Comments - emails from Parents and Vendors

eMAIL: I appreciate the time and effort put in to the state tournament this year but I was disappointed with the bracelets that were given out in substitution for a medal.  I think these are a poor choice for replacing the medals that have been given out in the past.  Especially with the expectation that has been given and as a representation of the hard work that was needed to qualify for state.  I hope future organizers will not follow this trend.  Thank you, Pamela

eMAIL: wanted to thank you for an incredibly well run chess tournament.  the venue was fabulous.  the activities were terrific.  having irina krush join the event was really a terrific idea - all the chess players loved it.  and how gracious she was to sign the trophies for our kiddos.  the evening event was a terrific idea, and for those not to exhausted to join, it really was lovely.... thanks again for all your efforts on behalf of our kids! Nona

eMAIL: The organizing of yesterday's elementary tournament is not very good (constant delaying, no clear time table for next round, no pre-order food, etc.). But the worst, I am afraid, if there is any cheating going on to benefit some kids, this is unfair to other kids who work hard; and a lot of them spend 8-10 hours (round trip) on the road just to go to this tournament. I noticed that the following player became a co-champion without playing against ANY player with winning record (how could she avoid playing against anyone with 3.0 or + points in 5th round?). Stephen
REPLY: The pairing of this particular student was examined carefully by the most experienced TDs present, including the girl's coaches who thought the last round pairing was amiss. In this case, their concern was bias against the girl. Although unusual, her last round pairing appears to have been forced by team pairing restrictions and avoiding repairing players who had previously played (the highest priority in any Swiss System event). Four of the five 4.0s played each other. The 3.0s were difficult to pair, and she (a 4.0) played the top rated 2.5, who incidentally was rated nearly 400 points higher than her. Nonetheless, I am not finished with my efforts to understand this apparent irregularity. The pairing was done by computer, which was operated by men of integrity. Tournament Director.
REPLY: It was a forced pairing that occurred due to team protect (Lincoln players can't play each other) and the fact that many of the non-Lincoln players with 3 points had already played against each other. In other words, there was no human interference whatsoever. SwissSys's pairings logic paired the lowest 4 with the highest 2.5, since none of the 3's were available. Tournament Director.

eMAIL: Thanks for good and reasonably priced concessions. Most years I have had to stand in long lines to pick up inedible food that cost far too much and had to be purchased in advance from an extremely limited menu. JS

eMAIL: In the past year kids who didn't earn a 3.0 points receives a participating medal. We drove from Seattle and my son Carlos Banda scored a 2.5 and was very disappointed to leave the event empty handed.
We were told by the organizers that only the bracelet is what they are giving out. I have to say that it was a very disappointing experience for us not to mention we spent money for accommodations plus the game started extremely late. Menchie

eMAIL: Thanks for hosting a great tournament.  Mathew

eMAIL: Hi, we were at the championship past Saturday and had a great time! We had to leave early right after the game on Saturday and didn't catch the award ceremony. I noticed the results posted on the website and that onto Northwest Chess Rating websites are different. Which one is the authoritative one?
REPLY: Please see the notice section- a little later. Coordinator.

eMAIL: Thanks for the amazing experience that my son Abhay had the Washington State chess Tournament held in Spokane this past weekend. It was truly an amazing experience for my son playing against other competent 1st graders. Abhay

eMAIL: We had a great time at the tournament. Great job! Luis

eMAIL: Congratulations on a very well run event last weekend!
Thanks again for taking the time to look into that strange last round pairing.  I'm sorry if Orlov or I came across as rude or unreasonable in our discussions; we had the best interests of our players in mind. I received an email from the mother of one of my students, informing me that her son did not receive a 3.0 trophy because of the unusually large number of 3.0 scores. Josh
REPLY: The coordinator is compiling a list of those who did not receive their three point trophies. We are having more made. It might be best to let future organizers know that it is wise to be prepared to award 55% of the participants trophies. It costs more, but leftovers can be used for local events. I agree with you and Georgi that the pairing did not seem to make sense. You were assertive, not rude. I respect advocacy for the kids. In fact, I expect it. Thanks for looking at the pairings closely and finding reason in what appeared to be madness. James Stripes, TD

eMAIL: Thanks for a great weekend!  Glitches aside (they happen at all of the big tournaments!) we really enjoyed our time in Spokane.  Having the vendors there selling was a nice surprise.  They had some really neat stuff.  Ms.
Krush was fantastic in the time she spent with the kids teaching chess. The space at the convention center was beautiful, open and comfortable. Aldona

eMAIL: I am a parent of Thurgood Marshall Elementary school at Seattle... I would like to thank... for organizing WA 2015 Elementary Chess Championship, it was a very well organizing event!  All chess players from our school had
a great experience! Natalie

eMAIL:

Friday, Saturday, & Sunday April 24-26