Switzerland v England 2020
Thursday, 12th May 2022
Phill Beckett
England were defeated in their recent friendly against Switzerland.
Cross Table (iccf.com)
ICCF Congress Proposal and Results
Thursday, 12th May 2022
Phill Beckett
At the recent ICCF Extraordinary Congress the following motions were debated and passed;
The Russian and Belarusian Federations are now suspended.
Russian and Belarusian players will be able to continue to play games and enter events with isolated player status.
Any Ukrainian games not started by the designated date will go through an automated adjudication process. Whilst this approach has shortcomings, (a) The games cannot be stopped indefinitely and (b) It is a least-worst option in terms of approach.
All the proposals will be reviewed at the Glasgow Congress.
Games involving Russian and Belarusian players should continue as normal. If you do not wish to communicate with your opponent, please request your TD to remove this option.
England Teams for Horst Rittner Team Tournament
Wednesday, 11th May 2022
Phill Beckett
England A
1. Nigel Norman 210619
2. Trevor Brotherton 210823
3. Arnold Marchant 210690
4. Steve Cole 210447
5. John Vivante-Sowter 210953
6. Alan Sutton 211537
England B
1. Peter Ackley 211537
2. Valarie Craven 210605
3. Tony Stewart Anderson 213100
4. Robert Bruce 212273
5. Joe Primrose 211809
6. Graham Carey 212954
New Titles
Wednesday, 27th April 2022
Phill Beckett
A couple of new titles;
IA Title
The EFCC are pleased to congratulate Paul Pope on the recent award of this title. It has involved being TD for over 2000 games.
IM Title
The EFCC are pleased to congratulate George Wharam. At 17 he is certainly the youngest English player to achieve the title and certainly one of the youngest in the world! It is hoped to feature an article on this achievement.
David Anderton, OBE †
Wednesday, 13th April 2022
Steve Williams
David Anderton, OBE †
02-viii-1941 - 01-iv-2022
Following a two year struggle with cancer, EFCC life patron David Anderton has died. Our sincere condolences go to his wife Doreen and his family. Doreen Anderton also has an ICCF rating as does Matthew Anderton. I can find no better way to begin a tribute than with Malcolm Pein: “A giant of English chess, always a source of good advice, fine administrator and accomplished player.”
As far as our own brand of chess goes, he had been an ICCF IM since 2002. His first recorded rating in the ICCF database was in 1991. Within two years he had played 40 games and achieved the roughly-2400 rating with which he ended his participation in the correspondence game in 2019. He had completed 159 games and his highest rating was 2435 in 2005.
He was taught chess by his father at the age of 5 years and his FIDE rating was a little higher than his ICCF one. He played many more competitive games in the OTB form than by correspondence, about 50 a year. He had travelled as far afield to compete as Argentina, Moscow, Israel and Dubai.
As far as administration goes he was not active in the correspondence federations, but was president of the British Chess Federation from 1979 to 1982, and international director from 1982 to 1990. He was non-playing captain of England OTB teams that won three silver medals and three bronze medals in separate Olympiads beginning in 1982. He lived and worked in the Midlands, having been born in Walsall. His career was in the Law, beginning, as was the custom in his day, as an articled clerk and ending as a district judge. On many occasions during his life he gave freely to chess of his legal expertise.
He was an assiduous collector of chess books and had a huge library of them. His personal contacts helped him secure several business sponsors for chess, being in this respect one of the most successful of English chess enthusiasts. Hoping a good place awaits you, David.
Here is a representative CC game of his:
[White "Anderton, D.W."] [Black "Carleton, J.J."] [Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2400"] [BlackElo "2485"] [EventDate "1992"] [ECO "D38"]
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.cxd5 exd5 6.Bg5 h6 7.Bh4 Nc6 8.e3 g5 9.Bg3 Ne4 10.Nd2 Nxc3 11.bxc3 Bxc3 12.Rc1 Ba5 13.h4 Rg8 14.hxg5 hxg5 15.Bb5 Bd7 16.Qf3 Nb4 17.Rh7 Rf8 18.Rc5 Bb6 19.Ne4 Bc6 20.Nf6+ Ke7 21.Qf5 Qc8 22.Nxd5+ 1-0
Steve Williams, life patron, OTB County Master
Acknowledgments for textual material to: Malcolm Pein, Stewart Reuben, John Rhodes and John Upham.
Carlos Flores Gutiérrez Team Tournament SF4
Sunday, 10th April 2022
Phill Beckett
England qualify for final.
In the Carlos Flores Gutiérrez Team Tournament SF4, England were edged out on tie break from top spot but still qualified for the final.
They beat Latvia, Germany, Poland, Canada, Finland 2, Wales 2 and Africa....... narrowly losing to Italy.
Congratulations to the team; Sam Brennan, Barry Shepard, Tim Spanton, Arthur Reed, Graham Oliver and Dave Grobler who all scored well.
New Title
Friday, 8th April 2022
Phill Beckett
John D. Rhodes has now served as a Tournament Director (TD) for over 200 completed games, and therefore has automatically been promoted from a Level 1 TD to a Level 2 TD.
New Title
Monday, 4th April 2022
Phill Beckett
The player Mark Gittens with ICCF ID 213184 has achieved enough norms to receive the title of ICCF Correspondence Chess Expert. Congratulations.
Ian Pheby Celebration Events
Saturday, 2nd April 2022
Phill Beckett
The EFCC has decided to honour SIM Ian M Pheby, IA for his long and dedicated service to the ICCF and England in correspondence chess.
Ian has held several posts within the ICCF since 2006 starting as a tournament director and then as a tournament organiser. Ian became an International Arbiter in 2009. In 2010 he was involved in the administration of Special Leave, and in 2011 he became Direct Entry Commissioner for six years. Ian has been the tournament organiser for the ICCF Aspirers tournaments since their inception in 2013, and he was appointed a member of the Tournament Director Committee as it is now known in 2014.
Ian has been the tournament organiser for the successful Veterans’ World Cups 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 on behalf of the ICCF.
Ian was delighted to be awarded the Bertl von Massow Medal in Silver in 2015, and the Bertl von Massow Medal in Gold in 2021 for his services to the ICCF.
For the English Federation for Correspondence Chess (EFCC) Ian has held a variety of posts since 2003 including Games Archivist, tournament organiser for many events, International Secretary, Treasurer since 2020, and President since 2017.
In 2009 Ian was presented with the English Chess Federation President’s Award for his services to chess.
Ian wishes to thank everyone for agreeing to play in this event, and he wishes everyone good luck and enjoyable games.
You could follow all the events by following the links below.
Cross Table (iccf.com)
Cross Table (iccf.com)
Cross Table (iccf.com)
Cross Table (iccf.com)
New Titles
Tuesday, 29th March 2022
Phill Beckett
Graham Mill-Wilson has now served as a Tournament Director (TD) for over 200 completed games, and therefore has been automatically promoted from a Level 1 to a Level 2 TD.
And the player Terry Hart with ICCF ID 211382 has achieved enough norms to receive the title of ICCF Correspondence Chess Master.
Congratulations to both.
Edward Sowden RIP
Sunday, 20th March 2022
John Rhodes / Stephen Williams
Edward Sowden has died at the age of 85, after a short illness, on Sunday 13th February 2022.
Edward played for Wiltshire in the 1970s and captained Pressed Steel (later Rover), in Swindon, to win the Major League, then known as the Four a Side League.
He also played for Wiltshire Police (he was a justice of the peace) and later the Cornwall county team.
There are archive pictures of him on the Wiltshire Chess Association website: www.wiltshirechess.org.uk
On retirement, Edward continued with his love of chess and turned to postal chess, where he played many times for England, where he won the British Veterans championship twice in 2002, when he was awarded the IM title and enjoyed a rating of 2407, and 2010. He played over 400 rated games, the last of them in 2013.
Here is one of his wins: https://www.iccf.com/game?id=14652
[Event "AUS-ENG 2005"]
[Site "ICCF"]
[Date "2005.12.01"]
[White "Sowden, Edward C"]
[Black "Morris, Greg"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2297"]
[BlackElo "2166"]
[WhiteTeam "England"]
[BlackTeam "Australia"]
1. b4 e5 2. Bb2 f6 3. a3 d5 4. e3 Be6 5. Nf3 Bd6 6. d3 c6 7. c4 Ne7 8. Nc3
O-O 9. Be2 Qe8 10. O-O Nd7 11. Nd2 Qg6 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Nce4 Bc7 14. Nb3
f5 15. Nec5 Nxc5 16. Nxc5 Bc8 17. Rc1 b6 18. Na4 Bb7 19. Qc2 Rad8 20. Bf3
Qd6 21. Be2 Rf7 22. Rfd1 Ba6 23. Qb3 e4 24. g3 Qg6 25. Nc3 f4 26. Nxd5
Rxd5 27. exf4 Bxd3 28. Bxd3 exd3 29. Rc3 Bxf4 30. Rcxd3 Rxd3 31. Rxd3 Bg5
32. Rf3 Qh5 33. Rf5 Qg6 34. Re5 Kf8 35. Qd1 Re7 36. Qf3+ Kg8 37. Rf5 h6
38. Rf8+ Kh7 39. Kg2 Qc2 40. Bd4 Qe4 41. Qxe4+ Rxe4 42. Bc3 Kg6 43. Ra8
Re7 44. Rc8 Re6 45. Rc7 Bf6 46. Bxf6 Kxf6 47. Rxa7 g6 48. Kf3 h5 49. a4 c5
50. bxc5 bxc5 51. a5 c4 52. Rc7 Ra6 53. Rc5 Ke6 54. Ke4 Kd6 55. Rg5 Kc7
56. Kd4 Rc6 57. Kc3 Kb7 58. h4 1-0
Stephen Williams with acknowledgments for material from Simon Rogers, Kevin Thurlow and Wiltshire Chess Association.
ICCF - Executive Board Meeting - Part 1
Sunday, 6th March 2022
Phill Beckett
The following was issued by the EB of ICCF (You may well have a copy but better safe than sorry).
06 March 2022: Executive Board Meeting, Results, and Actions - Part 1
International Correspondence Chess Federation
ICCF – Executive Board Meeting
March 5, 2022
Dear ICCF Delegates, Officials, and Friends,
The Executive Board (EB) and Management Committee (MC) members met today for more than 4-hours to discuss various issues. Two important decisions are outlined below and additional decisions with further details will be published within the next 24-hours.
Extraordinary Meeting
1. Following Article 31 of the ICCF Statutes, the Executive Board, by unanimous consent, voted to convene an extraordinary meeting of Congress (EC).
a. The location will be virtual (online).
b. The purpose of the EB and agenda will be to address numerous proposals resulting from the armed conflict of Russia and Belarus against Ukraine.
A detailed timeline to this EC is being constructed now, and I hope to be available to all delegates and officials soon; again, the plan is within 24-48 hours.
Donation
2. The ICCF EB has decided to take the following immediate actions:
a. A donation of 2.000 Euros will be donated on behalf of ICCF immediately to an international organisation that provides relief and support to the Ukrainian citizens.
b. Approval of a “Peace Tournament,” as offered by the German Federation, BdF. Full details and a tournament announcement will be released shortly. All entry fees from this tournament have also been pledged to support Ukrainian citizens. This will provide an opportunity for any or all ICCF players to compete in a chess tournament with all proceeds to support the Ukrainian citizens.
Further Actions
3. Additional actions decided will be released within the next 24 hours.
With kindest regards and good wishes,
Amici Sumus,
Eric Ruch | Michael Millstone |
ICCF President | ICCF General Secretary |
English Players in EU Candidates Events
Wednesday, 3rd March 2022
Phill Beckett
English players are playing in the EU Candidates events as follows;
Phil Eastlake - Cross Table (iccf.com)
Gerard Le-Marechal - Cross Table (iccf.com)
John Pugh - Cross Table (iccf.com)
Brian Thompson - Cross Table (iccf.com)
EFCC Name and Logos copied on Chess.com
Thursday, 24th February 2022
John Rhodes
It has come to our notice that a member of Chess.com has used our name and logos to pretend that they are the English Federation for Correspondence Chess. Please be aware that this has nothing to do with ourselves and we do not have any connection with this member on Chess.com. The EFCC is not responsible for anything that website may do or organise. Copying names and logos is not allowed on Chess.com and they have been reported to the Chess.com support team.
New Title
Sunday, 20th January 2022
Phill Beckett
Colin Hipwell has been awarded the title of IA (International Arbiter). Congratulations.
AGENDA for Annual General Meeting (AGM) to be held on Saturday 12th March, 2022.
Wednesday, 16th February 2022
John Rhodes
AGENDA for Annual General Meeting (AGM) to be held on Saturday 12th March, 2022.
1. Apologies for absence
2. Minutes of the Last Meeting (March 2021)
3. Matters Arising
4. General Secretary’s Report
5. International Secretary’s Report
6. Treasurer’s Report
7. Election of Officers
8. Any Other Business
John Rhodes 16/02/2022
If any EFCC Patrons have any questions or comments to raise at our AGM or EC Meetings, please email contact@efcchess.org.uk.
Annual General Meeting and Executive Committee Meeting
Wednesday, 16th February 2022
John Rhodes
Annual General Meeting and Executive Committee Meeting
The Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Executive Committee Meeting (EC) of the English Federation for Correspondence Chess will be held in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, on Saturday 12th March 2022.
If any EFCC Patrons have any questions or comments to raise at our AGM or EC Meetings, please email contact@efcchess.org.uk.
John Rhodes, General Secretary
EFCC Correspondent Magazine - Issue 2
Pinned - Tuesday, 15th February 2022
Mickey Blake
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Mickey Blake and The EFCC Executive Committee are delighted to announce the publication of the 'EFCC Correspondent - Issue 2'.
The 2nd edition of this very high quality magazine can be viewed and/or downloaded here -
Correspondent_002.pdf (21mb)
An updated Issue 1 can be viewed and/or downloaded here -
Correspondent_001.pdf (15mb)
Want future issues delivered straight to your Inbox ? Contact Mickey Blake by Email here to place yourself on the mailing list.
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England v France Friendly 2022
Monday, 7th February 2022
Phill Beckett
England v France...
The Rematch is beginning soon!
Following our narrow defeat our French friends accepted the challenge and both sides strengthened their teams.
Cross Table (iccf.com)
Congratulations to David Elwood
Saturday, 5th February 2022
Phill Beckett
David Elwood has now served as a Tournament Director (TD) for over 200 completed games, and therefore has automatically been promoted from a Level 1 TD to a Level 2 TD.
Final Positions in European Chess 960 Final
Sunday, 30th January 2022
Phill Beckett
England finished in last place in the final.
Cross Table (iccf.com)
Despite this disappointment we still managed a few achievements.
We beat both Germany and Wales.
On top board Peter Catt scored three draws against the two GMs.
On second board Stan Grayland beat the Welsh player 1/5-.5 which clinched the match against Wales.
On third board Keith Kitson scored 1 win and 9 draws.
On fourth board Kevin Thurlow scored 2 wins and 9 draws.
Narrow Defeat Against France
Monday, 24th January 2022
Phill Beckett
We were edged out by our friends from France 41 to 39.
Cross Table (iccf.com)
Defeat Against New Zealand
Monday, 24th January 2022
Phill Beckett
We were defeated by our friends from New Zealand in a small match.
Cross Table (iccf.com)
Discussions are ongoing about a rematch.
ICCF Swiss System - KO Tournament
Sunday, 23rd January 2022
Phill Beckett
International Correspondence Chess Federation
announces the first
ICCF Swiss System - KO Tournament
sponsored by Opening Master
The tournament will be played by server and organized in three or four stages.
Format:
Round 1: Groups of 11 (if necessary 13) players. All groups will have an approximately equal average rating. All players who score more than 50% of the possible points will promote to the next round.
Round 2 – Round 4: After each round, a ranking list of all qualified players (> 50% score in the current round) will be created according to the following criteria:
1. The highest percentage points
2. The highest percentage wins
3. The highest percentage wins with black
4. The lowest rating
The first 11 (13) players on the list form group 1 for the next round, the next 11 (13) group 2, and so forth. The accumulated points achieved in the previous rounds will be used to calculate a player's place in the list (but the > 50% in the current round is still a requirement for promotion).
The tournament will be restricted to a maximum of 4 rounds. The tournament winner will be the player with the highest accumulated score (percent) across all 4 rounds. If less than 22 Players remain for the 4th round, the tournament winner will be determined according to the scores after round 3.
Reflection Time:
Triple Block each round: Duration: 500 days; Initial Clock: 50 days; Initial Bank: 50 days; Increment: 3 days, without guaranteed time.
Entry Fee:
9,36 € Multiple entries are not possible!
Players may enter in the usual way through the ICCF Server Entry System via https://www.iccf.com/EventsAnnouncements.aspx
Norms:
From round 2 onwards, title norms will be available where appropriate.
Registration deadline: 10/3/2022
Start date: 31/03/2022
Prizes:
In the first round, the winner of each group (after tie-break if necessary and if here also equal the player with the lowest rating) will receive a 1-year license for Opening Master's GOLEM database (30 million games and quarterly updates current market price 99 Euro).
After the last round, the best 3 players in the final standings will receive a medal and a certificate.
Member Federations are asked to give the tournament wide publicity to all their players.
Please contact TO Mike Green () if you have any questions.
Frank Geider | Jörg Kracht | Mike Green |
World Tournament Director | NTTC | Tournament Organizer |
England Edge Home in USA Match
Wednesday, 19th January 2022
Phill Beckett
England have taken a decisive lead in the 105 board match against our friends from the USA.
A draw on board 34 - https://www.iccf.com/game?id=1169138
took us to 105.5 points for the match - https://www.iccf.com/event?id=86774
Well done team!
New Title
Tuesday, 18th January 2022
Phill Beckett
The player Alan Barker with ICCF ID 211143 has achieved enough norms to receive the title of ICCF Correspondence Chess Expert. Congratulations.
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP 2022 - ANNOUNCEMENT OF CANDIDATES TOURNAMENT
Sunday, 16th January 2022
Phill Beckett
International Correspondence Chess Federation
Zone 1 – Europe
https://www.iccf-europa.eu/
Andrey Pavlikov
Zonal Director
Email:
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP 2022 ANNOUNCEMENT OF CANDIDATES TOURNAMENT
16th January 2022
Dear chessfriends,
Following the decision taken in Crakow during the ICCF Congress 2013, the Candidates‘ Tournament of the European Championship 2022 will start on 15th March 2022 and be played on the ICCF Server.
The top two players from each Candidates section (tiebreaks will be used if required) will qualify for the Final.
All sections will normally consist of 13 players but, conditional upon the number of entries received, the Tournament Organiser shall have the authority to change the number of players in all sections to 11, 15 or 17.
If the number of the entries do not permit the formation of all sections of 13 (or 11, 15, 17) players, the entries of those players who have submitted entries under condition (d) below will, in ascending order from the lowest, be deferred to the next Candidates event.
Also conditional upon the number of entries, multiple entries submitted by those players holding more than one qualification may have only one entry accepted with other qualifications deferred to the next Candidates event.
The following players have the right to participate in the European Championship Candidates :
(a) players rated 2500 or over at the time of entry
(b) holders of the Grandmaster Title
(c) holders of the Senior International Master Title with a rating over 2400 at the time of entry
(d) holders of the International Master Title with a rating over 2450 at the time of entry
(f) those players who finished 1st or 2nd in a European Championship Semi-Final
(g) participants of previous or running Finals who have scored at least 45% of the possible points, if they have not earned a higher qualification and have not already used this qualification right
(h) the participants of previous or running Candidates who have scored at least 55% of the possible points, if they have not earned a higher qualification and have not already used this qualification right.
The ICCF European Championship is reserved only to those players from European countries.
Players may enter in the usual way through their National Federations or, where eligible, via the ICCF Direct Entry system. Players from those countries not members of ICCF may submit entries only via the ICCF Direct Entry system.
Entries should be reached by Tournament Organizer, Andrey Pavlikov, not later than 1 March 2022.
It is also mandatory that the qualification right to participate in the event should be specified for each entry!
Sad News
Tuesday, 4th January 2022
Phill Beckett
I am saddened to hear of the passing of Tony Morley. Tony never recovered from a stroke and passed away on 14th October. Condolences have been passed onto his family.
New Title
Tuesday, 21st December 2021
Phill Beckett
Terry Hart (ICCF ID 211382) has achieved enough norms to receive the title of ICCF Correspondence Chess Expert. Congratulations.
Seasonal Greetings!
Thursday, 16th December 2021
Ian Pheby
2021 has sadly been yet another difficult year for everyone. As we approach the festive season I would like to extend my warmest wishes to all of England’s players and their families for a Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Peaceful New Year. I hope that 2022 will prove to be a better year for everyone. Stay safe!
I also hope that you enjoy success in your games in 2022 and beyond.
Ian M Pheby, EFCC President
GM Norm for Nigel Robson
Sunday, 5th December 2021
Phill Beckett
In the 70th ICCF Jubilee World Champions (Cross Table at iccf.com)
Nigel achieved a GM norm (he is already a GM, but they are difficult to achieve).
Well done in an incredibly strong event!
New IM Title
Saturday, 4th December 2021
Phill Beckett
Congratulations to Peter Rice who has achieved the IM title. The title medal and certificate will be awarded at the next ICCF Congress, hopefully in Glasgow next year.
GM Jonathan Penrose OBE †
Friday, 3rd December 2021
Ian Pheby
It is with great sadness that the EFCC reports the death of GM Jonathan Penrose OBE at the age of 88.
His highest ICCF rating was 2724 in 1993. He finished in third place in the ICCF World Championship 13 Final.
He represented England with great success in the ICCF Olympiads. He scored 6 out of 9 on board 1 for England in the final of ICCF Olympiad 10 which enabled England to finish in second place, narrowly behind the Soviet Union. That is England’s best performance in the ICCF Olympiad to date.
Jonathan was also an excellent ‘over the board’ player having won the British Championship on ten occasions. He was made an OBE in 1971 for his services to chess.
Our sincere condolences to his family and friends.
Ian M Pheby
EFCC President
New Titles
Wednesday, 24th November 2021
Phill Beckett
Congratulations to Dennis Broadway CCE and Arthur Reed CCM.
Results of the Peggy Clarke Memorial
Sunday, 21st November 2021
Phill Beckett
The Peggy Clarke Memorial has finished with a win for Antony Copsey.
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=85287
The following Norms were achieved;
CCE norm achieved by: Richard D Perrin, Marcin Kołodziejski & Mark J. Smith
CCM norm achieved by: Antony Copsey
Richard Webster with his CCE and CCM Medals and Certificate
Tuesday, 16th November 2021
Phill Beckett
Richard and I are both members of Worksop Chess Club and I took the opportunity to deliver his medals in person.
Worksop also boasts Oliver Graham and Mick Clarke who are regular ICCF players.
England Take the Lead in World Team Cup Knockout v Croatia
Saturday, 13th November 2021
Phill Beckett
Tim Spanton wins to give us the lead in a tight match.
This is the first positive result after 21 games.
Follow the link to see Tim's game - https://www.iccf.com/game?id=1266310
Match situation - https://www.iccf.com/event?id=94128
Nicholson Memorial Final Results
Friday, 12th November 2021
Phill Beckett
The Nicholson Memorial is now finished.
Kevin Plant emerged as the winner.
There were several norms achieved as follows;
CCE norm achieved by: Cole, Steve; Lambert, Michael H.; Munoz, Lazaro; Buchan, Allan
CCM norm achieved by: Plant, Kevin D.; Lambert, Michael H.
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=86999
Friendly v Wales
Friday, 12th November 2021
Phill Beckett
We have a new friendly against our friends from Wales.
Looking at the grades the teams look well matched and it should be a close encounter.
Follow the progress of the match with the normal delay of five moves.
The match is a nice mix with lots of very experienced players on both sides and a number of new players making their debuts!
Good luck to both sides
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=95781
3rd English Veterans' Correspondence Chess Championship
Sunday, 7th November 2021
Stephen Williams
The English Federation For Correspondence Chess (EFCC) is pleased to announce the third EVCCC will commence on 5th March 2022. It is open only to those players who:
- are aged 60 years or over on the date the tournament starts
- and are registered or able (in the case of new players) to be registered to play under the England flag in the ICCF.
The full Rules, tournament structure, eligibility, prizes etc. can be seen under "English Veterans CC Championship (EVCCC)" on the EFCC website here : https://www.efcchess.org.uk/bvccc.html
Entries should be received by 1st February 2022 with a fee of £10.00 by cheque or online at the EFCC website. Entries may be made by PayPal through this website quoting “3rd EVCCC”. Alternatively, cheques made payable to “EFCC” should be sent to Dr Steve Williams, 3a Priory Court, Nettleton, CHIPPENHAM, Wiltshire SN14 7NY. Pairings will be issued as soon as possible after that date.
The adjudication date shall be 31st December of the 2nd year of play, which allows approximately 21½ months of playing time.
Tournament Organiser: Stephen Williams
British Championship 2019/2021
Wednesday, 27th October 2021
Phill Beckett
Following a highly competitive competition ;
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=81192
The winner is Gerard Le-Marechal by the narrowest of margins on S-B tie break after three players finished on 8.5 pts and had three wins each.
New Title
Tuesday, 12th October 2021
Phill Beckett
The player Gerard Le-Marechal with ICCF ID 212933 has achieved enough norms to receive the title of ICCF International Master. Congratulations.
New Titles
Thursday, 7th October 2021
Phill Beckett
Barry S. Sheppard with ICCF ID 211434 has achieved enough norms to receive the title of ICCF Correspondence Chess Master and the title ICCF Correspondence Chess Expert awarded to player Richard Tillett with ICCF ID 212494 has now been confirmed by the ICCF Qualifications Commissioner.
Congratulations to both.
Richardson Memorial
Wednesday, 29th September 2021
Phill Beckett
Congratulations to our president Ian Pheby who won the Richardson Memorial by a narrow margin.
The event saw 16 year old George Wharam achieve his first IM norm.
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=83519
Executive Committee Meeting
Sunday, 19th September 2021
John Rhodes
Our next Executive Committee Meeting will be held by email on Saturday 16th October, 2021.
If any EFCC Members have anything that they would like discussed at our meeting, please email me (Email John here) by 30th September 2021 at the latest.
John Rhodes, General Secretary
Carlos Flores Gutiérrez Team Tournament SF2
Wednesday, 15th September 2021
Phill Beckett
England 2 finished in equal fifth place with a +1 score. Unfortunately they did not qualify for the final.
They defeated Spain 1 and Brazil and drew with Russia, Finland and Cuba.
Their narrow defeats foiled their chance of further progress.
Individual Results;
1. Alistair Cowan 0+ 8= 0-
2. Kevin Plant 0+ 8= 0-
3. Arnold Marchant 1+ 7= 0-
4. John Vivante-Sowter 1+ 4= 3-
5. Colin Cheek 2+ 6= 0-
6. Alan Sutton 1+ 6= 1-
All the team performed solidly.
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=87051
Friendly Match Against Norway
Saturday, 11th September 2021
Phill Beckett
We have just started a 28 board match against Norway.
A close match is envisaged and you can follow the progress (delayed by 5 moves) here; https://www.iccf.com/event?id=95044
Sixteen Year Old On Top Board For England Team
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George Wharam has been selected to play on top board for England in the International friendly against Norway, he faces off against GM Raymond Boger who is a vastly experienced player with multiple first places in International events.
George passed 2400 at the beginning of this year and has recently achieved his first IM norm (the next one and the title is likely to follow in the near future)
Like many strong chess players George has a strong academic profile - eleven 9's at GCSE, and he took his A level maths early dropping just one mark across all the exam papers. His other A levels that he will sit this year are Further Maths, Economics and Biology and he is in the process of applying to Oxford to read Mathematics. He has won numerous Gold medals in competitions such as the UK Maths Challenge and the Biology Olympiad, often whilst several years young, and he is always setting himself new challenges and goals.
It is hoped to have a detailed interview with George in the magazine in the near future.
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
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EFCC Correspondent Magazine (Summer 2021 Edition)
Pinned - Friday, 30th July 2021
Mickey Blake
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The EFCC Executive Committee are delighted to announce the publication of the 'EFCC Correspondent', a new quarterly magazine from editor Mickey Blake.
The inaugural edition of this very high quality magazine can be viewed and/or downloaded here;
Hi-Res Edition (14.6mb) or Lo-Res Edition (3.8mb)
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North Sea Event
Wednesday, 8th September 2021
Phill Beckett
North Sea Event
Good luck to our team in the North Sea Event.
Les Ellis, Ken Owen, James Wilkinson, Arnold Marchant, Stephen Woodhouse and Stephen Rithen carry the flag for England.
This is an unusual event as there are grade limits for each board, so all the games should be very close.
Follow the progress of our team here ; https://www.iccf.com/event?id=94750
Richard Hall in World Candidates Event
Sunday, 29th August 2021
Phill Beckett
Richard Hall in World Candidates Event
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=94959
The winner and runner up qualify for the next World Championship Final !
This is a high quality catergory 11 event.
We wish Richard every success.
New Title
Sunday, 29th August 2021
Phill Beckett
New Title
The player Nigel Norman with ICCF ID 210619 has achieved enough norms to receive the title of ICCF Correspondence Chess Master.
Congratulations.
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
Award for EFCC President
Sunday, 22nd August 2021
Phill Beckett
Award for EFCC President
President Ian Pheby has received recognition for his years of dedicated service to the ICCF with the award of the Gold Bertl Von Massow medal.
A truly well deserved award.
New Title
Sunday, 8th August 2021
Phill Beckett
New Title
The player Anthony Steel with ICCF ID 212266 has achieved enough norms to receive the title of ICCF Correspondence Chess Expert.
Congratulations.
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
British Correspondence Chess Championship 2021-2023 Entries Update
Saturday, 31st July 2021
Phill Beckett
British Correspondence Chess Championship 2021-2023 Entries Update
The British Correspondence Chess Championship (BCCC) is the premier tournament on the British CC calendar. Running continuously since 1921 and open to all British players, the BCCC has carried ICCF title norms since 2016.
The BCCC caters for players of all levels and consists of a Championship, one or more candidate’s section and a number of reserves sections.
The BCCC is organized jointly by the English Federation for Correspondence Chess (EFCC), the Scottish Correspondence Chess Association (ScoCCA) and the Welsh Correspondence Chess Federation (WCCF).
There is a first prize of £100 and a second prize of £50.
Entries close on August 31 and play is due to commence in September 2021. Entries can be made directly to Tournament Organizer Russell Sherwood or via the National Federation. Please note that these are the only entry routes for this event.
The BCCC is a highly competitive event, and we are unable to confirm a player's final allocation at the time of entry.
Welsh https://welshccf.org.uk/content/18
For more details please contact your National Federation or Russell Sherwood
Entries and the entry fee of £12 should be received by Russell Sherwood, no later than 31st August 2021. If you have a qualification to a specific division, please state this at the time of entry.
Current Entries (as at 24/7/2021)
England: Coleman, Peter L. ,Ellis, Les ,Maguire, Gary ,Asquith, Jerry E. C. ,Brookes, John G. ,Herman, Tom ,Webster, Richard ,Bailey, Matthew W. ,Kitson, Keith ,Rawlings, Alan J. C. ,Roberts, Anthony Arthur ,Girling, Clive F. ,Grobler, David J. ,Reed, Arthur F. ,Cowan, Alastair ,Ward, Richard ,Marchant, Arnold ,Sutton, Alan B. ,Cole, Steve ,Ackley, Peter J. E. ,Bruce, Robert ,Wood, Ben A. ,Gosling, Brian G. E. ,Raby, Eugene ,Beckett, Phillip J. ,Wright, Ashley ,Mahony, Jon D. ,Ruffle, Alan ,Kent, Chris
Scotland: Buchan, Allan, Dunn John
Wales: Bishop, William ,Sherwood, Russell ,Sherwood, Helen ,Sherwood, Alexander ,Jones, Rhys ,Wakeham, Marc R. ,Jones, Gareth ,Gunn, Tom ,Robinson, Josh
Current Minimum Qualifications (as at 24/7/2021)
Championship |
Name | Valid to |
Le-Marechal, Gerard | 2021 |
Candidates |
Name | Valid to |
Cole, Steve | 2022 |
Lumley, Bill F. | 2021 |
Asquith, Jerry E. C. | 2021 |
Lockwood, Austin | 2021 |
Pope, Paul | 2022 |
Maguire, Gary | 2021 |
Marks, Robert | 2021 |
Rallabandi, Praveen Kumar | 2021 |
Wharam, George | 2021 |
Lockett, John | 2022 |
Bailey, Matthew W. | 2022 |
Beecham, C. Richard | 2021 |
Wakeham, Marc R. | 2022 |
Bishop, William | 2021 |
Jones, Ian | 2021 |
Yeo, Gareth | 2021 |
Jones, Gareth | 2022 |
Suffield, Mel | 2021 |
Herman, Tom | 2021 |
Shaw, John S. | 2021 |
It is worth noting that many players with Candidates Qualification will probably qualify to the Championship on rating.
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
First World Team Cup 1st Round
Saturday, 31st July 2021
Phill Beckett
First World Team Cup 1st Round
We have 28 accepted entries for the World Team cup from a mix of National Federations, Zonal Unattached and Mixed Federation Teams.
For the 1st round we have 12 matches – a mix of 3 Team and 2 Team events. This will lead to 12 Qualifying Teams (1 per group) in four matches of 3 teams in the 2nd round, 2 matches of two teams in the 3rd round and a Final of two teams.
Draw
Group 1: Benelux, Brazil, and Philippines
Group 2: Ukraine, Poland and Portugal
Group 3: Spain, Bulgaria and Anzacplus2
Group 4: Romania, Czech Republic and World Zone
Group 5: USA and Mexico
Group 6: Cuba and Indonesia
Group 7: Russia and Argentina
Group 8: Germany and Wales
Group 9: India and Italy
Group 10: England and Croatia
Group 11: France and Switzerland
Group 12: Finland and Peru
A few statistics:
Mean Rating: 2296, Median Rating 2350
13 ICCF GM
2 FIDE GM
59 ICCF SIM
107 ICCF IM
182 CCM/4 LGM
59 CCE
16 players rated over 2500
Teams Averages range from over 2419 down to 2056 and fall roughly into three rating bands.
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
First World Team Cup Round 1
Saturday, 31st July 2021
Phill Beckett
First World Team Cup Round 1
We have been drawn against Croatia in the First round of this new event. The players look evenly mathced apart from the last few boards where we hold the edge in grading.
Good luck to our team.
Follow the progress by following the link below;
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=94128
Games can be viewed live with a delay of 10 moves.
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
EFCC Correspondent Magazine (Summer 2021 Edition)
Friday, 30th July 2021
Mickey Blake
'EFCC Correspondent' Magazine (Summer 2021 Edition)
The EFCC Executive Committee are delighted to announce the publication of the 'EFCC Correspondent', a new quarterly magazine from editor Mickey Blake.
The inaugural edition of this very high quality magazine can be viewed and/or downloaded here; Hi-Res Edition (14.6mb) or Lo-Res Edition (3.8mb)
The EFCC Executive Committee
Brian Jones Celebration
Wednesday, 14th July 2021
Phill Beckett
Brian Jones Celebration
This event was organised by the Yorkshire Chess Association as a celebration of Brian Jones' involvement in Yorkshire chess both over the board and by webserver.
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=85329
It was won in impressive style by Yorkshire's very own Oliver Graham who won by two clear points.
We were pleased to see Brian's children Nancy Lane and Lee Jones taking part.
ps. Brian is still alive and kicking!
Match v BeNeLux countries
Monday, 12th July 2021
Phill Beckett
Match v BeNeLux countries
New 101 board match against the BeNeLux Countries.
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=93922
Follow the progress of this large match against our chess friends from Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.
We are slightly lower rated than our opponents, but we have shown that we can perform better than our ratings!
Follow the progress of the team.....
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
6th British WS Tournament - Division 3
Monday, 12th July 2021
Phill Beckett
6th British WS Tournament - Division 3
This event has just finished with lots of hard fought games featuring many English players!
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=85263
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
Chess 960 Match
Monday, 12th July 2021
Phill Beckett
Chess 960 Match
We suffered a heavy defeat in the Chess 960 training match against Wales.
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=87609
We were outgraded all the way down, but there were some close encounters!
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
Ross Brennan RIP
Thursday, 8th July 2021
John Rhodes
Ross Brennan RIP
We report the very sad news that Ross Brennan died on Tuesday 29th June 2021. Ross played correspondence and over-the-board chess for Hertfordshire and Welwyn Garden City Chess Club, where he was Chairman, for many years. Ross’s untimely death has been a great shock to everyone who knew him. Condolences are being sent to his family.
John Rhodes, General Secretary
10th Veterans World Cup Final
Thursday, 8th July 2021
Phill Beckett
10th Veterans World Cup Final
We wish our President (and indeed Treasurer ) Ian Pheby every success in the 10th Veterans World Cup Final.
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=93731
Good luck Ian!
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
New Title
Wednesday, 7th July 2021
Phill Beckett
New Title
The player Oliver Graham with ICCF ID 211824 has achieved enough norms to receive the title of ICCF Correspondence Chess Master. Congratulations.
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
Semi Final of the European Team Championship
Monday, 6th July 2021
Phill Beckett
Semi Final of the European Team Championship
Follow the progress of the England Team.
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=93768
We wish them every success as we need to finish in the first three to qualify for the final.
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
Nol van't Riet Team Tournament
Sunday, 27th June 2021
Phill Beckett
Nol van't Riet Team Tournament
The pairings for the Nol van't Riet Team Tournament (under 2300) are out. England have teams in sections 1 and 3.
You can follow the progress of the teams and see the completed games when 10 are finished.
Semi Final 1 https://www.iccf.com/event?id=93623
Semi Final 3 https://www.iccf.com/event?id=93625
Best of luck to both teams.
Phill Beckett, International Secretary
The British Correspondence Chess Championship (BCCC)
Saturday, 26th June 2021
Phill Beckett
The British Correspondence Chess Championship (BCCC)
The British Correspondence Chess Championship (BCCC) is the premier tournament on the British CC calendar. Running continuously since 1921 and open to all British players, the BCCC has carried ICCF title norms since 2016.
The BCCC caters for players of all levels and consists of a Championship, one or more candidate’s section and a number of reserves sections.
The BCCC is organised jointly by the English Federation for Correspondence Chess (EFCC), the Scottish Correspondence Chess Association (ScoCCA) and the Welsh Correspondence Chess Federation (WCCF).
Further details of the tournament, including the full rules and a list of previous winners, are available on the EFCC website:
https://www.efcchess.org.uk/bcccRules.html
Last season’s crosstables can be viewed here:
There is a first prize of £100 and a second prize of £50.
Entries close on August 31 and play is due to commence in September 2021. Entries can be made directly to Tournament Organiser, Russell Sherwood or via the National Federation. Please note that these are the only entry routes for this event.
The BCCC is a highly competitive event and we are unable to confirm a player's final allocation at the time of entry. If you have a qualification for a particular section it is important that you state it with your entry.
Welsh -
https://welshccf.org.uk/content/18
For more details please contact your National Federation or Russell Sherwood.
Entries and the entry fee of £12 should be received by Russell Sherwood no later than 31st August 2021. If you have a qualification to a specific division please state this at the time of entry.
Sent by Gordon Anderson (Scotland), Phill Beckett (England) and Russell Sherwood (Wales)
EFCC Yearbook for 2021
Friday, 25th June 2021
Keith Kitson
EFCC Yearbook for 2021
The EFCC Executive Committee are pleased to announce the EFCC Yearbook for 2021.
If anyone believes any correction is required to the yearbook contents then please contact Keith Kitson, EFCC Yearbook editor. (Email Keith here) To read the online version click here.
For a downloadable / printable version click here.
The EFCC Executive Committee
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