Guadeloupe’s 2010 Chess Campaign

Guadeloupe is a beautiful island with a budding chess community. Located in the eastern Caribbean and like Martinique, is a part of overseas department of France. Guadeloupe recently celebrated their carnival and federation President Olivier Mouëza was proud to show off pictures to the fete.

The island has hosted an open chess tournament in June 2009 which drew a number of strong players including France’s GM Jean-Marc Degraeve and the USA’s GM Maurice Ashley. The tournament was won by GM Namig Guliyev of Azerbaijan with 6/7.

Currently the Guadeloupe Championship in progress. The defending champion Yves Ber has already been upset by Mouëza. The federation is now planning an event to raise funds for Haiti, a fellow Francophone nation. Mouëza has been in touch with Sabine Bonnet of the Academie d’Echecs.

GM Maurice Ashley signing autographs for Guadeloupean schoolkids in June 2009. Photo from echecs-guadeloupe.com.