Hvaleyrarskóli Competed at the Nordic Chess Championship

Strong Interest in Chess at Hvaleyrar School

“Educational,” says Kristinn Guðlaugsson, principal of Hvaleyrarskóli, about the experience of the school team that competed at the Nordic Primary School Chess Championship from September 12th–15th. The tournament was held in Helsinki, Finland. Competitions were held in two categories: Hvaleyrarskóli represented Iceland in the older category (grades 8–10), while Rimaskóli competed in the younger category (grades 5–7).

The Hvaleyrarskóli team was composed of:
Board 1: Tristan Nash Openia
Board 2: Milosz Úlfur Olszewski
Board 3: Kristófer Árni Egilsson
Board 4: Katrín Ósk Tómasdóttir
Substitute: Emilía Klara Tómasdóttir

The team leader was Ægir Magnússon, accompanied by Björn Ívar Karlsson, director of the Icelandic Chess School, who took primary responsibility for the team’s chess preparation.

“Hvaleyrarskóli team had the youngest average age in their category, so we knew it would be challenging against the other Nordic countries. As it turned out, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway took the top positions, while Iceland and Finland were roughly on par behind them,” says Kristinn.

The players of Hvaleyrarskóli often reached promising positions, but some were lost to hasty decisions. The school’s talented chess players will learn from this experience.

“Björn Ívar, the chess director, went over every match with the students, pointing out what went well and what could be improved. The tournament was therefore very educational, and it was also fun to test ourselves against children from the other Nordic countries,” he adds.

Rimaskóli finished in 3rd place in their category. Their team leader was Helgi Árnason, who has done excellent work with his students. “The facilities at the venue were excellent, and all the children from both schools enjoyed themselves,” Kristinn concludes.