Valmiera draughts players perform well at Latvian team championship
The Latvian team championship in 100-square draughts took place at Riga's new Family Activity Centre RIFS, with five teams from Valmiera taking part. The best result for Valmiera came from the U8 age group team, which finished in 2nd place.
The Latvian team championship in 100-square draughts was held at the new Family Activity Centre RIFS in Riga, bringing together 31 teams in total. Matches were played under a time control of 10 minutes plus 5 seconds per move.
Five teams from Valmiera travelled to the championship, draughts coach Uldis Ābeltiņš told the Valmieras Ziņas portal.
Results for Valmiera players
The top result among the Valmiera teams went to the first U8 age group team, consisting of Roberts Kviesītis, Linards Kaparkalējs, Jēkabs Sliede and Elīza Baumane, who placed 2nd. The second Valmiera team in the same group — Kirils Ķepis, Eduards Skalbergs and Rēzija Burkovska, competing without a fourth player who fell ill — finished 7th.
In the U10 group, the team of Endijs Tīlens, Viestards Kalniņš, Pēteris Sniķeris and Kimberlija Boša took 4th place. In the U13 group, Reinis Apsītis, Emīls Tīlens, Gunārs Neļķe and Evija Struncēna finished 5th, while the U16 team of Kevins Vasiļevskis, Gustavs Gračevs, Everts Putniņš and Denija Kemze placed 6th.
Preparatory tournament
Ahead of the team championship, a local Valmiera championship in rapid 100-square draughts (5 minutes plus 3 seconds per move) was organized in September. Across various age groups and gender categories, several young players claimed titles, including Elīza Baumane, Roberts Kviesītis, Endijs Tīlens and Dāvis Brolis, who each became Valmiera champions in their respective groups.
The coach thanked the Valmiera municipality for its support of draughts in the region. The next challenge for the young players will be the Latvian individual championships in rapid and blitz 100-square draughts, scheduled for 17–18 October.
