History of the Chess Rock
THE BEGINNING
The Chess Rock of the Casino Prado Suburenc is a historic sports entity, the fourth oldest in Sitges. In 2007, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of its founding, the Peña d'Escacs published a book that covers its first 75 years of history. The back cover reads:
“The Penya d'Escacs of the Casino Prado in Sitges has a long and glorious history. Since its founding in 1932, it has kept the flame of chess in Sitges bright and lit. He has had ups and downs, good times and bad times, as with any sports entity, but he has never stopped playing and promoting among the people of Sitges what his raison d'être is, chess ”
In recognition of its long history, and coinciding with it The 75th anniversary, the Penya d'Escacs, received the prestigious award local “Trinitat Catasús” in the “Sitges tradition”.
THE ORGANIZING ROCK
Perhaps the most important event in the history of the Peña was probably the celebration in 1934 of a great tournament, the “First International Chess Tournament” “Vila de Sitges” , at the “Gran Hotel Terramar Palace”, organized by the Barcelona Chess Club, in which the Penya d'Escacs only collaborated. It was a very important championship since at that time in Spain there had only been three antecedents, a San Sebastián, in 1911 and 1912 and in Barcelona in 1929. The first world figures of the time, such as Tartakower, moved to Sitges. Koltanowsky, Lilienthal (who was the winner), etc.
Image of the Assembly Hall of the Gran Hotel Terramar Palace during the celebration of the Tournament
This event should be the seed of the organizing vocation of the Peña, which bore fruit, in 1948, with the "First National Chess Tournament of Sitges 1948" "Malvasia Robert Grand Prix", organized exclusively for our Rock. It was played in the halls of the Casino Prado and in it participated players like Manuel Golmayo, Arturo Pomar or Miquel Albareda (who was the final winner), as well as the two best players of the Penya of the moment: Antoni Marcet and Antoni Almiñana.
The following year, the Penya scored even higher, organizing a new tournament, but this time international, the "Second International Chess Tournament of Sitges 1949 ", in which a mixture of the best French and Spanish players of the moment took part, including the champion of France, and the Spaniards Antonio Medina, Jaume Lladó or Arturo Pomar (who was the final winner), and also with the participation of the two local players mentioned above.
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Match between Antoni Marcet and Mme Silans-Chaude. At the center Antoni Corella, director of the tournament
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Overview of the tournament game room at Casino Prado
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Image of Arturo Pomar, winner of the II International Tournament of Sitges, when he was a child
The organizational vocation of the Penya was not resumed until 1975, when a Festa Major championship was organized, which quickly took off, becoming the current International Chess Open “Vila de Sitges” , which in 2016 saw its 42nd edition and which is today one of the strongest championships in the Catalan calendar and, together with the one in Badalona, the dean of our country .
Other minor championships, organized by the Peña foren, in 1990 the organization, during the Christmas holidays of the "1st Open of Christmas Chess" , for players of 2ª and 3ª categories and valid for the promotion, but which failed to attract players from outside the region, so only two were organized editions. And in 2009, in commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the “First International Chess Tournament” of 1934, the Chess Club organized, a modest 10-player closed tournament called "III Vila de Sitges International Chess Tournament" , which unfortunately did not have continuity. The five best Penya players of the moment: GM Karlsson (who finished second), MI JA Lacasa, Enric Fernàndez, Santiago Beltran and Antonio Ayas. The winner was the Peruvian FM (today GM) Filemon Cruz.
In addition to the Open Internationally, the Peña has also organized very important events, including:
- Year 1979: Session of Simultaneous Games by the world runner-up Viktor Korchnoi
- Year 1991: Spanish School Championship
- Year 1995: Spanish Championship for First Division Teams - North Group
- Year 2005: Organization of the "Catalan Chess Festival" at the Port Sitges Resort
In 2014, a fact occurred, somewhat similar to what happened exactly 80 years earlier. A hotel in Sitges, the hotel Sunway, and driven by its owner who is a big chess enthusiast, organized in Sitges, an important international "Open" of chess, in which our Chess Club collaborated as a co-organizer. This is the first "Sunway Chess Festival" , which has had continuity and has opened a fruitful stage of collaboration between this hotel. and the Peña d'Escacs, which has moved its most representative competitions there.
SHOTS DIFFERENTIALS
A differentiating feature of our Peña, compared to other clubs in our area, has historically been the incorporation into the first team of strong players from outside Sitges who have come to strengthen the first team of the Peña.
In some cases because, due to the tourist character of Sitges, some foreign players have come to live there for some time (such as the Dutch Sibbing, the Swedish GM Lars Karlsson or the German MI Peter Meister)
In other cases because various patrons - chess players in love with this game -, and in order for the Penya d'Escacs to have a more competitive first team, they have brought players like Eduardo Pérez, Josep Monedero i Eduard Bayarri, in the late sixties, or, from the nineties, Marinus Kuijf, Javier Campos, Miguel Muñoz, Xavier Mateu, José Manuel Gil, Antonio Torrecillas, Santiago Beltran, Josep Anton Lacasa, and the brothers Juan Luis and Enric Fernàndez.
Another fact that is difficult to catalog was the creation, in 1982, of a Futsal team , formed exclusively by young chess players from the Penya, for participate in the VIII Sitges Championship and, to the general surprise, they were runners-up.
The team continued to play for a few more years, until it became another section of the Casino Prado, now gone.
MAIN SPORTS SUCCESSES
And with regard to the Penya's sporting successes, since, after the Civil War, the Penya began to take part in competitions organized by the Catalan Chess Federation, the most important successes have been:
- Year 1964: First ascent to the highest category of the Catalonia Team Championship
- Year 1969: Absolute runners-up in the Cup Catalan
- Year 1979: Champions of Children's Catalonia by Team
- Year 1992: Absolute Champions of Catalonia in Fast Team Games
- Year 1995: Runners-up absolute of Catalonia by Teams
- Year 1995: Second place in the Championship of Spain of Equipment of First Division, North Group
- Year 1996: Third place in the Spanish Championship of First Division Teams, North Group
Juan Luis Fernandez, Antonio Torrecillas, JMGil and Xavier Mateu, champions of Catalonia of Fast Matches by Teams
Xavier Mateu (captain), Antonio Torrecillas, José Manuel Gil, Enric Fernàndez, Juan Luis Fernàndez, and Javier Campos (MI), members of the team that played in the first division of the Spanish Team Championship, at the hotel Great Sitges
.... and the story goes on, but with a Chess School, currently with over forty participants, it looks like our Supporters Club he still has a lot of history to write about
© 2017 Penya Escacs CP | per Yago Bea Blasco.