ViaLite Grandmaster wins European Senior Chess Championship

ViaLite sponsored Chess Grandmaster Keith Arkell recently added another title to his list of accolades, winning the 2014 European Senior Chess Championship in Portugal against a strong field of 36 players from 16 countries.  Renowned as an endgame specialist, former English champion Keith went into the lead after eight rounds, having managed draws against his two main rivals – Zurab Sturua of Georgia and Evgenij Kalegin of Russia and winning five of his other six games.  In the final round, all three chess masters could only draw, leaving Keith half a point clear at the top of the rankings with seven points from his nine matches.  A thrilled Keith was presented with his winners medal by Garry Kasparov, considered by many to be the greatest chess player of all time.

The European senior chess championship was organized this year by the Portugese Chess Federation and is open to all players representing chess federations in the European Union aged over 50.

“Despite the extremely high level of skill and experience, the economics of the international chess scene mean that it is not easy, even for top players, to compete in international tournaments,” says Joe Petrie, Marketing Manager, ViaLite Communications.

“We are very pleased to be able to support players such as Grandmaster Keith Arkell and proud to be associated with his winning this European title.”