Time for a Change

Dear friends,

      Those who know me are well aware of the kind of TD / TO I am. I cannot do things without being 100% commited. Also, I have been running this group alone for 2 years, convinced that I am by past experimentation that I could not request anyone to contribute in the way I would. That being said, it has become more and more difficult for me to keep the rythm. In hockey term, I could say that my style of play is hard on the human body. Tension between me and some of you regarding the negotiating process has become too much for me to deal with. And it's probably unpleasant for you as well. No show is another issue. Although the SLCA membership has been sky-rocketing since the very beginning, the number of actual active participants has been decreasing for quite some time. In spite of all efforts some of our tourneys can only claim 15 active players. To me, this reversed proportionality is a clear verdict. Facing all the above, I'm announcing that from now on and effective immediately, I'm stoping all activities associated with our Negotiated Tournaments. No pairings will be published today.

      This is all for bad news. Now here's the good news. I'm announcing a shift towards fixed time tournaments. I believe that this will be easier for me to manage. Also, it will allow a greater number of participants, since those whom the negotiated tournaments does not suit with will be enabled to play with us. «No show» will never be an issue anymore, when the players will have to check-in 10 - 20 minutes before the start of a game. There will be tourneys for Western Hemisphere & Eastern Hemisphere. I'm already accepting the registrations for a 45|45 tournament with games to be played on Saturday @ 12:00 USA ET. Others will follow. And our tournaments will be available to any Chess.com members, not only the SLCA's. Announcements have already been issued outside the group and will be daily refreshed. The tournament was created 9 hours ago and 15 players have already registered.

      I had a discussion with IM Dany Rensch lately. For those who don't know, he is Vice President of Content and Professional Operations at Chess.com. He has made me aware of some major changes regarding slow LIVE tournaments on the site. My discussion with him has made me totally reconsider  the way I should handle all this. More to come!

Regards,

Sylvain Courtemanche,

zugzwang67 on Chess.com;

pionblanc on ChessKid.com.