ShK Alkaloid women retain national team chess title, men ride Ivic’s win to victory
Alkaloid’s women scored 11/12 and beat MShK Centar 2.5:1.5 to retain the team title; the men won 3.5:2.5 over ShK Gambit with Velimir Ivic providing the decisive point.
ShK Alkaloid's women's team successfully defended their crown at the national team chess championship, finishing the event with 11 out of a possible 12 match points. Their decisive victory came against direct rivals MShK Centar, a match that ended 2.5:1.5 and effectively secured the title.
Key performances and the line-up
The champion women’s line-up included Lela Javakhishvili, Bela Kotenashvili, Monika Stojkoska, Gabriela Koskoska, Monika Zhezhovska and Lea Eftovska, all of whom contributed to Alkaloid’s near-perfect score over the tournament.
On the men’s side ShK Alkaloid continued on a strong course to retain their title after a 3.5:2.5 win over ShK Gambit in the sixth round. The match was long and closely contested: five individual games finished in draws, and the crucial full point was delivered by grandmaster Velimir Ivic, who won on board two against Dutch grandmaster Thomas Berdsen.
The young squad of Multi Esens is showing promise as well: after six rounds they share fourth place with ShK Nov Napredok from Shtip, both clubs having accumulated six points.
The results underline Alkaloid’s depth in both the women’s and men’s events, with the women clinching the championship and the men positioned to challenge for a repeat of last season’s success.
Photo: press material from the event
