2009 Montreal Open Chess Championship

The 89th Championship of Montreal is fast approaching! Soon it will be here - September 11 - 13, 2009. The Tournament will be held at the Centre de loisirs (Recreation Center) Sts-Martyrs-Canadiens. Check out one of my prior posts for some historical background on this great event. Club d'echecs Ahuntsic is organizing everything and sponsors Recrutnet, Inc. and the city of Montreal guaranteed a prize fund of $5,000 CAD. Goddesschess is sponsoring three class prizes for the chess femmes in Classes B, C and D. In addition, Goddesschess is providing funding assistance to bring IM/WGM Salome Melia (GEO 2441) to Montreal to play in the Championship! We are very excited about this opportunity. Right now, we are all on pins and needles, awaiting word on whether WGM Melia can get a visa in time to arrive in Montreal to play in the Tournament. Stay tuned for further news! Photo of Melia from Queens of Chess, 12/23/08. Melia, born in 1987, is currently ranked 44th of the top 100 women. In the meantime, 87 players have registered for the Tournament! Registrations are going well -- As of August 1st, 73 players had registered. The tournament organizers are hoping for a record-breaking turn-out, and so are we! Live coverage and more will be provided by Monroi. Official website of the tournament. 2009 Montreal Open Chess Championship Prize Fund = $5,000 Section A (Open) : Prize Fund = $2575: 1-$1300, 2-$650, 3-$325, Class Prizes: $200, $100 Other Sections, 1st 2nd 3rd Class (1) Jr. Section B <2000> Section C <1600> Section D <1200> Unrated Prize: $35(2) (1) The classes will be defined before the start of the second round; dependent upon the rating distribution. (2) An unrated player is also eligible to win any other prize in any section, up to a limit of $100.A player whose rating index is 100 or more points greater than a section's limit may not play in that section. e.g., xxxx.13 may not play in Section D. Schedule: Friday September 11 - late entries 17:30-18:15- Round 1 at 19:00 Saturday September 12 - Round 2 at 10:00 Saturday September 12 - Round 3 at 15:00 Sunday September 13 - Round 4 at 10:00 Sunday September 13 - Round 5 at 15:00 Entry Fees: Section Until Aug. 1 - After Aug. 1 - At the Trmt. A Open $50 $60 $70; B -2000 $40 $50 $60; C -1600 $35 $45 $55; D -1200 $30 $40 $50. Free for GMs, IMs and FMs. Free for Quebec Masters who confirm their participation before September 1st. If later, $30 with no additional fees. FQE membership required. All participants must be members of la Fédération québécoise des échecs (FQE). Register online. Register for FQE membership online. Don't quote me on this because my French is terrible, but it looks like a player can purchase a one-time "pass" to play in a particular event for $10 CAD, or can opt to purchase a full one-year membership in the FQE for $40 CAD. Several young chess femmes will be playing in the Tournament, including Kelly Wang (CAN 1580), who won Goddesschess' Promoted Pawn prize in 2008 for her performance in the Canadian Open.