Chess Federation

The Malta Chess Federation represents the game of chess on our Islands. It is a member of the International Chess Federation (FIDE), a member of the European Chess Union and locally a member of the Malta Olympic Committee.

The Malta Chess Federation was founded in 1923 by Erin Seraccino Inglott and since then has been responsible for the National Chess Championship and for the promotion and development of the game in Malta. Presently it runs a chess club at 87, St.Vincent Street, Sliema.

 Every two years the MCF takes part in the International Chess Olympiad. This Olympiad has nothing to do with the IOC and is organised and run by the Internationl Federation. Malta has been active in the Chess Olympiad since 1960. In 1980 this prestigious event was held locally at the Mediterranean Conference Centre in Valletta with over eighty countries taking part. The chess prodigy and World Champion for many years, Garry Kasparov, was in the Russian team then together with his number one rival Anatoly Karpov.

This year, 2006, is Olympiad year. The event will be held in Turin, Italy in May and the national team is at the moment busy preparing for the big days. Dane player Torben Sorensen, who resides in Malta has accepted the offer to hold training classes for the top players.

Beside the Olympiad, Maltese players take regular part in international competition mostly thanks to the good contacts that Fide Master and President of the Malta Chess Federation, G.D.Borg, has managed to built along the years, in particular with other Mediterranean countries.

In the local scene, the MCF organises monthly Rapid and Blitz competitions (1st and 3rd Sundays of each month); Regular Open tournaments, the Championship cyle made up of the Preliminaries (February/March); Candidates (July/August) and National Finals (October/November); School tournaments; the Junior Championship (September); the Inter-Schools team competition (Easter Holidays) and other events inlcuding Simulataneous events where a top players plays ten to twelve boards simultaneously.

Beside that there is also a monthly chess e-magazine; chess columns in a local daily journal; a weekly chess class at the Zurrieq Primary School, summer camps for beginners and intermediate players and many other initiatives.

Last Saturday Malta played an on-line match against the Island of Curacao in the Caribbean. Curacao is part of the Netherlands Antilles situated just north of Venezuela. This match was a made up of eight separate boards with the Maltese side made up of H.Camilleri, C.Pace, J.Gauci, D.Cilia Vincenti, M.Cardona,

H. Cassar, O.Said and R.Sammut.

The MCF has a website at: www.chessmalta.com and everyone is invited to have a look-see at this site for the latest in the local and international chess fora.

The Malta Chess Federation is also a member of the Malta Olympic Committee and have worked with the MOC numerous times towards the development of Chess in Malta.

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