GCF, Diamond Insurance National Chess Championship qualifiers set for this weekend

The 2026 National Chess Championship Qualifiers will begin on Saturday, February 28, at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall from 09:00h.
The Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) and Diamond Fire and General Insurance are the main sponsors of the Open and Women’s categories, respectively.
The first four rounds of the eight-round classical tournament will be contested this weekend – Saturday, February 28, and Sunday, March 1 – before concluding the following weekend on March 7 and 8, 2026.

The eight-round Swiss-format tournament will feature a classical time control of 90 minutes per player, plus a 30-second increment per move. Players will battle for qualification spots to challenge reigning National Champions Candidate Master (CM) Taffin Khan in the Open Championship and Woman Candidate Master (WCM) Aditi Joshi in the Women’s Championship.
In the Open category, a formidable lineup featuring FIDE Masters (FM) Rawle Allicock and Anthony Drayton, along with Kyle Couchman, CM Sachin Pitamber, CM Ronuel Greenidge and Keron Sandiford, is expected to headline a competitive field of senior players seeking one of the top nine qualifying spots.
Meanwhile, a rising wave of junior talent – including Under-12 Champion Aidan Tinne, Under-14 Champion Abel Fernandez Ciria, Vir Narine and Javier Davenand – will challenge the more experienced players as they aim to break into the top nine.
In the Women’s category, former champions WCM Jessica Callender and WCM Sasha Shariff are expected to headline a highly competitive field.
They will face strong opposition from experienced competitors such as Treskolé Archibald, Ciel Clement, Chelsea Harrison, Rebha Lachhman and Parnita Kishun, along with rising talents including Under-14 and Under-16 Girls’ Champion Kataleya Sam and Under-12 Champion Divya Persaud, all vying for qualification.
The top nine finishers from each category will earn qualification to compete in the National Chess Championship 2026, scheduled to commence on March 14, 2026.
The top eight boards in the Open category and the top four boards in the Women’s category will be live-streamed on lichess.org by John Lee, FIDE Arbiter and Technical Director of the GCF.