Chess stars shine again at Olympiad

Cayman’s rapid rise in international chess continues to draw attention, with strong performances at the recent Olympiad in Uzbekistan and major growth across the junior and senior programmes.

Youth Chess Director and national coach Ryan Blackwood says the foundation for Cayman’s success starts long before the team reaches the international stage.

“Before we even jump to the performance at the Olympiad, I can tell you that chess in Cayman has been really growing. Especially within the schools, the government schools. We have a chess and education program that is basically a world class program and has been creating that kind of a blueprint for the rest of the world.

“Some of what we’re doing has been published by FIDE. And even very recently, our president, Shaun Tracey, just published a book, The Movemakers, which details the movement of chess in the Cayman Islands and what we’re doing.”

Blackwood says Cayman’s youngsters are building on the momentum from their first Olympiad appearance two years ago. Cayman’s resilience at the Olympiad comes from embracing the underdog role and competing fearlessly against higher rated nations. There were 208 countries represented at this Olympiad.