications) for arbiters, one is called FA (FIDE Arbiter) and IA (International Arbiter), for both certifications applicants need to attend a FIDE arbiter course/seminar.

I believe is a good opportunity for the parents to attend such seminar.

Andrei

PARTICIPANT LIST 16.OCT.2009

2009-10-19T21:16:00.000-07:00

You can download it clicking HERE.

Also you can use the top tabs in the excel to sort by country, categories..and so on.

Congratulation to Jiaxin, Janak, Yuanchen and James!

2009-10-05T08:09:00.000-07:00

We are really proud of your results, 2 gold medals Jiaxin and Janak (plus the CM title) and 2 silver medals Yuanchen and James.
Despite many problems with the organizers they played great chess and made us proud.

Here is the final standings:

Under 12

1 USA TROFF Kayden W USA 2174 6,5
2 CAN FU James CAN 0 5,5
3 MEX VALENZUELA MARTINEZ Herme MEX 1770 5,0

Under 10

1 CAN AWATRAMAMI Janak CAN 0 6,5 27,5
2 MEX TELLO CHAVEZ Isaac Valent MEX 0 6,0 25,0
3 MEX ALCANTARA Guillermo MEX 0 5,0 18,0

Under 8

1 USA ZENG Winston USA 0 7,0
2 CAN ZHANG Yuanchen CAN 0 5,5
3 USA TAGHIZADEH Rayan USA 0 5,0

Under 8 girls

1 CAN LIU Jiaxin CAN 0 4,0 17,0
2 MEX HERNANDEZ GUTIERREZ Ashl MEX 0 4,0 14,0
3 USA NGUYEN Emily USA 0 3,5

NAYCC rounds 3-5

2009-10-04T08:12:00.001-07:00

Under 8

2-3 ZHANG Yuanchen CAN 4,0(out of 5)
4-6 LIU Jiaxin CAN 3,0 (top girl)

Round 3:

LIU Jiaxin 1 - 0 CASTRO FLORES Aldoza Vict (MEX)
TAGHIZADEH Rayan (USA) 0 - 1 ZHANG Yuanchen

Round 4:

LICHUT VALLES Ingrid(MEX) 0 - 1 LIU Jiaxin
ZENG Winston (USA) 1 - 0 ZHANG Yuanchen

Round 5:

ZHANG Yuanchen 1 - 0 NGUYEN Emily (USA) - Maybe the best 2 girls in the U8 group
LIU Jiaxin 0 - 1 ZENG Winston (USA)

In this round Canada 1 - 1 USA

Round 6 pairings:

Board 2: ZHANG Yuanchen - HERNANDEZ GUTIERREZ Ashl (MEX)
Board 3: ZHANG Yuanchen - HERNANDEZ GUTIERREZ Ashl (MEX)

Under 10:

1. AWATRAMAMI Janak 5,0

Round 3:

GILCHRIST Ian (USA) 0 - 1 AWATRAMAMI Janak

Round 4:

AWATRAMAMI Janak 1 - 0 ALCANTARA Guillermo (MEX)

Round 5:

TELLO CHAVEZ Isaac Valent (MEX) 0 - 1 AWATRAMAMI Janak

Round 6 pairings:

Board 1: AWATRAMAMI Janak - CASTELLANOS HERNANDEZ Emi (MEX)

Under 12:

3-6: FU James CAN 4,0

Round 3:
FU James 1 - 0 SANDOVAL RODRIGUEZ Andres (MEX)

Round 4:
MARTINEZ BRAVO Carlos Fern (MEX) 0 - 1 FU James

Round 5:
FU James 1 - 0 VALENCIA HERNANDEZ Rubi (MEX)

Round 6 pairing
KARAMSETTY Jeevan 1894 (USA)- FU James

North American Youth Championships - before round 3

2009-10-03T09:06:00.000-07:00

Under 10
Round 1: PEINADO QUINTERO Juan Car (MEX) 0 - 1 AWATRAMAMI Janak CAN
Round 2: AWATRAMAMI Janak 1 - 0 REAL PEREYRA Jeronim (MEX)
Round 3 pairing: GILCHRIST Ian (USA) - AWATRAMAMI Janak

Under 8
Round 1: LIU Jiaxin (girls) 1-0 VILLA DUARTE Rodolfo (MEX)
MALDONADO MONTOYA Isaac (MEX)0 - 1 ZHANG Yuanchen
Round 2: ZHANG Yuanchen 1 - 0 LIU Jiaxin
Round 3 pairing: TAGHIZADEH Rayan (USA) - ZHANG Yuanchen
LIU Jiaxin - CASTRO FLORES Aldoza Vict (MEX)

Under 12
Round 1: FU James 0 - 1 TORRES LOPEZ- YAÑEZ Carlos (MEX)
Round 2: MENDOZA RECIO Luis Patrick (MEX) 0 - 1 FU James
Round 3 pairing: FU James -SANDOVAL RODRIGUEZ Andres (MEX)

Follow Canadian team at NAYCC

2009-10-02T16:38:00.000-07:00

From Claudia Munoz blog (http://claudiachess.blogspot.com/):

We want to welcome TEAM CANADA as they get ready to participate in the North American Youth Championship 2009, next week in Mazatlan, Mexico. Although the team is not the largest of the three North American nations, it is the bold heart and the passion to win on the chessboard that will count.
Surname Name Category FIDE Federation

Zhang Yuanchen U-8 Open 2611902 CAN
Awatramani Janak U-10 Open 2608359 CAN
Fu James U-12 Open 2611090 CAN
Liu Jiaxin U-8 Girl 2611872 CAN

Tips from Trip Advisor website

2009-10-01T07:20:00.000-07:00

When obtaining visas at the border or airport, seek out the separate visa sales desk before getting in the line for passport control.

Euros, Dollars, Or even GBP are greatly accepted so either is fine. But the local currency is the YTL ( Turkish liras ) Change your currency as needed at the dovis ( change office bureau ) Travelers checks are not recommend to Turkey or Antalya as they are a hassle and also charge a service fee to cash them at the banks. A lot of hotels will not accept. Better with dollars, or euros or better yet use the ATM's.

Exchange some of your foreign currency to Liras at a change offices in Turkey. But don't exchange at the airport wait until you can get to a change office you will get a better price. However you can use the ATM at the airport at your arrival. As you will need some Liras to pay for small items to the markets, taxis etc. Small places probably not take Euros or dollars. Most of the changes offices are located in the center of town and I am sure that the hotel will give you some help or directions.

If you use a ATM please use one that is located outside of a national bank and also during regular business hours. Mon-Fri 9am-5pm.

This way if you experience any problems with your card you can directly report it at the bank. Also do make sure that you advise your bank of your planned travel to Turkey. If not the bank after a transaction or two may freeze your card after one or two transactions.

Turkish belongs to the Ural-Altaic family of languages, and is rather different from languages of the Indo-European family. There are 29 letters in the Turkish alphabet, and it may be helpful to look at the list of letters following this phrase list to familiarise yourself with the pronunciation. You can see that some of the endings (especially the questions in these examples) have an '-iz' . This indicates a formal, less familiar tone, similar to "vouz" in French.
Turkish pronunciation is phonetic, very few letters are 'swallowed' in most instances each letter is pronounced, usually in pairs i.e. Merhaba is pronounced MARE - HA - BA with the MARE being pronounced as mare in english, HA as in haha :o), BA as in bah humbug :o)
Try using a little Turkish whilst your here, it will be greatly appreciated and bring a big smile.
One very important phrase is Hoş Geldiniz pronounced "hosh gel din iz". You may well hear this a lot as you enter a resturant or shop, it's a form of greeting, it's near literal translation is "You came well", basically well come or welcome :o) The proper response is Hoş Bulduk pronounced "hosh bull duk", " we found well". If you remember nothing but this you'll go a long way :o)
The phonetic pronounciation is written using english English pronounciation, sorry to any Americans etc. just pretend you're English and use that pronounciation :o)

Hello	Merhaba!	MARE-HA-BA see above
Good evening	İyi akşamlar!	EE AK-SHAM-LAR
Good-bye	Hoşçakal!	HOSH-CHA-KAL
How are you?	Nasılsın?	NA-SEL-SIN
I am fine, and you?	İyiyim, sen nasılsın?	EE-IM, SEN NA-SEL-SIN
Not very well.	Çok iyi değil.	CHOK EEYI DEY-EEL
Thank you	Teşekkür ederim.	TE-SH-QU-ERR ED-ERR-IM
You’re welcome	Birşey değil. (in response to “Thank you”)	BEER-SHEY DEY-EEL
Please	Lütfen.	LUT-FEN
Do you speak English?	İngilizce konuşur musunuz? İngilizce biliyor musunuz?	INN-GLIZ-JE CON-NUSH-OR MUS-UN-UZ (BILL-IYOR)
I don’t speak Turkish	Türkçe bilmiyorum!	TURK-JEH BILL-MI-YOR-UM
I don’t understand	Sizi anlamıyorum.	SI-ZI ANN-LA-MA-YOR-UM
Could you please repeat	Şunu tekrar edebilir misiniz?	SHU-NU TEK-RA ED-EBB-ILL-EAR MISS-IN-IZ
Pleased to meet you	Tanıştığımıza sevindim./Memnum oldum	TAN-ISH-TI-IM-IZA SEV-IN-DIM/ MEM-NUM-OLL-DUM
Where is the washroom?	Afedersiniz, tuvalet nerede?	AFF-ED-DER-SIN-IZ TOO-WA-LET NER-REY-DE
How much does it cost?	Ne kadar?	NAY KAD-AR
May I speak to [Name]?	[Name] ile görüşebilir miyim?	... ILL-EH GOR-EH-SHEBB-ILL-EAR ME-YIM
I am sorry	Özür dilerim. Pardon!	OUZ-UR DILL-EAR-IM PARR-DON
Excuse me	Afedersiniz.	AFF-ED-DAR-SAN-IZ
Can you help me?	Yardım edebilir misiniz?	YARR-DIM ED-EBB-ILL-EAR MISS-IN-IZ
Yes	Evet.	EV-ET
No	Hayır.	HI-EAR
I don’t know	Bilmiyorum.	BILL-ME-YOR-UM
Okay/Alright	Tamam	TAM-AM
Welcome	Hoş Geldiniz	HOSH GEL-DIN-IZ
We came well(response to hoş geldiniz)	Hoş Bulduk	HOSH BULL-DUK

Pronunciation guide of Turkish alphabet:

A – sounds like ah as in " awful"

B – sounds like b as in " bed"

C – sounds like j as in " juniper"

Ç – sounds like ch as in " chipper"

D – sounds like d as in " dog"

E – sounds like eh as in " hey"

F – sounds like f as in " fun"

G – sounds like g as in " gift"

Ğ – silent letter ( The English word 'yoghurt' (or yogurt) is taken from the Turkish yoğurt, pronounced: 'yo-urt')

H – sounds like h as in " happy"

I – sounds like ə as in "th e"

İ – sounds like i as in " interest"

J – sounds like je as in "mira ge"

K – sounds like k as in " king"

L – sounds like l as in " love"

M – sounds like m as in " man"

N – sounds like n as in " none"

O – sounds like o as in " over"

Ö – sounds like ö as in "c ook"

P – sounds like p as in " pickle"

R – sounds like r as in " river"

S – sounds like s as in " supper"

Ş – sounds like sh as in " shelf"

T – sounds like t as in " top"

U – sounds like u as in " oodles"

Ü – sounds like ü as in "astute"

V – sounds like v as in " vestibule"

Y – sounds like y as in " yes"

Z – sounds like z as in " zoo"

The International Dialing Code to access Turkish telephone numbers is 0090. However, as it is normal to remove the first 0 from a number after adding the International code, it's easier to regard Turkey's International Code as 009

Municipal areas have a 4 digit access code and each village within that area has it's own 3 digit code. There is a 4 digit code for each line. Hence, a Turkish telephone number for use within the country will appear as 0252 ( Fethiye Code) 618 (Kaya Koyu code) 1234 ( phone number ) .

Their are a huge number of public call boxes in Turkey and the majority work by insertion of a call card. These cards can be purchased at most small general shops, the post offices ( PTT ) and some supermarkets. You can also use metered telephones within post offices and pay at the completion of the call.

Most mobile telephone numbers in Turkey can be recognised by their 05 prefix. Turkish SIM cards can be purchased cheaply at all mobile phone shops for use in mobile phones. In most phone shops in towns there is usually someone who's English is reasonably good and they will be able to help you. This is a much cheaper way of making calls within the country than using your own airtime supplier's roaming service.

Tipping: It is customary to leave a tip in restaurants (10%), for hotel chambermaids, in reception for hotel staff . Taxi drivers do not normally expect a tip, but they do appreciate it, and it's acceptable to "round up" the fare. So if you're charged 4.5YTL it's usual to give the driver 5YTL. Hairdressers also get tips, similar to the UK.

Visiting mosques: Both men and women are expected to wear clothing which comes to below knee level and to have their shoulders and chests covered. Shorts, tanks tops and halters are completely inappropriate. Women must cover their hair with a hat or scarf, and men should be bareheaded. Shoes must be removed before entering the mosque, carry them with you unless you are with a guide who instructs you to leave them outside. Many of the larger mosques provide plastic sacks for you to carry your shoes in.

There are usually signs which indicate whether picture taking is allowed; pay attention to whether flash is allowed. Do not aim your camera at anyone who may be praying.

Do not enter a mosque during a prayer service, wait outside until it is finished.

Etiquette

Please as tourists remember that this is a largely Muslim country and modesty is appreciated. In restaurants it's expected that men will wear at least T shirt and shorts and women to wear more than beach wear. It is also more polite to cover up a little when shopping etc. If you come from the beach at least wear a sun dress over the bikini or shorts and a top.

It is totally normal for men and women to greet each other with a kiss on each cheek and a hug and will often walk around arm in arm regardless of gender. This is a natural expression of affection.When greeting people shake the hand of the eldest person first. You may also see/ experience younger people kiss an older persons right hand and then put it to their forhead. This is a mark of respect for the older person.

Emergency Phone Numbers

Ambulance/Medical: 112
Fire: 110
Police: 155

Turkish pharmacies are great. They go out of their way to help travelers. Many medicines usually only available on prescription in the UK are available over the counter. The pharmacist often being in a role more akin to that of the UK General Practitioner. Also (may you guys never need it) the quality of medical care in Turkey is high. Not only is the Turkish medical care excellent it is also very cheap. In some resort areas there are clinics were basic assessment and investigations wil be provided free of charge on production of a valid travel insurance certificate. The private hospitals are excellent. Usually you will be provided with an English speaker to accompany on your appointment. The wait is generally minimal and then medicines purchased on prescription from the pharmacy. A consultation, investigation costing around 30GBP.

Dentists are also much less expensive than in the UK. It's often best to find a recommendation but most are very accommodating and no long waits for treatment. A replacement filling cost around 20GBP.

There have been some posts where women traveling in coastal regions have been hassled. This might have something to do with attire. Try to avoid beachwear while visiting places other than the beach. In cities remember that while Turkey is a secular culture it is wise to dress like you're in a big city. For visiting religious sites women should wear a long sleeved tops, long skirt or pants and cover their heads with a scarf or hat. This type of respect for the religion and culture in Turkey is ALWAYS greatly appreciated. Going about alone in Turkey is fine (in East Turkey, it is wise to travel with a group), people have walked about alone all over Turkey day or night and have never had a problem but common sense should prevail in any foreign place.

For men, there have been some incidents of drink price scams in Istanbul and other places lately. Be careful of anyone who offers to take you to a great place with drinks, ladies, disco, etc. If you find yourself there and feel uncomfortable, LEAVE, don't be embarassed, if you find you have been victimized report it to the Tourist Police and local police, again don't be embarassed. If you feel uncomfortble in any situation not just the one mentioned above, just leave. Avoiding excessive alcohol consumption is also a good idea. You're on holiday but use your good sense. Avoid places where there is no menu or where prices are not clearly posted. If in doubt about meal or drink price, simply ask! And also bear in mind that the legislation in touristic areas forbids sales persons to "touch" or "hassle" tourists. If you are asked to buy stuff and you will be asked for sure, just say "no thank you" and keep moving. Just be polite and you won't have a problem. "Hasslers" are also not supposed to hassle you in the street. They should remain on their own premises - can be worth pointing this out!

When you leave your hotel during your stay always tell the staff where you are going. Take along the number of the consular office for your country just in case you encounter a problem and need some help. Keep your money in a safe place, not in your suitcase or backpack. Use the convenient ATMs and be careful when using them just like you would do in your home country. You need a 4 digit pin number to use ATMs in Turkey. The Turkish people are friendly and helpful, they will help you get where you are going. Don't confine yourself to tourist sites, you'll be surprised at what's off the beaten path, some of the best experiences in Turkey have come from just walking around the various districts and talking to people. Go to the local stores, you'd be surprised what you find. Migros, a big shopping center, they are in lots of Turkish cities.

In the summer, it is wise to bring along a hat and drink plenty of bottled water. Water is sold everywhere. Perhaps the most important: open yourself to the friendliness and culture of Turkey, talk to people, learn a few phrases, hello, please, thank you. Also take the time to talk to people. Their outlook on life is fascinating and you'll learn so much more about the country, its culture and customs. In most of the tourist areas the waiters, barmen etc are a long way from their homes as well as they've travelled to work for the season. They appreciate some time out and enjoy a chat. They love to improve their English and take every opportunity.

From the Turkish Culture & Tourism Office website called Go To Turkey: "The following items may be brought into the country duty free personal effects of the tourist; - one TV, one colour pocket TV (maximum 16 cm screen), one TV-tape-radio combination, one video recording camera and 5 video cassettes (blank); 5 records, 5 tape cassettes or compact discs, one video player, cine-projector (8 mm) and 10 rolls of film (blank), one slide projector, one pocket computer (maximum main memory capacity Ram 128k. Byte), electronic playing devices (without cassette - keyboard). - one transistor radio and portable radio - tape player (its specification to be determined by the Ministry of Finance and Customs), one Walkman or pocket tape recorder, one portable compact disc player. Binoculars (one pair, except night binoculars) harmonica, mandolin, flageole, flute, guitar, and accordion (only one of each type, maximum 3 musical instruments). - personal sports equipment. - necessary medical items. - bicycle, baby buggy, toys. - 200 cigarettes and 50 cigars. - 200 grams of tobacco and 200 cigarette papers, or 50 grams of chewing tobacco or 200 grams of pipe tobacco, or 200 grams of snuff (In addition to the above allowances, it is possible to purchase 400 cigarettes, 100 cigars, and 500 grams of pipe tobacco from the Turkish Duty Free Shops upon entering the country). -1.5kg. coffee, 1.5kg. instant coffee, 500 grams of tea. -1 kilo chocolate and 1 kilo sweets. -5 (100 cc) or 7 (70 cc) bottles of wines and/or spirits. five bottles of perfume (120 ml max. each). - one portable typewriter. - one camera with 5 rolls of film. - First aid, and spare parts for the car. - Other items necessary during the journey. Valuable items and all items with a value of over $15,000 must be registered in the owner's passport upon entering Turkey, for control upon exit. Antiques brought into the country must be registered in the owner's passport to avoid difficulties on exit. Sharp instruments (including camping knives) and weapons may not be brought into the country without special permission. The bringing into the country, trade, and consumption of marijuana and all other narcotics is strictly forbidden and subject to heavy punishment. Gifts, not exceeding 500 DM in value and not for trading purposes, may be brought into the country duty free. In addition, gifts not exceeding 500 OM in value may be posted to Turkey duty free, if the date stamped by the sending post office falls one month before, or one month after the following holidays: Seker Bayrami, Kurban Bayrami, Christmas, and New Year's.

Legendary Anatolia, or Asia Minor is one of the countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea which was eventually the birth-place of a bold and unsurpassed civilization for centuries. This peninsula of the Turkish Republic has the coastline on the Mediterranean Sea, almost half of which is the border of Antalya City. The wonders still stand there today, even in ruins, in its power to amaze - through the excellence of monuments, its spectacular tombs and, above all, the awesome spin of time through which its greatness has survived. It is God’s work that country was rich in art and accomplishment while Europe was in its Stone age, and also to its life it was so gratifying that man asked better nothing but eternity than to go living in a close replica of this fruitful earth he loved.

Press acreditation for Canadian Team.

2009-09-23T14:29:00.000-07:00

I would like to thank to Paul Graif from CTV and to Michael Graif for helping Canadian team getting two press accreditation for our team:
- Elizabeth Sherman (press)
- Andrei Botez (photographer).

Due date for pictures submition is November 1st

2009-09-10T21:38:00.000-07:00

This is from the official webpage:

An identity photo (2x3 cm) must also be sent for each player (guest, additional or qualified) and each accompanying person by 1^st November 2009. The photo can also be taken on arrival at the Hotel at the cost of 3 € (Euros).

Find games of youth Asian players

2009-09-03T15:43:00.000-07:00

Here you can find articles, photos and games from Asian Youth Chess Championships (For Boys & Girls under 8, 10, 12, 14, 16 & 18 years/02 – 09 August 2009, New Delhi; India):

http://www.delhichess.com/

Andrei B

Find games of youth European players

2009-09-01T13:47:00.000-07:00

You can find games of the European players who are participating in the European Youth Chess Championship at this address:

http://www.euroyouth2009.com/

If you have other sources for players on the other side of the world, please post info on this blog.

Andrei B

Team email and and picasa account

2009-08-31T14:11:00.000-07:00

Hello,

For the 2009 Canadian Youth Chess Team (2009 C.Y.C.T.) I create the following:

- new email accont: 2009cyct@gmail.com (I will email the password to all the members)

- new picasa account to publish pictures from the event: http://picasaweb.google.com/2009CYCT

Andrei B

----9CYCT@gmail.com

First post

2009-08-31T14:08:00.000-07:00

Hello,

This is the blog where I intend to post news about 2009 World Youth Chess Championship in Turkey.

Andrei Botez

Head of the Canadian Chess delegation at 2009 WYCC