FIDE is the World Chess body and they allocate the rights to hold the International Events to various countries. These are often allocated years in advance and checking the calendar at:
www.fide.com/calendar/fide-calendar
can give you an idea of where the next one might be. These can change though, so until the official regulations are released, neither the dates nor the country are guaranteed.
Sometimes, particularly with Asian events, the host country may not be decided until very close to the event and you might be asked to definitely commit to going with a very short notice period.
Once an event is allocated to a country, an organising committee is formed. If things are well organized, you might find a website is available many months in advance and has good information on it about the venue and accommodation. It is quite normal for this information to be available quite late though, which can make it difficult to book flights and arrange time off work and school.
There are a number of international events in which Australian juniors can play. The events can change characteristics from year to year and the regulations defining each event need to be checked when they are released by the organising country.
This has become a huge event &ndash in 1998 it was around 600 participants and it has now doubled in size. Exact size depends on the accessibility of the host country and timing of the competition.
Prior to 1998 only 1 person per country per age group was allowed to play, but it is now open to as many participants as each country feels is of the correct standard to play. In 2006 a new category of U8 was added and the competition now spans the age groups U8, U10, U12, U14, U16 and U18. Open and Girls divisions exist in each age category. Free accommodation and food is provided for 1 participant, from each country, in each category, as well as for 1 official from each country.
This event usually has less than 200 participants and consists of U20 Open and U20 Girls. It is a very strong tournament &ndash typically more than half the tournament is titled players, with many of them full time professional players. Free accommodation and food is available for one person, from each country, in each category. Countries can send multiple players, but they have to be of a high standard. It is a very sociable tournament. Usually everyone stays in the same hotel and because of the older profile there are more opportunities for socialising.
This is a teams event and multiple teams can be sent. Free accommodation and food is available for 4 children and 1 official, from each country. Strength of the tournament varies depending on where the tournament is being held. E.g. Eastern European Olympiads tend to be stronger than ones held in Singapore. Because it is a teams event it can be less stressful for juniors than an individual tournament. It is a good event for weaker juniors to experience international competition. Normally in Australia only a top team and a girls' team are selected (and the girls' team only where there is interest from strong girls in forming a team). Other children are endorsed to go and then formed into teams after selection.
Similar to the World Youth, but restricted to Asian countries.
Similar to World Juniors, but restricted to Asian countries.
This is a competition that is fairly new. It has a number of different formats &ndash conventional chess, as well as optional Rapid and Lightning tournaments. Discounts for accommodation apply depending on the number of players from a country.
Australia does not do selections for this, but the event is advertised and any teams wishing to go are endorsed. If there are multiple teams and a selection is necessary (e.g. in order to allocate free accommodation and food), it will be done on an adhoc basis.
As you can imagine it is a very expensive exercise holding an international event. Even the smaller ones are a major logistics exercise. Funding comes from a number of sources:
The first two are fairly obvious. The registration fee is an amount &ndash around 100 euros for every person &ndash players, accompanying adults, siblings. It covers providing the accreditation badges, the cost of transport to and from the airport and to and from hotels to venues. It also goes into the general budget.
The organising committee organises accommodation and food and charges a certain amount for all extra players and all accompanying people. It is compulsory to stay at the official hotel(s) for all players. The Australian delegation stays all together in the same hotel, where there is not a single hotel. People often look at what they are being charged and work out it is pretty expensive compared to what they could get if they booked themselves, particularly as it is usually out of season. However the profit on this food and accommodation is then used to fund the 'free' food and accommodation for the primary selected players and other tournament costs (venue hire, arbiters etc).
While it might seem a bit of a rip-off, it really isnít as costs do have to be covered.
The important thing to remember when you go to one of these international tournaments is that it is not a holiday! Parents are asked by the management committee what accommodation they would like etc and it is very tempting to think you are booking a conventional holiday, with a bit of chess thrown in.
While the organizers are usually very keen to help delegations get the accommodation they want, they also have to make the whole event work and sometimes that means changing hotels or splitting people across different floors. Australia historically has been very good at being one of the first to book and pay for accommodation and that means they get treated well. The later it gets and the more stressed the organisers are, the more likely it is that delegations will get sub-standard accommodation. They also have to keep within budget and this often means skimping on food quality.
Some examples are Oropesa in the late 90s, where delegations booking late could not be accommodated at the main resort complex and were put in overflow accommodation 15 minutes away.
In Belfort in 2005, there were no major hotels and all the delegations were split over many hotels &ndash some as far as 50km away!
If all goes well, you will be in a good hotel, but if you are not, then it is important to support each other and understand that the organizers have the right to allocate accommodation in such a way as to make the whole event work within budget.
Be prepared to buy meals outside if the food becomes boring or is inadequate and to pay for a taxi to supplement the transport if necessary. Do not expect to always get the level of accommodation or food that you are used to in Australia. Sometimes the tournaments are held in very poor countries and part of the fun of going to these tournaments is experiencing different cultures.
Generally, these are the costs to consider and can vary depending on inflation and currency exchange.
| Primary Selections | |
| Uniform | $60 |
| Travel | 1,000 to $3,000 |
| Registration fee | $170 |
| Team Coaching | $700 |
| Gifts | $10 |
| Misc | $60 |
| Total | $2,000 to $4,000 |
| Secondary Selections | |
| Uniform | $60 |
| Travel | 1,000 to $3,000 |
| Accomodation/Food | 1,200 |
| Entry fee | $249 |
| Registration fee | $170 |
| Team Coaching | $700 |
| Gifts | $10 |
| Misc | $60 |
| Total | $3,400 to $5,400 |
In addition to these are visa costs, getting a passport if necessary and any costs of accompanying children and parents.
Junior tournaments overseas tend to be very strong. Each country sends some very good players and some for experience. In the lower age divisions, only a few players will have FIDE ratings, so players are listed alphabetically. This can lead to some random pairings. In the first few rounds your child might play someone who is going to get a medal, or they might play a player around their own level. It is sensible to not stress over how your child is going relative to another Australian player &ndash after 11 rounds it tends to even out. Unless your child is a superstar, donít be stressed if they lose multiple games in a row &ndash it is very common. Even if they are a superstar in Australia they will be playing superstars from other countries. If your child achieves a score of more than 50% they have done exceptionally well. 50% is still an excellent score. Most Australians would look at scoring in the band between 4.5 out of 11 and 6 out of 11. A score of more than that can be achieved by our top players in an age group. If they score less than that, they will still have achieved excellent experience by playing games that are very hard.
Anyone who has already been playing rated games and taking their chess seriously can think about applying. Your child should have played at the Australian Juniors already and been one of the stronger players in their age group.
Your child has to be an Australian permanent resident, within the meaning of the Immigration Act. You might have every intention of trying to stay in Australia but that is usually not good enough. There are some gray areas, where people have applied for permanent residency, but their application is not yet processed. In that case you can apply and might get a provisional selection. If the residency is not finalized by a particular date, then the selection will be withdrawn. This is fairly complicated and best to discuss exact circumstances with the selections coordinator.
As a guideline if your child is not close to the following ratings, then you would need to think very carefully about whether the expense and potential stress is worthwhile. The selectors will also decide whether your child is strong enough to play and might endorse him/her for one of the Asian or Asean events, but not the World Youth. (Please note &ndash these ratings are a guideline and the selectors can make exceptions if they feel it is justified).
U8 Open and U8 Girls &mdash No rating restriction
U10 Open &mdash ACF rating 700+
U10 Girls &mdash ACF rating 500+
U12 Open &mdash ACF rating 1200+
U12 Girls &mdash ACF rating 900+
U14 Open &mdash ACF rating 1400+
U14 Girls &mdash ACF rating 1000+
U16 Open &mdash ACF rating 1600+
U16 Girls &mdash ACF rating 1200+
U18 Open &mdash ACF rating 1800+
U18 Girls &mdash ACF rating 1500+
U20 Open &mdash ACF rating 2000+
U20 Girls &mdash ACF rating 1600+
Selections are widely advertised and title holders from the Australian Juniors are e-mailed (where possible), to notify them of the opening of applications. Normally application open in February and close in March.
Normally you can apply for the following tournaments:
Go to the "Applications" page on this website, fill in the details online and select the tournaments you wish to apply for.
It is important to keep checking your e-mail so that you can swiftly respond to queries.
Once the closing date is reached the online site is deactivated and no more applications can be made. Occasionally an application will be accepted within a day or so of the closing date if there are extenuating circumstances for missing the closing date. No applications will be accepted after that, unless there are no applicants for a particular age group and a very strong candidate puts in an application. This will only be possible if coaching and accommodation constraints allow it.
There are usually 5 selectors appointed. Some past selectors include GM Ian Rogers, GM Darryl Johansen and IM Gary Lane.
The selectors are given rating data and supporting statements for all applicants. Initially they look at the applicants and rule out any who are considered too weak to play at this point in their chess careers. These people are notified immediately by the selectionsí coordinator.
The selectors then rank the remaining applicants in strength order. The person ranked first is the Primary selection and entitled to free entry, accommodation and food where available. The secondary selections are endorsed to go, but have to pay all costs.
This whole process does take some weeks and the selectors usually wish to see results from Doeberl (and SIO when it is run). Thus the selections are normally released within 2 weeks of the end of these tournaments. Where Easter is late and the World Youth is being held early, selections might have to be done prior to Doeberl.
This is usually a very frustrating period for parents, as they wish to get on with requesting leave from employers and schools, as well as to start fund-raising, but it has to be balanced with selectors having enough information to make an accurate selection.
There is an appeal period after the selections are announced. The appeal process is documented when the selections are announced. It is always confronting to find your child ranked lower than another child, but unless there is a procedural error, or a huge difference in strength, it is unlikely any appeal would be successful.
Successful applicants are given two weeks to accept their selection. Where dates/venue have not been announced, then applicants are not expected to accept their selection, until these are announced.
Where a primary selected child decides not to go, then the primary selection is passed onto the next person on the list.
Because of the short acceptance period, it is sensible to already talk to schools etc about taking the time off, so that a timely acceptance can be done.
On accepting your selection, you will need to immediately pay a sum of $300 to the AusJCL. This is non refundable if you change your mind. It will be used towards paying expenses such as registration fees, coaching costs, uniform etc.
This process actually starts while the selections are happening. The selections coordinator will ask for volunteers for the delegation management committee for the world youth and for any other events for which there are definite dates and venues.
You might wonder why the AusJCL does not itself manage the delegation. Unfortunately there are not enough resources for this to happen, or for Australia to send a paid manager. It also makes more sense for the parents who are directly to benefit, to provide the volunteers. There are quite a few tasks that need to be done in a very efficient and timely manner in order for the whole event to be enjoyable.
The management committee will be making a number of critical decisions, so it is in the interest of parents who care about these decisions to be involved.
The delegation uniform is compulsory for all children. Similar uniforms can sometimes be bought by parents and siblings, but the actual uniform can only be worn by the child who is playing. The uniform is kept the same in consecutive years where possible, to save on the cost of buying a new uniform for children who have been before, but where a change is necessary due to discontinuing of a pattern, then all children must purchase the new uniform. The delegation might be able to obtain sponsorship to cover the cost of all the uniforms.
This is a high priority item. Normally the organizers will only allocate accommodation once it is booked AND paid for. As discussed previously accommodation can be an issue, so the earlier the better.
You will thus be asked to decide and pay for your accommodation very early. The organizers will give you a timetable as to when payments must be made and will also give you a reminder as the date approaches. Anyone who does not pay on time, will have their selection withdrawn. If they are a primary selection, this selection will pass to the next person in the selection list. You must remember that by not paying on time, you are not only causing problems with your own accommodation, but the accommodation for the whole delegation, as it has to be paid together. The management committee are volunteers and are not paid in any form &ndash it is discourteous to abuse them by making them have to constantly phone and e-mail you to try and get the money paid. While it is understood that parents often struggle to find the money, to give their children this opportunity, this has been a problem area for some time and deadlines have to be met without causing problems for the organizers or the rest of the delegation.
All children who are playing have to stay at the official hotels &ndash this is compulsory. The Australian delegation will all stay together at the same hotel. Sometimes a parent chooses to stay separately from their children, in order to save money. This is allowed within the following constraints.
If the child is under 14 then a guardian who is staying at the hotel, has to be appointed and be prepared to take responsibility for the childís welfare and behaviour the parent/siblings are not allowed to eat without paying, at any delegation meals the parent/siblings are not allowed to stay at the hotel without paying the parents/siblings are not allowed to travel on the delegation buses the parents/siblings may be excluded from the playing venue by the organisers. Unacceptable behaviour by parents/siblings could lead to them being requested to not visit the delegation.
The AusJCL sets a maximum value to be spent on accommodation per person. The management committee can choose accommodation up to this amount. If no accommodation is available for this amount, then the management committee can apply to the AusJCL for a variation. There is one exception, as follows, where management can book a hotel outside of this allowed amount.
If the playing hall is at a particular hotel, then the management committee will always attempt to book accommodation there, even if it exceeds the maximum value. This is because there are huge benefits to the delegation in staying at the venue.
If the accommodation chosen falls within the allowable amount, but will result in primary selected children having to pay extra then either:
All selected children have to agree to pay the extra, or
Sponsorship has to be obtained by the management committee to pay the increased costs of the primary selected children (this sponsorship only needs to cover the primary selected children, not siblings or accompanying parents). This restriction does not apply, where the playing venue is at the chosen hotel.
The management committee may consult with delegation members as to what hotel they want, but the decision of the management committee is final.
Some examples:
Example 1
All delegations stay at the same hotel and then the only choices might be whether to pay for a single, double or triple occupancy room.
Example 2
Two levels of accommodation are available
30 euros per night for a double and 45 euros per night for a double. Both values are within the allowed amount and there is no extra cost to upgrade the primary selected children. The management committee will look at a number of criteria &ndash e.g. quality, easy access to venue etc and then choose the hotel offering the best value.
Example 3
Three levels of accommodation are available at 30 euros, 40 euros and 50 euros. All 3 are within the allowed amount, but there is an upgrade cost of 10 euros per night for primary selected children to stay in the 50 euro per night hotel. None of the hotels is the playing venue.
The management committee feels the 50 euro hotel is the appropriate one for the delegation. The management committee will ask the 12 primary selected children what they wish to do. If some of the primary selected children are unable to afford the extra cost, then either the management committee will find funding to cover the upgrade cost for these children, or the whole delegation will stay at the 40 euro hotel.
Example 4
Two levels of accommodation are available at 50 euros and 65 euros per night. 65 euros is outside the allowed amount. The delegation will stay at the 50 euros hotel. If there are compelling reasons why the delegation should stay at the 65 euros hotel, then the management committee will ask the AusJCL committee for a decision.
All children must receive preparation from a coach, unless they are rated more than 2200 ACF. In this case they may do their own preparation if they wish.
You can take your own private coach if you wish &ndash either just for your own child, or to share with other families. In this case all arrangements are up to you and you must be prepared to pay for registration fees, accommodation costs in a timely way, so as to not hold up the delegation booking.
The alternative is to request to be included in team coaching. Once you have decided on team coaching, you will be asked to pay a further $200 deposit (non refundable). The management committee will work out how many coaches are needed &ndash the ratio is between 4 children per coach and up to 7. The management committee might ask for input on coach choices from the delegation, but the management committeeís decision will be final.
All children will pay the same amount for a team coach. The management committee will source high quality coaches, preferably GM and IM standard, but there might be a difference. E.g. if 3 coaches are used, there might be a GM, an IM and an FM doing the coaching. The children using the FM do not pay less than the children getting the GM. All coaching expenses are added up and divided by the number of children to get a single per child cost. Usually there is free accommodation and food provided for one official. Where a team coach is taken, this free allocation is assigned to the team coach, to reduce costs for that item. Where there are multiple team coaches, then this is just factored into the total cost before the division is done to work out the per child cost.
Once the number of coaches has been confirmed and the ratio of players, the management committee will set up the coaching schedules. The way this is done, is the management committee decides how long each coaching session will be. It is a function of the tournament schedule and the ratio of players to coaches. Normally around 30-45 minutes will be decided. Where two rounds are played on a day, the coaching may be shorter.
The management committee will ask each player their preferred coach and coaching time. Normally this works out easily and there are no clashes.
Where there are too many players requesting the same coach, then the strongest players will get the strongest coach (a player is ìstrongerî, when they are more than 200 ACF rated points higher).
If this still doesnít resolve the matter, then a primary selected player will get preference over a secondary selected player.
When it comes to clashes with preferred coaching times, a primary selected player will get first choice. If this still doesnít resolve all clashes, then the younger player will get their preferred time.
All players, accompanying people and coaches must sign a code of conduct.
Everyone wishes the children (and parents) to have an enjoyable time overseas and the code of conduct is not meant to spoil the events. Unfortunately from time to time, there has been some unacceptable behaviour and the code of conduct seeks to ensure that everyone understands that you are the Australian Delegation and representing your country. Thus a certain standard of behaviour is expected.
This is probably the most important aspect. It is going to be a hard tournament and serious preparation needs to be done. A player should be working on their chess a certain amount each day. Puzzles are an excellent way to prepare &ndash they are a bit like doing general fitness exercises each day.
Playing games against a friendly adult or strong junior is another way.
Obviously some intense coaching can be helpful and reading chess books is great.
Playing as many rated tournaments as possible is another good preparation.
There has to be a balance between good preparation and getting a young child tired and stressed, so be led by the enthusiasm of the child and donít worry if they need some downtime as well.
You want your child to be aware that it is going to be hard, without scaring them into thinking they wonít be able to win any games.
If they are the sort of child who has breezed through local competitions, always coming in the top few, it can be confronting to find themselves losing, so you do want to prepare them for that. On the other hand, all Australians do win games and a positive feeling is helpful in playing well.
Once again all children react differently, so you and your coach will be the best person to know how to prepare your child for international competition.
This is up to each person to sort out with their health provider. Often they are not totally up to date with needed vaccinations, so a group such as travel doctor can be good, but it is an individual choice.
You will normally need a visa. When going to the more exotic countries, the visa might be organized when you get there, but usually you have to get it in Australia. Give yourself at least a month to get it, to save yourself stress. Usually by paying more you can get a visa done more quickly, but getting it done early saves you $ and stress.
Delegation members are encouraged to fund raise for themselves. When doing so please make it clear for whom the fundraising is being done.
E.g. 'Minnie-Mouse' of Canberra is fundraising to cover expenses to go to the World Youth. Do not imply you are fund raising for the "Australian Team".
If planning to approach a corporate sponsor, please check first with the management committee to ensure you are not both approaching the same organisation.
Some easy fund raisers:
www.cadbury.com.au/sites/cadbury
At one point all children exchanged little gifts at the World Youth. With the growth in size, it has become less common. However you will find, especially in the younger categories, that gifts are exchanged.
They can be quite simple and inexpensive:
If you have a bit more money or access to sponsorship, there are some cute toys available &ndash beanie koalas or kangaroos, a platypus, kookaburra or boomerangs.
It is voluntary, but a nice gesture to exchange a small gift with your opponents.
Normally the delegations are not officially organized into travel groups, although if players wish to form groups for travel on a private basis, of course they are at liberty to do so and perhaps gain better prices.
Historically it has been found that people often wish to add a holiday on one or the other side of the tournament and do not wish to be restricted to the same travel plans.
The question often arises &ndash is it safe to travel to this country?
Unfortunately there is no easy answer to this question and often it depends on your own preparedness to accept a level of risk. There are many countries with an elevated risk of terrorism, or war, but many delegations have traveled to them with no ill effect (although our U16 Olympiad team came very close to a bomb in Turkey in 2008.)
Some people argue that you can be hurt crossing the road outside your house, others that they are not prepared to put their child into extra danger.
The best thing to do is to visit the DFAT site:
where you can read travel advisories for all countries. Do some research on the internet and then decide what works for you.
A specific day is set aside for arrival and departure. Normally the point of arrival is expected to be at the closest airport and bus transfers are arranged from there to the hotel or playing venue, where registration will take place.
The management committee will notify the organizers of your arrival time and you will be met and transported. Sometimes you might be expected to wait a short while, until the bus is full or close to full with other arrivals.
At some tournaments you might be taken straight to the hotel and registration will happen later. At others your registration and taking of photographs will happen immediately.
However by the first day of play all members of the delegation should have a badge with a photo on it. Players will need to wear this to all rounds and it is usually needed to be shown at meals and to enable parents to enter the playing hall. How rigidly this is enforced varies from tournament to tournament.
This will be attended by the Team manager (head of delegation) and the head coach. If numbers are not restricted, then more of the coaches might attend.
This is where the delegations are checked to make sure everyone is in the right age groups and questions about the conduct of the tournament can be raised. E.g. access of parents to the playing hall, or any general arbiting conditions. If there are concerns about any aspect of the tournament, these should be raised with the team manager, prior to the technical meeting, and these can be raised at the technical meeting.
Children play as individuals (apart from events such as the U16 Olympiad). Every parent wants their child to do well and is keen to get coaching resources to enable them to do so.
However it is important to remember the children are there as a delegation, representing Australia>. Being together and supporting each other helps to build morale and often reduces the stress of individual play.
Where a particular player is doing well and has a real medal chance, management committee might ask all the coaches to work together to help that particular player. Of course all players will continue to get coaching resources.
Socialising together and eating together are very important ways to enable team bonding. The management committee will also keep track of daily results and try and engender an interest in how the delegation is going e.g. the delegation % of wins for the day, rather than just focusing on an individual.
It can become stressful for a child and a parent if they are not doing as well as other delegation members. However results can be uneven, particularly in the younger age groups where not as many children are rated. Someone might win their first 3 games and someone else lose. By the end of the tournament the situation might have reversed, or both children might be on the same score.
The best attitude is to concentrate on your/your childís performance only. Do not compare to anyone else or worry about results. Very few Australians make a top 10 finish &ndash the most benefit from attending these tournaments is in the experience and improvement.
Coaching schedules have been set up, so each child knows when to be at the designated coaching place. People should be ready 10 minutes prior to their coaching time and wait quietly. No interference should happen in another childís coaching session.
On completion of their game, each child should make their way to the designated analysis area. Analysis is normally on a first come, first served basis and a child should wait patiently for their coach to be free. It is often beneficial for children to watch analysis of other games and even take part in analysis, as long as this is not disruptive.
If a player has had an upsetting game e.g. blundering when winning, then they might prefer to wait until a later time for analysis. Sometimes being with other players, after an upsetting loss can be more beneficial than having a parent try to console them.
The management committee is responsible for delegation welfare overseas. This means they deal with the organizers and try to resolve general issues. E.g. it the transport is not working properly, they will try and resolve it. They are responsible for ensuring the code of conduct is adhered to and counseling any problem children or parents. Excessively competitive parents can often cause more problems, both for their own child and the delegation, than children do.
They will try and engender pride and team spirit.
However these are volunteer positions. The people on the committee have generously given their time, to make your experience easier and more pleasant. They are not your servants! Be prepared to sort out some of your own issues, if so requested. Try to be sensitive to the work that needs to be done and volunteer to help when possible. The management committee members also have children of their own, that they would like to look after and care for.
Taking your child to an overseas tournament is an incredible experience and one that you will look back on with pride and pleasure. Often friendships are made at these events that last for many years. With the easy access via internet, it is possible to keep friendships going with players from other countries.
There is access to a chess culture that is often missing in Australia and participating in these events can make a player really keen on improving their chess when they return to Australia.
Good luck with your application &ndash the first step in your international adventure!