Islanders set to put Jersey on the board in Chess Olympiad in Uzbekistan

TWO Jersey-based teams of five Islanders – including two teenagers – are entering the final stages of training and preparation ahead of an international biennial chess tournament in Uzbekistan.

The 46th Chess Olympiad is starting tomorrow and running 27 September 2026 in Samarkand with ten Islanders representing Jersey and hoping to ‘check-mate’ worldwide competition.

A total of 400 teams are due to to take part – 208 in the open section and 192 in the women’s section.

The first official Chess Olympiad was held in 1927 in London with 16 countries taking part. Jersey first competed in 1972, in Skopje, North Macedonia, although the team comprised players from both Jersey and Guernsey.

The Jersey Open team have since played in other Olympiads around the world, with the Island first sending a women’s team in 2022 to Chennai, India.

The Chess Olympiad turns an individual game into a team competition, where players represent their countries, rather than themselves.

Jersey is sending a team mainly comprised of adults, but joining them this year are two juniors; Delia Donciu (15) in the ladies team, and Gus Weber (14) in the open.

Each team is made up of five players plus a captain. There are eleven rounds in total with one game played each afternoon, typically lasting around four-five hours.

Sarah Weber, from The Jersey Chess Club, said: “Leading up to this event the Jersey Team have taken part in online training given by Alonzo Zapata, a Colombian Grandmaster.

“The eight-time national champion and 12-time Olympic team member will be coaching the Jersey Team whilst in Samarkand.

“The mornings will consist of preparation against your opponent, who will be known to you by then, followed by the game in the afternoon. The evenings are normally spent around a chess board analysing team members’ games. So the days are heavily chess-centric!”

Gus, who has been playing chess since the age of four, said: “To already have the chance to represent Jersey at the biggest team event in chess is something I’m really proud of. It’s also a great experience as I will be playing in the same event as some of the best players in the world.

“I have been playing lots of chess online and trying to make sure I am as sharp as possible before we go. I have been working on my openings, analysing my games and trying to improve the weaker parts of my game.”

Many of the Team Jersey members have competed at previous Olympiads, but it will be a new experience for Gus and Delia.

“I can learn quite a lot from being around them, yet at the same time, once you’re sitting at the board, age doesn’t really matter – you’ve both got the same pieces and the same job to do,” Gus added.

Delia only took up chess competitively in 2025.

She said: “I was really glad to be selected for the Jersey team and I am hoping to learn a lot and prove a lot at the Olympiad.”

She added that having the opportunity to be in the same room, and potentially the chance to play some of the biggest names in chess, is “truly amazing”.

“I look up to Anna Cramling, the Swedish professional chess player, who is also an online content creator. I would really love to play her, but even to see her, meet her and be in the same room is amazing.

“I am aiming towards the woman candidate master title, which can be achieved at the Chess Olympiad by scoring at least 50% points in a minimum of seven games.

“I think by being a young female apart of the chess team travelling to the Olympiad, it shows that also the younger generation, of any gender, can play chess, and even go on to represent Jersey.”