Federation Master Arwien Bhagwandas finished as the best Surinamese draughts player at the Tobago Blitz tournament. He scored 11 points from nine games and finished thirteenth in a strong international field of 44 players.
The tournament was played over nine rounds according to the Swiss system. Participants were given five minutes of thinking time per game, with an increment of three seconds per move.
Of the 44 participants, 24 players held an international title. The field consisted of eight grandmasters, four international masters, eleven federation masters and one candidate federation master.
With his thirteenth-place finish, Bhagwandas left several strong title holders behind him.
Several Surinamese in the middle of the field
The other Surinamese participants also made their mark. Federation Master Niaaz Salarbaks finished sixteenth with 10 points. Federation Master Santosh Bhagwandas also scored 10 points and came eighteenth.
Federation Master Arief Salarbaks and candidate federation master Sharvan Debipersad both collected 9 points. They finished in 22nd and 25th place respectively.
Federation Master John Schmeltz finished 26th with 8 points, followed by Phavan Basdewsingh, who also scored 8 points and finished 28th. Federation Master Rinaldo Kemnaad concluded the tournament in 33rd place.
Dutch podium
The overall victory went to Dutch grandmaster Jitse Slump. His compatriots Wouter Sipma and Simon Harmsma finished second and third respectively.
Dutch grandmaster Martijn van IJzendoorn, who has Surinamese roots, took fourth place. Russian grandmaster Aleksandr Shvartsman completed the top five.
With three Dutch grandmasters on the podium and four Dutch players in the top four, the Tobago Blitz tournament had a strong Dutch finish. For Suriname, Arwien Bhagwandas’s thirteenth place was the best performance.
