Skip to main content

STUDENTS AT THE NAG 2022

Once again, the NAG came and went with its fair share of upsets and surprises. The Senja-Cashew CC Hall was a big venue that can house more than the reported 487 participants - if only the timing and notice was given earlier to the participants who would have required time to plan their schedules. 

U14

My currently oldest student Ho Ray Ee finished 7rh out of  62 participants, while Wen Chen who joined me in June this year finished 19th. 


Ray Ee has prepared well for this event chalking only losses to Satvik and Jaime. Wen Chen was unfortunate to lose to Jaime blundering a Rook when winning. He then went on to lose the 2nd game in the last day to Yu Bei Hao hence dropping to 19th.

My assessment is that both players lack game experience in handling tense situations - which can be improved by playing purposeful blitz regularly. Blitz is often seen as a bad way of training but when used purposefully. there are good outcomes from it. 

U12

Damien Tay and Ryan Heng had both completed their PSLE and had little time to prepare for the NAG, which was evident in their play as they were missing tactics and blundered pieces mid-game. Damien scored 3.5 pts to finish at 52nd place while Ryan ended 57th. On a consolatory note, they did well for their PSLE and got to their choice schools.

U10 

The U10 is often fiercely contested owing to the huge pool of talents. Kyan Heng has outdone himself this time, started well with 3/3 when disaster struck. A careless lapse cost him a good finish but he managed to recover to get the 3.5 pts out of the last 4 games and end in 10th position with 6 pts. He chose to play it safe against his compatriot Nicholas Kuo than to stake it out which to me is a sign of maturity. 


The absence of the International Schools at this event is evident but unavoidable due to the clash of the dates to the school term. 

Overall, I am satisfied with the students' showing in that they did try to play as best they could and stretched the game beyond the usual 3 hrs. A mistake in an 8 round tournament is costly so often a draw is best taken if there is no clear path to a win. 



 


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

HOW TO PARK AND GET TO TAMPINES HUB

To get to Tampines Hub the best way from the Central and West, take the PIE and exit at 3B and drive towards  Tampines Ave 2. You can go via Tampines Ave 7 and join Tampines Ave 4, then turn right at the junction of Ave 5. There is less traffic on this route than if you are to come from the Simei Exit and up Tampines Ave 5. The  EW(2) line station  is also quite close. DT32 is not ready yet. As for parking, there is an open car park just after the Hub. Drive past the Hub, turn round the corner and you'll see the entrance on the Ave 5 curve. This is a coupon parking carpark and open-air (60cts 1/2 hr) and has about 200+ lots. The other place to park is across from the Tampines Hub at Block 858-864 which is open to public 7am to 7pm coupon parking. You can enter this carpark from St 83 Block 864 and navigate towards Block 859. If you go round till you see a green sign on your left, the road leads to the Drop Off and North Plaza Carpark entrance.  Proceed straight in to...

STUDENTS AT THE 75TH NATIONAL SCHOOL'S INDIVIDUALS

The playing Hall at OFS The 75th National School's Individuals 2024 created a record of 1606 registered entries, such that it was necessary to host the event over 2 venues. The Secondary U14-16 sections were held at Senja Cashew CC ( the original venue) while the other Primary Sections and the U-20 were at Overseas Family School.    This year saw record numbers in the U08, U10 and U12 sections with the U12 totalling 465 players, the U10 with 380. The tiebreaks were able to determine the Champion of each section where both the Open and Girls were competing together. For each age-category, 10 Zonal prizes were awarded to the North,South,East,West clusters as well as the non-MOE International Schools.  The U20 was won by Charlene Mak being the first woman to dominate the U20 Open section. Other interesting finishes was the 2nd U20 placing won by Yu Kaiyi from Compassvale Primary who skipped the U12 to play higher. My ex-students Ryan and Daniel Chan with Leonard Loh also pla...

TIME TO SAY GOODBYE

 December draws to a close, ending 2023 and some of my students' journey with me as coach. I had the pleasure to be involved in training Daniel Chan, Er Wen Chen, Timothy Lam, Asher Neo, Wang Yuhan, Toby Herman, Magnus Lim, Eden Harris Yong, Leonard Loh, Emma Lo, Kevin Ng, Damian Tay and lastly Ho Ray Ee, my longest student to stay with me for 6 years. Yes, this may be the largest group of students that left in my years of teaching. Some decided to move on to other trainers (a good sign, as they are seeking other paths to chess improvement) while most I had to end the relationship as coach due to low interest in the game after some months.  As for Ray Ee who joined me  in 2017, I am of course saddened that he is graduating from my fold but yet proud of what he has achieved. His results were consistent, often finishing well (NAG 7th in 2022, 9th in 2019, 4th in NSI 2018). He has also played in the Selangor Open this year , gaining 77 rating points while getting another 31 ...