Press Release

Thirteen-year-old Harrison College student Askari Elson is the king of the Mutual Open Junior Chess Championship which concluded at the Barbados Community College yesterday (July 21).

Elson's nerve was steadiest in the turbulent final four rounds as he drew with the top rated Equitable Browne of Jamaica, lost to 1999 champion Sean Perryman of Trinidad and Tobago and beat Trinidad's Alan Assue and Barbados' Justin Kirton.

This left Elson with 6.5 points the same as second-placed Junior Taitt and the third-placed Perryman, but he won on the tie break.

Favourite, Jamaica's junior champion Equitable Brown was fourth. After winning his first four games, Brown seemingly lost his way and in the final half of the tournament he won one game, drew two and lost the other.

An elated Elson said that that winning the Mutual Junior Open was one of his goals for the year.

"It was a great achievement," he said. "I was just willing to try my best and see what would happen."

The top ten finishers in the tournament were completed by Anderson Christie of Barbados, Michael Hargraves of Trinidad and Tobago, Kirton, Olaudah Pryce and Assue.