In a year when these prestigious chess events were again organised into Championships and Challengers events Howell’s pupils recorded some outstanding results over two weekends at Monmouth and Cardiff. Three girls – Shayanna S., Emily W. and Venetia S. – were crowned Welsh Champions at U14, U13 and U12, with Venetia repeating the feat in the U11 event!
At U13 Neya G. and Susanna F. both scored three points, with Susanna also taking third place in the U12 section, where Grace E. also performed well. Nayana K. came second in the U11s and three weeks later was crowned West of England U10 Junior Champion in Swindon. Bindu D. was another solid performer in the Welsh U11s, while in the U8 event Anika K. was fifth, with Suhaani P. a point behind.
This excellent set of results means that these girls will be very much in the minds of the Welsh selectors as they prepare for the international competitions of 2016.