'She Plays To Win' Online Chess Competition
On Wednesday 28th June, six students from Kendrick took part in an online all-girls interschool chess competition on Lichess, called ‘She Plays To Win’. The purpose of this tournament was to make players feel more comfortable in a competitive environment since it was played with timers and leader boards.
The game was based on points: 2 for a win, 1 for a draw, and 0 for a loss. Kendrick did extremely well, securing 3rd place out of 9 schools that participated. Each of these games were played for 5 minutes, also known as a blitz game in more technical terms. The whole tournament was around 1 hour long.
As Lichess displays the games in progress, the tournament was very interesting to watch as well as play. As a spectator, you could almost tell what was running through the players minds, and it was fun to try and predict the players’ next move. All our opponents were also super nice and showed an incredible amount of sportsmanship which made the games more enjoyable. The teachers were very kind and were proud of us for giving it a go.
All in all, this competition was an awesome opportunity and such a fun experience, especially if you like chess. It was a great opportunity for the players to work together and have fun while playing chess. I am sure there may be more opportunities like this in the future so don’t feel shy and come along to join the fun. It does not matter how skilled you are because everyone is here to support you on your chess journey.
Nidhi - Year 7