21/05/2026
Our return from the fifteenth Pan American Chess Championship U7-U17 in Sonsonate, El Salvador happened on Monday, 18th May, 2026. We had four players compete in the 9 round classical event. Players also participated in the rapid and blitz competitions that took place during the event.
The competition was great exposure for our players and also signalled our seriousness to improve with the largest contingent from an English speaking Caribbean.
Overview
U17 Absolute
Lucas Sorhaindo did well to win one game against Mateo Fernando Penna Palacios of Panama, draw two others against Percy Eduardo Gutarra Minaya of Peru and Francisco David Olivar Molina of El Salvador and receive a bye. He started the competition ranked 48/48 and finished at 43/48 with a score of 3 pts.
U17 Women
Shermel Timothy also started in a position of 29/29 last in ranking however that didn’t stop her from drawing with Aruba’s, Grayce Motwani. In addition with her bye, she finished with a score of 1.5 pts.
U15 Absolute
Jarius Hypolite began his journey unrated. He was able to draw his game against Ecuadorian, Nikolas Alejand Teran Guayasamin. In addition to his bye received, he finished with 1.5 pts. He also earned a forfeit win in the blitz competition where his opponent failed to show up.
U13
Ken-G Delsol began as one of three unrated players in his category with a total of forty five players. In the classical, luck did not come his way to earn points with a win or draw however, he did score a draw against El Salvador’s, Marco Andre Aguilar Melendez in the blitz competition.
As seen in all competitions we were seeded last or near last. With that starting rank, we were predicted to score zero points however, we still managed for every player to score at least a draw across the three tournament disciplines (classical, rapid, blitz). That bodes well for us in upcoming tournaments as we know our players have a base level where they can pick up at least a half point from their competition. The aim is to continue to work with them to develop their talent. Moreover, the connections made through friends, mentors, arbiters and executive leaders will prove valuable for future growth.
Thank you again to all our sponsors who made this possible: Central Cooperative Credit Union Ltd., National Bank of Dominica Ltd, Dominica Olympic Committee, Astaphans.
Tournament Source
U17 Absolute
https://s3.chess-results.com/tnr1379763.aspx?lan=1&SNode=S0
U17 Female
https://s1.chess-results.com/tnr1383156.aspx?lan=1&SNode=S0
U15 Absolute
https://s3.chess-results.com/tnr1379760.aspx?lan=1&SNode=S0
U13 Absolute
https://s3.chess-results.com/tnr1379756.aspx?lan=1&SNode=S0
