IM Junta Ikeda has won the 2024 ANU Open, winning both his final round games to finish on a perfect 6 from 6. A quick round 6 win over CM Hui Li was enough to secure outright first, leaving the other players battling for the minor placings. FM Fred Litchfield eventually finished on 5/6 after beating Thomas Gatzen-O'Keefe, although Gatzen O'Keefe still finished on enough points to collect the 1600-1999 rating prize. Young Sydney junior Vu Ky Anh Nguyen finished in third place on 4.5, while Kamal Jain and Thomas Eleutherios shared the remaining rating prize.
The Minor (Under 1600) section saw a 3 way tie for first place. Daniil Yelkhovsky started the day on 4/4, but 2 drawn games allowed Jerry Cheng and Connor Amoore to catch him on 5/6. The other prizes were shared fairly generously, with a number of ties in each rating section. There were good performances by local junior players, although a few 'grown ups' also took home some cash.
73 players took part across both sections, and the event was pretty easy to run. Once again the ANU provided us with a good venue, with plenty of room for the players, and good access for the spectators. The increase in prizes (up to $4000) also saw an increase in the size of the field. Now that the event looks to be back on a secure footing, hopefully next year will see the event move towards attracting an even larger turnout.
Full standings can be found at https://www.vegaresult.com/en/event.php?id=2715 while game from Rounds 2 to 6 in the Open can be found at https://lichess.org/broadcast/2024-anu-open/round-6/DUcjk3Eg
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