Steinitz chess club promotes transformation in sport and

society by Dr Advocate Lyndon Bouah

Captains report and presidents report for 2018.

1. introduction

The National Sport and Recreation Plan (2011) defines a club as " A structured, constituted base for

participation in sport and recreation in sport and serves as a vehicle for long term participant

development as well as mentorship programmes to cater for high performance." (Page 37)

Steinitz chess club has been an agent of change in Cape Town, the Western Cape Province and South

Africa. The club started from humble beginnings in Bonteheuwel and has grown to be possibly the

most decorated club in chess history in South Africa. The club is structured and meets on Thursdays

in Bellville between 19:00pm and 21:30pm at the Bellvile Technical High school.

2. The early years

Steinitz chess club was formed by a group of young men from the Cape Flats township if

Bontehuewel on the 29th of April 1977. This group of young men included Nazeem Majiet, Mark

Lewis, Glenn Willenberg, Roland Willenberg, Andrew Talmarkes and Shaun Willenberg, Norman

McQueen and Ebrahim Ortell.

They were school friends who decided that since they were playing together every day in any event

then perhaps they should form a club. After much debate they called themselves Steinitz chess club

named after the first Chess World Champion.

The players affiliated to the Western Province Chess Association (WPCA). The WPCA had recently

broken away from the Western Province Chess Union to form a non-racial chess body after instances

of racism and to oppose the apartheid regime. The players went on to play in the WPCA league from

1979 and their first match was against Elsies River Chess club. The club had no one with a vehicle in

those days so club members at the time simply walked over ten kilometres to the other chess clubs

to fulfil their league fixtures. That is dedication of the highest order.

The players grew in strength and from the mid-1980s started to assert themselves. They won the

WPCA league in the 1980s.

3. The early Unity years

In the early 1990s the political situation was very fluid in the sport movement. The club observed the

first Unity tournament in 1991 and did not participate in it. In 1992 the club decided to assist in the

formation of a unified Chess body in Western Province. The union was established and in 1992 the

first unified league was played.

This was a very historical time because it was the first time in nearly two decades that organised

chess matches were played between white and black chess clubs. In 1993 in the second year of unity

in Cape Town, Steinitz chess club won the unified league for the first time. For the chess club from

Bonteheuwel this represented a new high. The club was featured in various newspapers including

the Argus and the South Newspaper which was an anti-government newspaper which followed the

fortunes of the people of the Cape Flats. This heralded a new high for the club as it went on a

recruiting drive which grew the club exponentially.

4. Transformation

The Transformation Charter in the National Sport and Recreation Plan is defined as a process

describing the establishment of a sport system focussed on the principles of:

- Human capital development

- Equitable resource distribution

- Elimination of all inequalities

- Increased access to participation opportunities

- Skill and capability development at all levels in all areas of activity

- Greater community involvement the rough new sport infrastructure development

- Empowerment of the individual

- Respect for each other

- Fair and just behaviour

- Innovation to give South Africa a competitive edge in world sport

- Good governance

Steinitz chess club has been at the forefront of the transformation within chess. In the late 1990s

Roland Willenberg adopted youngsters from Gugulethu who came to spend weekends with him at

his then home in Belhar. These youngsters included Vuzumzi April, Thando Sentile and Kwando Kaso.

They later made the WP junior teams and Kwanda Kaso also won the 1997 WP Open.

As the years developed the club started to attract players from all communities. Today Steinitz is

proud of its non-racial character with players residing from Durbanville to Bellville and to various

other parts of Cape Town.

Steinitz has always focused on developing its players and does not mind having younger players on

the top boards. These players tend to develop faster when they are exposed to stronger competition

even at the cost of a league point or two.

The club participates in every WP, Western Cape and Chessa event. Its members travel and traverse

South Africa to participate and compete in events.

Steinitz Chess Club boasts at least 8 professional chess coaches who also serve as WP coaches, and

the club also currently has active arbiters in FA Mark Lewis, NA Leon de Jager, NA Andrew

Talmarkes, PA Elfreda Louw, RA Ilze De Kock and RA Luan De Jager.

5. Successes as a club

The Steinitz Chess Club have had phenomenal success within WP chess. It has won the WP league in

1993, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014 and 2018 within the unified period since

1992. The ten league victories are a tremendous success for the club and it is tremendously proud of

these victories. In 2013 in one of its finest hours Steinitz won the A division, the B and C divisions!!!!!

The club was runner up seven times in the WP Team league in the following years 1999, 2003, 2004,

2007, 2008, 2010, 2012.

Steinitz WP League 2018 A Team: Ethan Samuels, Mark Lewis, Luan de Jager, Michael James, CM Lyndon Bouah, Craig Willenberg, FM Deon Solomons, CM Andreas de Jager In the Western Cape Steinitz has won the Western Cape Club Championships every time it has been played since 2012. This is an incredible in a row!!! On the national scene Steinitz has won the national club chess championship eight times in the following years in the following years 2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013 and 2014. Steinitz has been a club that has won the WP Team Blitz championships in the following years 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2016. This is a phenomenal record!!!!! I will concentrate on 2018 now. The club has had a tremendous year with the first success being the qualification of WIM Denise Bouah for the SA Olympiad team. I was later appointed captain of the Open team that attended the Olympiad in Batumi, Georgia from 24 September to 5 October 2018. In February the team ended second in the annual WP Team Blitz. Stellenbosch chess club was too strong for Steinitz on the day and we congratulate them.

In March 2018 we travelled to Stilbaai on the Garden Route where Steinitz defended the Western Cape Club championships. 6 matches were played of which Steinitz won all six. The Western Cape club championship is an important provincial championship and Steinitz rightly believes that it should participate actively. In March 2018 (2017 edition of Western Cape club championship) Candidate Master Lyndon Bouah was board one followed by Michael James, Mark Lewis and WIM Denise Bouah. (In an interesting aside Michael James did not lose in 23 matches played for Steinitz in 2018!) In late March the Steinitz chess club hosted its annual club event which this year was a FIDE rated event. We were very happy to host the three time African Junior champion Angolan IM David Silva. The event was well contested and was ultimately won by three players IM Watu Kobese, IM Mohammed Henry Steel and Craig Willenberg. They scored 6/7. Well done to those winners.

Prize giving at Steinitz Chess Festival 2018 The Steinitz players continued to compete all over the province. Michael James won a couple of Rapids in the Cale Winelands with the big one being the Paarl Gymnasium event. In June I won the DSK rapid event with a clean pair of heels ahead of a classy field headed by FM Calvin Klaasen, IM David Gluckman, FM Charles De Villiers, and FM Shabier Bhawoodien. The Steinitz club championship was well contested by the younger members of the club and was superbly won by Ethan Samuels. Well done Ethan. Ethan took this form with him to the WP league and scored some fantastic victories for the team. The event was held at the clubs venue at Bellville technical high school. In July 2018 Mark Lewis led the SA Over fifty team in the first historic attendance of the

World Team championships in Germany. Mark is the current over fifty South African Champion after he won the SA Closed in December 2017. He scored 5.5/6 in the WP league.

SA Over fifty team at World Team championships in Germany The Chess Western Province league was held between July and September 2018. The event was incredibly with Steinitz not really one of the favourites. The club started off with a drawn match against Stellenbosch chess club 4-4 but thereafter showed their mettle by winning 8 matches and having two drawn matches against Blackjacks and ACL. The club defeated the reigning WP champions at that time MRL and the reigning national club champions Manyanani in emphatic style. The club won the league for an unprecedented tenth time in the history of unified chess. In 2018 the club played 23 classical time control matches and won twenty and drew three and lost none. The Steinitz B Team ended in third position and was close to winning the league.

CWP League Premier Section Final Results

CWP League B Section Final Results

CWP League C Section Final Results What was very impressive for the Steinitz team was that the team had a solid mix of experience and youth. On the first two boards Dr Bouah and Dr Solomons held the fort, while seasoned campaigners Craig Willenberg and Michael James held the middle order. Supporting them were Luan De Jager, Mark Lewis, WIM Denise Bouah, Ethan Samuels and Andreas De Jager. Glenn and Roland Willenberg also played in the A team when required! In December 2018 Steinitz defended the Western Cape Club Championships in Stilbaai and defended its title by winning all six matches.

Steinitz A & B at Western Cape Club Champs 2018 At the WP Sport Award the Club won the best club award and also the best team award for its A team having secured these impressive victories.

Steinitz receiving award at WP Sport Award On the administrative level Dr Deon Solomons was the president of Chess Western Province until February 2019 whilst Leon De Jager is the Vice President of Chess Western Cape. Roland Willenberg was the President of Chess WP in 1998 and thereafter also served as director of Youth Chess. Roland was the 2018 Head coach of WP youth; Mark Lewis served as president of Western Cape and also served in various executive positions on WP and Chessa. I was president of Chess WP for ten years and in that time was also the Chessa President and continue to serve in various functions.

The club has produced many champions including current SA Co- Champion FM Calvin Klaasen who played for Steinitz in his formative years. Craig and Kenny Willenberg dominated the SA Junior ranks in the late 1990's. FM Deon Solomons and CM Lyndon Bouah were the first Olympians for the club and we take great pride that we also have two female Olympian players registered for the club WIM Denise Bouah and WIM Anzel Laubscher. WIM Bouah has won the SA Women's championships three times.

WIM Denise Bouah On the junior front Steinitz has many youth players that have represented SA at multiple times and are common sites in the top boards of Western Province School and union teams. Our juniors had an outstanding year 2018

Summary of our junior accomplishments: Ameera Yacoob

5th - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U13 Girls

5th - Stellenberg Youth Chess Champs 2018 B Section

2nd - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U14 Girls A – Section B2 (6/7)

2nd - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 15 GIRLS Andreas De Jager

9th - 2018 Cape of Good Hope Open Chess Championships Prestige Section

1st - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U15 Boys

1st - Stellenberg Youth Chess Champs 2018 A Section

1st - Drakenstein Dragons Rapid 2018 U18

1st - 2018 Western Province League Premier Section – B10 (5/7)

1st - 2018 Western Cape Club Champs A Section – B4 (6/6)

1st - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U16 A – Section – B2 (4.5/7)

1st - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 15 BOYS Caitlyn Olkers

6th - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U11 Girls

2nd - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U12 Girls A – Section B4 (7/7)

5th - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 11 GIRLS Carlo Louw

4th - Stellenberg Youth Chess Champs 2018 A Section

1st - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U16 A – Section – B10 (6/7)

7th - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 18 BOYS Cian de Kock

1st - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U16 B – Section – B8 (5/7)

Declan Olkers

7th - Stellenberg Youth Chess Champs 2018 B Section

1st - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 – U9 Boys

2nd - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U10 A – Section B2 (4/7)

7th - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 11 BOYS Drake Dicks

5th - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 11 BOYS Ethan Samuels

2nd 2018 Western Province Open Prestige Section

6th 2018 Steinitz Chess Festival Prestige Section

5th - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U18 Boys

1st - 2018 Western Province League Premier Section – B7 (8.5/11)

2nd - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U18 A – Section – B2 (7/7)

1st - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 18 BOYS

Jesse Palmer

5th - 2018 Cape of Good Hope Open Chess Championships U10 Section

8th - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 – U9 Boys

2nd - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U10 A – Section B10 (7/7)

10th - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 11 BOYS Kael Beech

1st 2018 Western Province Open Prestige Section

2nd 2018 Steinitz Chess Festival U8 Section

3rd - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U8 A – Section B4 (4/7) Kahill Dhevcharran

7th - Stellenberg Youth Chess Champs 2018 A Section

1st 2018 Steinitz Chess Festival B Section

9th - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U18 Boys

2nd - 2018 South African Junior Closed Chess Championships U16 Open Section

1st - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U16 A – Section – B7 (6.5/7)

2nd - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 18 BOYS Kieran Samuels

1st - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U13 Boys Lleyton Olkers

5th - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U15 Boys

3rd - 2018 South African Junior Closed Chess Championships U14 Open Section

1st - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U16 A – Section – B8 (7/7) Luan De Jager

4th - 2018 Cape of Good Hope Open Chess Championships Elite Section

9th 2018 Steinitz Chess Festival Prestige Section

1st - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U18 Boys

5th - Drakenstein Dragons Rapid 2018 Open

1st - 2018 Western Province League Premier Section – B5 (8/11)

1st - 2018 Western Cape Club Champs A Section – B3 (5,5/6) Reagan Palmer

4th - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U11 Boys

1st - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U16 A – Section – B2 (5.5/7)

2nd - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 13 BOYS Trinity Van Beeck

8th - Stellenberg Youth Chess Champs 2018 C Section

2nd - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U12 Girls A – Section B6 (6/7)

8th - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 13 GIRLS

Triston Willenberg

2nd - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U18 A – Section – B2 (5.5/7)

9th - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 18 BOYS Zante Palmer

5th - Western Cape Schools Individuals 2018 - U13 Girls

8th - Stellenberg Youth Chess Champs 2018 B Section

2nd - South African Junior Team Championships 2018 U14 Girls A – Section B3 (5/7)

6th - METRO SCHOOLS CHESS CLOSED INDIVIDUAL TRIALS 2019 - UNDER 15 GIRLS Comments from our head coach – Roland Willenberg:

Lleyton Olkers and Kahill Dhevcharran both had excellent performances at the Junior Closed Championships in Benoni resulting in Lleyton participating in the World Youth Championships while Kahill took part in World u16 Olympiad.

Trinity Van Beeck and Caitlyn Olkers shined on the girl’s scene. Both won their respective board prizes representing WP U12 girls in the Championships section at Nationals.

Kael Beech our youngest Steinitzian also represented WP in the U8A team.

Carlo Louw WP A team and winner of the U16 wildcard event at Nationals.

Triston Willenberg WP A team and qualified for this years closed tournament with a good performance at wildcard.

Reagan Palmer is one of our best talents in his age group in the country. He is also going to challenge for honours at the Closed.

Zante Palmer was best girl in Western Cape in her age group 2018. Jesse Palmer won board prize and represented WP A U10.

Kieran Samuels won the lauded title of Best WP primary school player of the year!!

Luan De Jager is an outstanding asset to our Club. Luan's resolute performances are why we won the League. He beat the evergreen Charles De Villiers! He is a member of the esteemed league winning team.

Ethan Samuels had an outstanding year. His rating has grown to close to 1900. He was our best U18 player Winning board prize on board 2 taking huge scalps for WP A team at Nationals. Ethan also gives Steinitz League Winners their depth with his rock solid performances.

Andreas De Jager Board 2 for the Champion U16A team and also a junior that has gained a spot in our Steinitz flagship league winning team.

At the recently held WP Awards evening Roland Willenberg was awarded a Lifetime Achiever award which he richly deserved. Well done Roland. Your service to chess runs over forty years and we are proud if the fact that you are at our club.

Roland Willenberg receives Lifetime Achiever Award Regards. Dr Lyndon Bouah.