Inner-city kids shine at junior chess championships

By Carlton Gardens Chess Club

Carlton Gardens Primary School students have once again proudly represented their school at the 2026 Victorian Junior Chess Championships, building on last year’s success with a series of strong performances.

Held at Glen Waverley Secondary College during the winter school holidays, the championships brought together more than 400 young chess players from across Victoria for several days of competition, sportsmanship and learning.

Staged from June 27 to 30 under the auspices of Chess Victoria, the event featured age-group tournaments across junior divisions, giving students the opportunity to test their skills in a formal tournament setting.

A key feature of the championships was the demanding seven-round format, with younger divisions playing across the opening weekend and older age groups competing over four days.

This year’s event attracted a record 406 participants across the divisions, with Australian Chess Federation-rated games in the older sections, strict time controls, prize presentations and recognition of age-group champions across both Open and Girls events.

For the Carlton Gardens Primary School players, the tournament was a chance to build confidence, practise strategic thinking and experience the challenge of longer-format chess against strong opponents.

Students approached their games with concentration and resilience, reflecting the growing enthusiasm for chess within the school community.

Participation in events such as the Victorian Junior Chess Championships helps students develop patience, problem-solving skills and respectful competition.

In the Under 10 Open section, Carlton Gardens Primary School student Kaisar Batyrbekov scored 6/7 points and drew his final game with Our Holy Redeemer School’s Jaden Qi in a roughly 30-move match that lasted nearly an hour.

In a rook-and-knight versus rook-and-bishop endgame, Black offered a draw, which White eventually accepted after some deliberation.

The result saw Kaisar win the Under 10 championship on tiebreak, ahead of Jaden Qi and Zenan Zhou from St Kevin’s College.

Beyond the podium results, other Carlton Gardens Primary School students also deserve strong commendation for their efforts across the tournament, particularly Ryan Subhash, who achieved 4.5/7, and Aidan Batyrbekov, who finished with 5.5/7.

The junior players used the experience to try new chess openings, learn from unfamiliar positions and bounce back from difficult games with determination.

Their willingness to keep competing, reflecting and improving was a highlight in itself, and showed the fighting spirit and strong character of the inner-city chess community.

Full championship results are available here.

Caption: Jaden Qi, Under 10 second place; Kaisar Batyrbekov, Under 10 champion; and Zenan Zhou, Under 10 third place.