No VAS1 member was available to provide a comprehensive report so we asked ChatGPT5 to write it based on rumors, fabricated allegations, and gossip.
Dutch chess is rich in history. Famous dates:
December 15 1935: Euwe becomes world champion.
November 10 1976: The Netherlands gets a silver medal at the Men’s chess Olympiads.
January 31 2021: Jorden van Foreest wins Tata Steel, ahead of all the big boys
And last but not least, Feb 3 2023: Purmerend beats VAS1 during the a gloomy, nauseating day.
You all remember it acutely. Rafael not showing up and other tales of horror. No need to revisit them. This year’s VAS1 team was planning to exact revenge, poised to scratch that ugly stain from our collective consciousness.
Reinforced by legendary GM Friso Nijboer and youth members climbing fast and hard, we had every reason to be confident.
Job made quick work of his opponent after several miss steps early on to open up the score. The silent killer strikes again.
Victor followed through afterwards with a cagey and slightly hesitant win. As soon as the position opened up however, we all knew it was just a matter of time before the Alkmaar. Hurricane unleashed the devastation. The man is back.
Anton did what Anton does i.e. grind effortlessly until the apples falls in his basket, rolling into the oven, for a nice comforting Automn Dutch apple pie, sprinkled with Javanese cinnamon.
Ramon was again busy at work, thoughtfully painting a harmonious canvass of the Dutch landscape with white against a combative Coenen. Winning a pawn, and then another, he stumbled on the finish line. His opponent claimed a 3-fold repetition when there were still practical chances left. Bummer.
Let it be known, Tex hates being typecast. Facing Purmerend’s top guy, Hing Ting Lai, he decided the day was ripe for metamorphosis. Foregoing his classical chess upbringing, he went for some kind of tribal dance of fire on move 3. Chaos ensued with chances on both sides, finally ending in perpetual check and myocardial infarcts everywhere. Fine Tex, you made your point. I see 1.e4 in the imminent future.
Rafael is having a thunderous year, eating rating points for breakfast. Despite a few inaccuracies, he kept his own party going, confidently outplaying his opponent in the endgame, eventually triumphing in a rook-bishop vs rook endgame.
Daan has 9 lives. Unkillable. He showed it again. After a very nice opening with immediate winning chances, he made a big inaccuracy, stumbling in a lost position. Time to resign we all thought. And that’s when Daan went to work in this position.
1…Kc4 (yes 1…Rh1 followed by h2 wins easily) 2.Rc6 Kb3 3.Rb6!? Kxa3?? (Ka2 was
lights out) 4.Rb3! Ka2 (4…Ka4 5.Rxc3 is a theoretical draw) 5.Rb2! Rb2 stalemate!
Friso welcomed his VAS groupies by showed his class. Against IM Barry Brink, he went for risky imbalances with black and landed in a superior endgame, which he confidently converted. It was funny to hear about his past experiences in the opening against such legends as Nakamura.
Take was the last to finish. In a long tedious strategic game in which he tried everything,
he couldn’t topple his stubborn opponent and settled for a draw.
Some may be surprised to read that there were only 9 games last Saturday. This is indeed true.Rumors of a Ghannoum implosion in the opening followed by a gross oversight (and fine play from his opponent) are entirely baseless and merit no consideration. Fake news. Worthy of media censorship. Just stop already.
Next Stop: Amstelveen! One of the favorites to promote, and a crucial matchup for the top places in the division. Don’t miss it…
by Marc Ghannoum
Prima shirts!