Ali Thameem
Castle Chess Club and Academy has reclaimed the prestigious National Club Chess Championship title after an intense nine-day battle held from October 27 to November 4 at the Hulhumalé Chess Arcade.
This year’s victory was Castle Chess Club’s second national title. They were the champions in 2023 and runner-ups in 2024.
Despite having only one national player and competing without a reserve, Castle overtook Club Stonewall to secure the top spot, winning all nine rounds. The champion team is made up of four players, all of whom are above 1600 ratings in classical: Noor Farooq (1672), Mujahid Bin Yazeed (1778), Vishau Mohamed Hussain (1748) and Yameen Ahmed (1668).
With a starting rank of 1717, Castle managed to beat the odds and defeat the much-experienced Club Stone Wall.
Stone Wall was a team of chess masters; three of the four highest-ranked Maldivian chess players were on the defending champion team. Stone Wall consisted of men’s national champion, FM Mohamed Shuaau, and the women’s national champion, WCM Nihaya Ahmed, as well as CM Mohamed Hassan, CM Abdhul Rahman and Aboobakuru Ahmed. With a starting rank of 1891, Club Stone Wall had comparably stronger odds to win the tournament.
The fourth of the nine rounds was the pivotal moment in the championship, when Castle faced Stone Wall. Noor Farooq and Yameen both won their respective games against Abdhul Rahman Ali and Ahmed Aboobakuru, while Mujahid managed to hold his opponent CM Mohamed Hassan to a draw. Shuaau was the only player from Stone Wall to take a win against Castle Chess Club as he beat Vishaau.
A total of 84 players and 17 clubs participated in this year’s club chess championship.
