The New Zealand Chess Championship is an annual open tournament played to determine the country's chess champion. It is organised by the New Zealand Chess Federation.
The first installment of the championship was held in Christchurch in 1879, and was won by Henry Hookham. Following a 9 year break, the tournament resumed in the New Year of 1888/89, and has been held annually since.[1] It has been played with the Swiss system since 1996/97.
Note: Up until 1934 foreign players were eligible for the title. The eligibility rules were changed in 1935 to preclude this; John Angus Erskine (twice champion in 1929 and 1935) was born in Invercargill and was therefore eligible although he was domiciled in Melbourne, Australia.
New Zealand Champions and Premier Reserve / New Zealand Major Open Champions
The 1920 Championship
Championship Multiple Winners
New Zealand Rapid Champions
The New Zealand Rapid Chess Championship was first conducted in 1993.
The New Zealand Women's Championship is played for the Mabel Abbott Trophy, named for the winner of the inaugural event in 1938.
The 2023 edition was held as a memorial event for 2006 winner WIM Sue Maroroa Jones, who passed away earlier in the year.[2]
North Island Champions
The North Island Chess Championship was first conducted in 1954. Players compete for the Charles Belton Trophy. The event is organised by the New Zealand Chess Federation.
North Island Championship Multiple Winners
South Island Champions
The South Island Chess Championship was first conducted in 1950. The event is organised by the New Zealand Chess Federation.
South Island Championship Multiple Winners
New Zealand Correspondence Champions
Winners of the New Zealand correspondence chess Championship (start year given):
2014 M.F. Noble (GM), M King, M Donnelly/King, J Eide
2015 M.F. Noble (GM)
2016 M.F. Noble (GM)
2017 M.F. Noble (GM)
2018 M.T. Sims
2019 M.D. McNabb
2020 M.D. McNabb
2021 M.F. Noble (GM), M.D. McNabb, M.T. Sims, R.E. Gibbons
2022 R.E. Gibbons, M King
2023 M.F.Noble (GM), F Chen, M.T. Sims, P Cook, L.D. Lavery
M.F. Noble (GM) 15 Titles
J.A. Cunningham, R.A. Court & R.E.Gibbons 4 Titles
G.C. Cole, S.Hindin, O.Sarapu, D.I. Lynch, B.F. Barnard & H.P. Bennett, M D McNabb, 3 Titles
New Zealand Veterans Champions
Winners of the New Zealand Veterans Championship (start year given):
2014 R. E. Gibbons, A. Booth, N. Cooper
2015 R. E. Gibbons, N. Cooper
2016 G. Kerr
2017 W. Lynn
2018 G. Kerr
2019 P. Garbett
2020 R. E. Gibbons
2021 Covid Lockdown
References
^Pawn, Poison (2012-12-19). "A History of New Zealand Chess Championships". Poison Pawn. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
^ a bStaff (2023-10-01). "Teenager Ning wins NZ Women's Chess Championship". Times. Retrieved 2024-05-05.
O'Connell, Kevin (1977), "New Zealand", in Golombek, Harry (ed.), Golombek's Encyclopedia of Chess, Crown Publishers, p. 212, ISBN 0-517-53146-1 (winners list through 1975/6)
Whyld, Ken (1986), Guinness Chess, The Records, Guinness Publishing Ltd, ISBN 0-85112-455-0 (Winners through 1984)
Stuart, Peter (5 August 2005), The New Zealand Championships: A Brief History (PDF), ChessCafe.com, archived from the original (PDF) on 6 August 2011
