THE Chess Federation of Lesotho (CFL) will host the 2021 edition of the Zone 4.5 Individuals Chess Championships scheduled for November.

This was after the federation successfully hosted the 2019 Zone 4.5 Under 16 Championships in Teyateyaneng, Berea.

According to CFL publicist Selatela Khiba, the committee has decided that the selection criteria for team Lesotho will be such that the winners of the National Chess Championship and the National Junior's Chess Championships in the Under 18-16 Category will automatically qualify to be in the national squad.

Khiba said the federation will also host a series of open tournaments in which players will score points in such a way that the winner in a certain tournament will gain 10 points, the second-placed winner will collect nine points, adding that the points will be collected in accordance with the positions obtained, all the way to number 10 who will collect a single point.

“At the end of these tournaments, the top eight players will then go head to head in a 7-round classic round robin to decide other top five who will join them to form the team. In a situation whereby after the round robin, there are some players who have tied at the bottom, they will face one another in a 5+5 blitz-double round robin. If still tied, they will pass on to a 3+2 double round robin and lastly 5+0 double round robin,” he noted.

He said the open tournaments to be held in preparation for the regional showpiece include the King's Birthday Chess tournament from July 17 to 18, the Basotho Year Opener from July 31 to August 1, the National Junior's Chess Championship set for August 1 to 8, the Spring Open Tournament scheduled for August 21- 22, the National Chess Championships set for October 2-4 and the Round Robin scheduled for October 9 -10.