M R Venkatesh's long wait for winning a title prize in a classical time control tournament was finally over at the Liffre International Chess Open held in the final weeks of October
Venkatesh emerged as the clear winner of the tournament
half a point ahead of his nearest rival
Venkatesh gives us a first-hand account of his experience in Liffre and also annotates a couple of games from the tournament
The Liffre Open title was a much-needed breakthrough for me
I have been craving to win a tournament because I had not won any classical time control event for a long time
The only ones I had won were blitz tournaments
But I lost the final round in a completely winning position against Shcekachev
I would have finished 3rd for sure. Also last year
I scored 8 points out of 9 rounds conceding only 2 draws. Alas
even I did not win the title prize due to an inferior tiebreak score
I was finally able to break the barrier.
It's about a 30-minute drive from the main city called Rennes and barely has any hotels
the organizers arranged good accommodation for us by making deals with the local inhabitants
Our host was an old couple who owned a lovely & huge villa
three more chess players stayed in the house
who was one of the players staying in the house
used to take us to the tournament hall every day in his car which he had rented in Rennes
The venue was quite far from where we lived
he jokingly said: “you are going to walk back home!”
I was happy after I won my 4th round game against 1st seed Kryakvin Dmitry (2583) in a convincing manner
This is when I really started to think about the winning the title
I misplayed and was in trouble eventually spent quite a lot of time
But he let his advantage slip and slowly my position got better
I repeated the moves because I was in time trouble and was unable to find the winning continuation which was shown by the computer later
We know each other quite well and we both have played many games
I played to 1.b3 just to avoid the theory and to get some new and playable position which he wouldn’t be familiar
He blundered a pawn on the 12th move and soon pieces got exchanged
We reached the rook & knight endgame which was quite interesting
I won against Gahan MG which I felt I played quite well and won a clean game
Neelotpal & I were in joint-lead until the penultimate round but on the last round I won and he drew against Kidambi
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This article was published more than 1 year ago
white trails formed by the condensation of water vapor emitted by an aircraft engine at very high altitude
from aircraft reflect sunlight overErcé-près-Liffré
The American Airlines jet roared out of the Belize airport and climbed through the tropical skies on its way to Dallas
The Boeing 737 levelled out at 32,000 feet – below the typical altitude – before ascending to a higher-than-usual 38,000 feet
The deviations allowed the aircraft to avoid leaving cloud-like vapour streams known as contrails
a small step in reducing the major impact aviation has on climate change
The flight was one of 70 flown by the airline earlier this year on which the pilots were armed with contrail forecasts
cool atmospheric conditions in which ice and water vapour cling to an aircraft’s sooty emissions and form the clouds that can trail an aircraft
Contrails are major contributors to climate change
forming long-lasting clouds that spread and trap the Earth’s heat
Contrails boost aviation’s share of global CO2 emissions to 3.5 per cent from 2.5 per cent
according to the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
when they do not reflect sunlight and only trap heat
Delta Airlines and others have teamed up with researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Google to reduce aviation’s climate impact by conducting studies and flying at altitudes that do not create contrails
adopting different flight plans in pilot projects
Experts say contrail reduction is the only tool the aviation industry has today to make meaningful cuts in its carbon emissions
Airlines are taking steps to reduce their outsized impact on climate change
but these moves are mostly limited to buying planes that are more efficient
reducing speeds and selecting paths that save fuel
Any savings in pollution or consumption are outpaced by the rapid growth of commercial aviation
Electric planes that can replace jetliners are many years away
has hurdles that include cost and availability
And paper straws and biodegradable plates won’t do it
Atmospheric conditions are constantly changing
but contrails are known to form over certain regions
wet air and night-time are all conditions that foster the streams
professor emeritus at University of Waterloo in Ontario
said widespread adoption of flight paths that reduce or eliminate contrails offers an immediate way to limit the harm to the planet from flying
“We don’t need to wait for the silver bullet of non-fossil fuel aviation
This is something that can be done today,” said Prof
a pilot and former associate director of the Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Aeronautics
“You just change your altitude or change your location.”
American Airlines’s aircraft reduced the number of contrails the planes left by 54 per cent
while fuel consumption rose by about 2 per cent
“Contrail mitigation is quite possible and can be done at a relatively low cost,” said Joey Cathcart
the non-profit environmental organization that convened the studies with Google
American Airlines and other airlines (none Canadian)
Building the model that predicted contrails required assembling mountains of flight data
satellite imagery and atmospheric forecasts
Researchers at Google tackled the project because it presented a chance to use big data to confront a problem
which makes all the work freely available to the public
“Our team overall is focused on accelerating climate positive action by leveraging our capabilities in artificial intelligence and data processing,” Mr
“Contrails felt like one of those projects that was at the intersection of a big data problem and a big climate opportunity.”
Studies have shown 80 per cent of contrails are created by 2- to 12-per-cent of all flights
meaning actions on small number would have a large impact
A United Nations panel on climate change has warned the rate at which the Earth is warming must be capped at 1.5 C by the end of the century
emissions must peak before 2025 and fall by 43 per cent by 2030
Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick said the Montreal-based airline’s environmental team is watching the various studies on contrail reduction
“with an eye to incorporating the findings in future flight planning.”
the air traffic controller for domestic airspace and much of the busy North Atlantic region
takes part in industry discussions led by the United Nations’s civil aviation agency and is working with Transport Canada on ways to reduce the impact of aviation
as American Airlines’s chief sustainability officer
is driving the Texas-based carrier’s plan to reduce harmful emissions
She knows this is not an easy route for one of the world’s biggest airlines
and the tools to get there are at least a decade away
“All of our climate solutions are not yet developed,” she said from New York City
“When you look at our pathway to net zero [emissions] by 2050
we’re relying on things that barely exist now
All of these things have a 10- to 15-year runway.”
The airline is no longer flying routes that avoid creating contrails – that experiment is finished
She believes the 2-per-cent added burn in fuel is too great
scientists she works with tell her now is the time to be ready to trigger that tactic once more
“As we learn and become better at targeting the most warming contrails
we’ll have those strategies in place,” she said
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Eric Atkins is a transportation reporter for The Globe and Mail’s Report on Business
He began at The Globe and Mail in 2005 after working at the National Post
Eric studied communications and political science at York University and business at Seneca College
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Thejkumar celebrates his 36th birthday on 2nd of January 2017
It's been nearly seven years since Thej has achieved all his three GM norms
and he proved it recently by winning the Liffre Open 2016 in France with a dominating performance of 8.0/9
Through this article and a few annotated games we show you why Thej can be called a great positional player
For many years now Thejkumar has been one of India's top International Masters
His story is especially inspirational because
after stagnating in the 2200 zone for quite some
Thej made real progress when he was nearing his thirties
He scored three GM norms without even having an IM title
it was his ambition to achieve the grandmaster title without becoming an IM
the 2500 Elo mark has been elusive for him
He has been trying to achieve that for quite some years now
His peak rating has been 2479 in August 2015
the 35-year-old from Karnataka excels in technical positions
When in good form he plays at a very high level and has scored wins over strong players like Melkumyan
he is liked by everyone in the Indian chess circles and people are happy to see him succeed
it was good to see him hit top-notch form at the Liffre Open in France from 21st to 27th of October 2016
When we asked Thejkumar to send his favourite game from the tournament with annotations he decided that it would be his eighth round victory against Velislav Kukov
If you are looking out for an option with black against the London System
The two of them are pursuing two important goals in their career
While Thej is trying to become a grandmaster
Jayashree is working hard to be a Chartered Accountant
while Jayashree has cleared her one group out of the two required to be a CA
We hope that the year 2017 would be a successful for both of them and that they will achieve their respective aims in life
Pictures from the official website
Official website
The Espoirs took advantage of Guingamp's draw at Milizac to regain the lead in the league
The two teams meet again in 15 days' time at La Piverdière
Matchday 5 - Championship Stade Rennais F.C
/ OC Cesson : 2-0 (1-0) Goals : Maxime Blanchin (32e o.g)
U19s win away from homeMatchday 7 - Championship Tours FC / Stade Rennais F.C
Three second-half goals helped Stade Rennais F.C.'s U17s win the derby against TA Rennes
with Brest having been beaten at Angers to top Group F.Matchday 7 - Championship TA Rennes / Stade Rennais F.C
U15 R1 - Bretagne Region CupAS Vitré / Stade Rennais F.C
/ FC Guipry Messac : 12-0U12 - CPB Gayeulles / Stade Rennais F.C
: 1-7GJ Bocage Fougerais / Stade Rennais F.C
/ US Illet Forêt : 7-0U10 - CS Betton 2 / Stade Rennais F.C
ABOVE: The Louth minor team that played Wicklow in 1949
Glen Emmets’ U13 boys’ team travel to France this week for a five-day tour of Brittany and to take part in an all-French Gaelic football tournament hosted by Liffré GAA club
Liffré is a town the size of Ardee and is located just 20km north-east of Rennes
a 30-strong travelling party will depart Dublin Airport on Thursday morning for Nantes in what will be a fantastic sporting and cultural experience for the players and coaches
The trip came about following a chance meeting last summer between myself
and my Liffré GAA peer Olivier Kowarski as our teams took part in the Bammel Malone U13 tournament
which is hosted annually by the Cooley Kickhams club
Tournament organiser Gerry Fearon introduced us and we set about hatching a plan that would eventually bring the Tullyallen youngsters to north-west France
Brittany is very much the beating heart of Gaelic games in France but what’s most remarkable about how the game has blossomed there is that it has been all organic
The key to this growth has been the success in establishing Gaelic football across the region's schools
a group of French PE teachers set about trying to establish a Celtic sport as part of the sporting curriculum in Brittany's schools
Gaelic football is now firmly established in secondary schools and it's growing at primary level also
An additional agreement was signed with the education authorities in 2021 that now sees Gaelic football coached in primary schools across the region
There are currently 11 Gaelic football clubs in Brittany but
you'll hardly find a single Irishman involved
Kowarski was part of that original group of PE teachers who provided the main driving force behind the Gaelic football initiative and he has since gone on to become a master coach through the GAA's coach education programme
Level 1 and Level 2 coaching courses across Brittany to expand the sport even further
local businessman Niall Lynch and myself travelled to the region earlier in the year to fine tune plans for the April tour
Enormous support has been received from parents
the local community in Tullyallen and business people in the area in raising funds for the tour
which included a hugely successful quiz night and raffle in the Morning Star pub
The kids also played their part in the effort with a very successful bag packing day at Dunnes Stores in Drogheda
the organising committee would like to acknowledge and thank their many sponsors and all those who helped make this fantastic trip possible
the three main sponsors; Protection and Prosperity Financial Services
Lynch's Centra Tullyallen and Ballygorman Construction
The focal point of the trip will see the teams compete on Sunday for the Fr Larry Caraher Cup
named after the village's former Parish Priest and Glen Emmets’ current Honorary President
representing the Louth minors in 1948 and captaining the side in 1949
He was eligible for the team again in 1950 but fell foul to the then 'foreign games ban’ when playing schools’ rugby with St Mary’s College in Dundalk
he would never get the opportunity to play Gaelic football again
Two of his teammates on that 1949 minor team
would go on to win the Sam Maguire Cup with Louth eight years later
I can't help thinking that if circumstances had been different
League of IrelandDrogheda get back to winning ways in dramatic fashion as Ryan Brennan hits late
late penalty Ryan Brennan has long since assumed the role of Drogheda United hero
but even he won’t have experienced quite as many magical moments as when his 96th-minute penalty beat Cork City on Bank Holiday Monday
A prolific weekend for the Rouge et Noir Academy
U19 Nationaux - championshipStade Rennais F.C
U17 Nationaux - championshipStade Rennais F.C
Rennes : 3-2U15 R1 - championshipAuray F.C