Football, basketball, volleyball: all sporting activities you CAN’T do online; games that require teamwork are a no for now. So what about single-player activities – the so-called ‘individual sports’, where players are pitted against each other or the clock? Well, thanks to equipment and location requirements, tennis, darts, and snooker are also out – along with golf, ski-ing, sailing, gymnastics, wrestling, and… well, you get it. But there is one game you can play from home – an age-old contest of strategy and intelligence, which requires nothing more than a computer and a willing opponent. Chess…
Here in Cyprus, we have more than our fair share of chess players, according to chess trainer Mark Bryan. Based in Nicosia, he’s the island’s FIDE Ratings Officer (which means he’s responsible for giving players their rating according to the Fédération Internationale des Échecs, chess’ governing body), and founder of the Let’s Learn Together Cyprus Chess Academy. He’s also the organiser of the Mouflon Open Chess Tour 2020: a series of tournaments which are now, thanks to the coronavirus measures, taking place totally online.
Consisting of various tournaments played throughout the year, the Mouflon Open Chess Tour series launched in 2019 with a tournament in Deryneia.
But while there are a number of ‘tours’ (which consist of various tournaments) held in Cyprus each year, the Mouflon iteration is a little different – and not just because it’s the only major local tour to switch to virtual play while isolation measures remain.
“Most chess tournaments sort players into age categories,” he says. “And that means we were consistently seeing, for example, the top 11-year-old chess player winning the under-12 category without any opposition. What we do at the Mouflon,” he adds, “is a little different. We play all the younger participants against each other, and all the adults together. So you might end up with a 10-year-old playing an 18-year-old, and that’s really good for both.
“I started the Mouflon Open Chess Tour,” he continues, “because I wanted to see the level of chess in Cyprus increase, especially amongst younger players. And there’s no better way to improve your chess game than by playing against better players. We have some young players who are doing very well – some even compete in the European and World Youth Championships!”
Mark Bryan at the 2019 tournament
This year’s tour will begin with the Mouflon Online Open Chess Tournament, played on Saturday afternoons and culminating in a final round on June 20. Playing from home on their own boards, and inputting each move into a dedicated computer programme, each participant must first be registered with FIDE (a simple process, Mark acknowledges).
“We currently have close on 900 FIDE registered players in Cyprus,” he adds. “That’s a pretty good number for such a small country, but then chess is quite big on the island. Since 2016, when our top-rated player, Andreas Kelires, left to play for Greece, we haven’t had any Grandmasters” – the highest ranking in chess – “but we do have some excellent local players, and we’re looking forward to some great gameplay!”
Styled on the Swiss system of pairing in which players are first split into two groups, randomly numbered, and play their opposite in the first round, the upcoming tournament will progress with players matched up according to their total point score.
“We don’t usually play knockout games in chess,” Mark explains. “And in the Mouflon Open Chess Tournament, we’ll have all players taking on seven opponents throughout the tournament, regardless of whether they win or lose each match. The player with the highest total number of points,” he clarifies, “will then be declared the winner in on June 20.”
Each player receives 45 minutes on the clock at the start, Mark explains. “But that’s not the length of the game – most games last approximately two hours. Each time you make a move, you gain another 15 seconds on the clock – so a game of 60 moves can easily last between an hour or two, even when you’re playing online!”
All games will be viewable by the public, who can tune in and watch the cerebral excitements. “It’s a free chess server, and allows all games to be played online,” says Mark. “Of course this does present a few challenges: when you’re not in the same room, sitting at the same board, there is the potential for players to get help. But we have several fail safes built in,” he notes.
“Firstly, the computer server we use has computer algorithms that can detect unplayable moves – there are certain moves which are completely unplayable by humans,” he adds, “and the computer can detect that. Secondly, the computer also prevents illegal moves – anything that’s not within the rules of chess. Thirdly, all players must be available on Zoom at all times, so the referees can tune in and watch their physical play to check there’s no cheating.
“And lastly,” he acknowledges, “the players are generally very trustworthy – we’ve never had a problem with cheating before, and I don’t foresee it happening now just because we’re online. There’s no prize money, so there’s no monetary value to winning – you’re just playing for the love of the game. This is chess, and we play to better ourselves and our game, not necessarily to win!”
For more information and registration, visit https://mouflonchess.com/ or call Mark Bryan on 99 250797
