Youth Chess

Havana, July 10 (RHC) - Cuba will send two mixed teams to the World Youth Chess Olympiad in Barranquilla 2025, which will take place between August 16 and 23 in that Colombian city.

All those involved belong to the under-16 category and were chosen based on their results last year. In addition, each team was required to include at least one player of the opposite sex on one of the four boards to be defended.

According to Carlos Rivero, president of the Cuban Chess Federation, FIDE Master (FM) Adrián Jesús Almaguer leads the highest-ranked team from the island, which also includes FM Osiel Alberto Alonso, Felipe Herrera, and female FM Jinela de la Caridad Rodríguez.

The latter is the current Central American and Caribbean under-20 champion, having dominated the competition held last May in Varadero, which earned her the WMI title, as well as a Grand Master norm.

The other Cuban team will be defended by Esley Bombino, the only male in the group, FM Lorena Beatriz Montejo, Liennys Ferres, and Haden Zuaznabal, who the international federation has not yet graded.

José Orlando Martín and Rodney Pérez will be the captains of both teams for a tournament that already has registrations from 45 countries, 85 teams in total, and 351 players.

The Colombian hosts will present some 30 teams, as the important thing at this age is to give players experience, which is why there are no limits on the number of registrations.

Source: JIT