Broadland Chess Club member takes on nine girls simultaneously

January was a busy month in the chess calendar for Broadland Chess Club, both with the pressure to complete club championship matches as the end of the season reaches its halfway point and league matches to be completed as well.
 

Broadland Chess Club member Roy Hughes vs Norwich High School for Girls chess team. Photo: Emily Marchant

 
Some club members are also competing in tournaments, representing Norfolk in the county leagues and playing in the National League.
 
The Norfolk Rapidplay took place on 29 January, when Broadland Chess Club member Roy Hughes, the 2016 winner, lost his title to the young International Master Alan Merry.
 
However, club member Bob Grindod won the special prize for performing well above his grade against strong opposition.
 
In January, several members of the chess club and their families attended a dementia information and awareness session at the Kings Head, Coltishall.
 
It is well documented that keeping the brain engaged and active, the equivalent of a good physical workout, is an important factor in slowing down the effects of dementia.
 
Meanwhile, Roy Hughes was invited to talk to the chess club at Norwich High School for Girls, where he played a simultaneous match against nine of the girls (that is, he played all nine at the same time). When the bell rang to signal the end of the match, three girls remained unbeaten!
 
More information on the club can be found by searching Broadland Chess Club on Facebook, Twitter and Google.
 
Sandra Hughes
 

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