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Jan 28 - First Moves In Masters Tournament At Caleta Hotel

The first moves of the Masters Tournament were played this afternoon at the Caleta Hotel on day two of the Tradewise International Chess Festival.

James Humpreys, Chairman of Tradewise Gibraltar Insurance Ltd, the main sponsor of this event made the first move on the top board against  top seeded player Grandmaster Michael Adams, England’s No.1 and ranked 13th in the world. In his First Round game Mr Adams is playing against one of the many Spanish players in this festival FM Emilio Miguel Sanchez Jerez from Murcia. 

Mr Humpreys, whose company has been sponsoring the game for nine years, four of them as the main sponsor, welcomed the players and wished them well.

“Have a great time!” he told them all.

As play began he spoke of the importance of the development of chess on the Rock and of the Festival itself.

“Tradewise is becoming  synonymous with chess as much as it is to insurance and this is important for Gibraltar. In chess we have Tata Steel, and I hoping that over the years Tradewise will be exactly the same as that company in its association with the festival,” he said.

The mood was tense as the introductions and small talk ended and over 250 players from 60 countries concentrated on the vital opening stages of their games.

Stuart Conquest, the Director of the Festival, said that this year’s edition is the biggest yet with more players than ever. He said that the public, both at the hotel and online via the many webcams, would be able to get a sense of the excitement and drama throughout the next week in what is now considered the best open chess tournament in the world.

(Pics: Sophie Triay)