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The new version 18 offers completely new possibilities for chess training and analysis: playing style analysis, search for strategic themes, access to 6 billion Lichess games, player preparation by matching Lichess games, download Chess.com games with built-in API, built-in cloud engine and much more.
Our International Open registration list continues to grow, and we now have no less than nine International Grandmasters participating in our Festival! Please add your name as soon as you can. We did extend the 10% off discount, with registration costs going up on February 1st.
More details on our Hawaii International Blitz Open have been published on our website. To summarize, the tournament will take place on Saturday morning, March 21, and will be six double rounds of G/5 (two games with each opponent, each player gets five minutes for each game, no increments or delays). There will be a $2000 prize fund, based on 50 entries ($1000 is unconditionally guaranteed). All entries received by 2/1/15 cost $59, entries received thereafter $69.
Joining GM Challenge GMs Timur Gareev and Sam Shankland (who by our count has currently played 68 standard games undefeated) will be GMs Ronen Har-Zvi, Alejandro Ramirez, Hovhannes Gabuzyan, Robert Aghasaryan, Samy Shoker and Niclas Huschenbeth (pictured above).
Participant GM Alejandro Ramirez did a big pictorial report on the Hawaii Chess Festival in December
GM Timur Gareev, whom a colleague described as "crazy, but in a good way",
proves the point with this impressive sky dive
We need your help, and we hope you will consider sharing our initiative with your friends and fellow chess players. Again, for as little as a $10 contribution to help seed a chess academy someone will win the chess vacation of a lifetime!
Our Festival as a whole has its mission the aim of seeding a local chess academy. If you want to help us realize the dream of a chess academy in Hawaii, please take a moment and visit ChessVacation.com, where we further detail the hoped for chess academy, as well as the mind-blowing prize one person who contributes will win. One lucky player will win some extremely awesome prizes, including entry into the Hawaii Grandmaster Challenge, a four player round robin tournament with GMs Sam Shankland, Timur Gareev, and Women's World Champ Hou Yifan! Plus, everyone who contributes will receive commemorative prizes like Hawaii Chess Festival hats, t-shirts and more. Support the dream of a chess academy in Hawaii today!
We are working hard on putting together details for both the group Whale Watch and Pearl Harbor city tour excursions. We will give you more details and a link to buy tickets in our next newsletter (slated for first week of February). What we can tell you is that both excursions will cost only $59 per ticket. The Pearl Harbor/City Tour will be on the morning of Wed. 3/18 and the morning whale watch will be on Thurs. 3/19.
The $59 ticket price for the famous Star of Honolulu cruise ship includes transportation to/from the Hilton Waikiki Beach as well as a buffet breakfast. If you are bringing children, infants (0-2) travel for free, and you will also receive one free ticket for an accompanying 3-11 year-old!
Special guest at the breakfast whale watch tour: Women’s World Champion Hou Yifan
Mahalo (thank you) for reading and e komo mai (welcome) to the Hawaii Chess Festival!
We hope you will consider making it here for the chess vacation of a lifetime!
