Icelander in the Lead at Eiði
Unexpectedly, the Icelander Ádam Ómarsson has taken the sole lead in the Janus Open chess tournament at Eiði.
He is the only player who has won every match so far, with five rounds completed. According to the ratings, he was ranked fifth before the tournament started, so his success has been a surprise.
Foreign players are making a strong impression in the competition. The top seven players are all foreigners. Høgni Egilstoft Nielsen, who has the highest rating in the competition, is currently in eighth place. Høgni has lost one match, to another Icelander, Páll Gauti Jónsson.
Standings after five rounds:
Ádam Ómarsson 2026 (Iceland) 5 points
2-4. Páll Gauti Jónsson 2152 (Iceland) 4½
2-4. Mikkel Vinh Loftgaard 2235 (Denmark) 4½
2-4. Casper Liu 2251 (Denmark) 4½
5-14. Símun Tórhallsson 2223 (Iceland) 4
5-14. Bjørn Holm Birkisson 2153 (Iceland) 4
5-14. Noa Krug Wahlgreen 2148 (Denmark) 4
5-14. IM Høgni Egilstoft Nielsen 2390 (Faroe Islands) 4
5-14. Hans Kristian Simonsen 2146 (Faroe Islands) 4
5-14. Hallgerður Thorsteinsdóttir 2188 (Iceland) 4
5-14. Herluf Hansen 1995 (Faroe Islands) 4
5-14. Carles Melado 1926 (Spain) 4
5-14. Luitjen Akselsson Apol 2305 (Faroe Islands) 4
5-14. Ingi Ellingsgaard 1710 (Faroe Islands) 4 points
Two rounds today
The competition will end today. Two rounds are remaining. The sixth round starts at 13:30, and the seventh and final round starts at 17:00.
In the sixth round, the following matches will be played on the top boards:
Páll Gauti Jónsson – Ádam Ómarsson
Casper Liu – Mikkel Vinh Loftgaard
Hans Kristian Simonsen – Høgni Egilstoft Nielsen
Luitjen Akselsson Apol – Herluf Hansen
Símun Tórhallsson – Hallgerður Thorsteinsdóttir
Icelanders play against Icelanders, Danes against Danes, and Faroese against Faroese.
The matches are taking place at Kolshøll in Eiði, and it is possible to follow the games move-by-move online. A link can be found on the website of the Faroese Chess Federation: faroechess.com.
Chess Tradition in Norðstreymoy
As mentioned earlier, the participation record has been set in this competition. Never before have so many come together to play chess in the Faroe Islands as in Eiði this weekend. A total of 103 players are participating, which surpasses the previous record of 101 players, set during the Nordic Championship held in the Faroe Islands in 1987.
27 players are from the northern region, which is covered by the Rókur Chess Club in Sundalagið. About half of them are newcomers to competitive chess.
There has been no chess club in Eiði for many years. However, the Eiði Chess Club is the oldest in Eysturoy, founded as early as 1956. In the 1960s, players from Eiði participated three times in the so-called Wood Tournament, which in the 1950s and 1960s was akin to a national championship for Faroese chess clubs. The Eiði Chess Club took part in the Wood Tournament in 1964, 1966, and 1967.
Eiði Chess Club was involved in establishing the Faroese Chess Federation in 1970 and was one of the six clubs that made up the 1st Division – or the A-Division, as it was called – when the national competition began in the winter of 1970/71.
Many of the players in Eiði had "Hans" as their first name. This was noted by the humorists in the V4 radio entertainment program when they broadcasted from Eiði one Saturday night in the early 1970s. At that time, all the players were named: Hans Egil, Hans Edvard, Hans Erland, Hans Jákup, Hans Julian, Hans Esbern – and perhaps others as well.
Chess in Eiði faded away in the mid-1970s. At that time, another club was founded on Oyri. Talvfelagið Rókur was founded in 1974 and quickly made an impact. In 1978, Bergur Johannesen became the Faroese youth champion, and the following year, the club organized the national individual championship in the new Felagsskaúlan building at Oyrarbakka.
In 1979, chess became a new discipline at the Streymur Sports Club in Hvalvík-Streymnes. This club quickly grew strong, and many talented players emerged. Streymur won the national youth championship in 1980 and again in 1982. In 1986, they had a breakthrough in the senior division and won the national championship in a hard-fought competition with Havnar Telvingarfelag. The winning team included Gunnar Joensen, Martin Brekká, Finnbjørn Zachariassen, and Hanus Brekká.
Today, all chess in Sundalagið is gathered under the Rókur Chess Club. The club plays its home matches at Oyrarbakka and Eiði, sometimes also in Streymnes. The club currently leads the third division, so it will still take some time before we see them in the first division again.
The interest in chess seems to be growing. At the moment, Eiði seems to be the main hub, but there are several players from the southern part of Sundalagið participating in team events.
Rating favorites Høgni Egilstoft Nielsen and Bergur Johannesen from Oyri – the Faroese youth champion in 1978.
