BCF Tournament Rules

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Eligibility:

1.  Unless otherwise stated, all BCF events will be open to all players of any age.

2.  For the Belize National Chess Championship Cycle, foreign nationals are welcomed to participate in all selection events however ONLY Belizean nationals and Permanent Residents will be allowed to participate in the Junior Chess Championship, Challengers Tournament and National Chess Championship.

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Conduct of the players, coaches and spectators:

1.  All the participants are expected to be courteous and use proper chess etiquette:

• players should always shake hands before and after the game

• players are not allowed to comment on other players’ games

• players are not allowed to talk to each other, parents or coaches while the games are in progress

If the players exhibit inappropriate and disruptive for the course of the tournament behavior, tournament directors can apply one or more of the following penalties: warning, declaring the game to be lost and expulsion from the event. (FIDE Rule).

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2.  A game should end as politely as it began! When the player thinks that the game is over, he/she should notify the opponent, give the opponent time to acknowledge the result, leave the pieces in their final position, summon a director by raising his/her hand, report the result to the director, and reset the pieces when instructed to do so. If the player fails to show the final position to the Tournament Director - Please see rule #10.

 

3.  All phones must be turned off in the tournament hall.  This applies to all participants and spectators. Current Exemption: Currently due to the lack of chess clocks, we generally ask that players use their phones as a chess clock.

 

4.  I-pods or other music-playing devices are allowed as long as they are used with earphones and provided that the music cannot be heard by other players.  If the opponent objects to it, the player may not use the music device.

 

5.  No smoking is permitted in the tournament hall.  

 

6.  Annoying behavior is prohibited. It is forbidden to distract or annoy the opponent in any manner.  If such behavior is observed or brought to the attention of the tournament director by one of the players a warning will be given. If such behavior is observed by the coach or spectator see rule #14.

Special Penalty: If the warning will not stop the annoying activity, then stronger penalty can be imposed at the discretion of the Tournament Director.   

 

7.  There is NO TALKING allowed during the game, unless one of the players makes an illegal move, such as putting or leaving his/her King in check.  In that case, the player who noticed it, is allowed to tell the opponent in a low voice that it is an illegal move.  If there is a more serious problem occurs, the player must raise his hand to have a TD resolve the issue.  

Special Penalty: If the player comments on somebody else’s move, the Tournament Director has the right to forfeit that player’s game, because giving another player a suggestion for the move during the tournament is a serious violation of the tournament rules.

 

8.  Spectators and coaches have no special privileges. They have NO right to make claims of any kind on behalf of the players.  If a problem arises during play, a player of any age should understand that he/she should promptly stop both clocks and get the attention of tournament director by raising hand.  

 

9.  A coach or a spectator who makes any comments on the game in progress in a loud enough voice to be heard by a player will be asked to leave the playing hall. 

 

Special Penalty: If the coach will make any comments suggesting a move for his player, tournament director will have the right to forfeit the game for that player.  

 

Coaches and players rights and responsibilities:

10.  It is players responsibility to report the results of the game to the Tournament Director. If the players fail to report the result of the game, tournament director has the right to record that game result as a draw with ½ point for each player.

 

11.  During the game, players have the right to call tournament director to his/her board, by stopping the clock and raising his/her hand if there is a violation of rules or dispute between the players occur. 

 

12.  Players are allowed to leave the tournament hall for water or bathroom break, but they must do it on their own time and are not allowed to stop the clock for that purpose.

 

13.  A player may appeal any ruling made by the tournament director within one-half hour and before the next round.

 

14.  A coach who observed inappropriate behavior of the players or violation of basic rules of chess has the right to inform the chief tournament director in a manner that will not be heard by the players and will not disrupt the course of the games.   Chief Tournament Director reserves the right to use his discretion on the course of action required to solve the reported problem.  Chief Tournament Director’s decisions in most instances are final.  If the claimant believes that there is a serious violation of tournament rules by the Chief Tournament Director the appeal can be submitted to the BCF in written form for consideration.

 

Tournament Directors rights and responsibilities:

1.  Tournament director has a responsibility to conduct the tournament in accordance with the tournament rules in objective manner.

 

2.  Tournament director has a responsibility to show professionalism and courtesy at any point of the tournament.

 

3.  Tournament director reserves the right to remove from the tournament any player who displays seriously disruptive, unethical or unsportsmanlike behavior.

 

4.  Tournament Directors may call flag fall and illegal moves, unless otherwise announced.

 

Touch move and adjust rule (page 20, USCF book)

 

1.  A player who needs to adjust a piece or pieces, must announce his (or her) intention to do so prior to touching the pieces.  Failure to announce this by saying “Adjust” or “j’adoube” could result in the enforcement of touch-move. 

 

2.  Players may adjust pieces only on their own time, but they may adjust their pieces as well as the opponents’.

 

3.  A player who intentionally touches a piece must move it, if legal to do so.  A player who intentionally touches or displaces an opponent’s piece must capture it, if legal to do so.  When several pieces are touched, the player must move or capture the first piece touched.  It the piece touched has no legal moves or captures, the player is free to make any legal move.

  

Notation

Note: Required on per tournament basis

 

1.  Players are exempted from this requirement when less than five (5) minutes remain in their clocks.  Only the player who has less than five minutes remaining is exempted from notating (FIDE rule). 

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2.  All players over ten (10) years of age are required to write down the moves (notate) throughout the game.  They must write down both their moves and their opponents’. Players of 10 years old and younger even though are not required to notate, should be encouraged to do so.

 

3.  Players over the age of ten (10) who, although required to notate, are not able to do so or have not yet learned chess notation, will be given a 5-minute penalty (have 5 minutes subtracted from their game).  In addition to that, players who do not have notation are not entitled to claim a draw by the 50-moves rule or three-fold repetition of the position.

 

4.  If one of the players stops notating during the game, or has more than 3 unrecorded moves, the tournament director will have the player consult the opponent’s score sheet on his/her time.  The clock of the player who borrows the opponent’s score sheet shall continue running until the score sheet has been returned. Please see the addendum for the current Chess Olympiad rules.​
 

Clocks and time controls

1.  Players must move, capture, and press the clock with the same hand.  A player who fails to do so, will be given a warning. Subsequent violations may incur a time penalty at the discretion of the Tournament Director.

 

2.  Analog clocks will be set to expire (end of the game) at 6:00.  For example, in a Game 30 (G/30) format (30 minutes per player for the entire game), the clocks will be set for 5:30.

 

3.  The Chief Tournament Director will determine the placement of the clock.  If not, the player with the Black pieces has the option (left or right) on its placement.

 

4.  In the event that a player who is paired to play is not at the table at the time the round commences, the player present will start play and wait.  If White, the player will press the clock (opponent’s side), start his (or her) time, move and press the clock for the time of the player with the Black pieces to start.  If Black is present, but not White, he will simply start White’s clock.  Once the Chief TD has given the signal to start the round, do not delay in starting the clocks just because the opponent is not present, unless otherwise instructed.

 

5.  In the event that only one player is present, but no clock is available for the game, the game will still start.  If the player hasn’t arrived after 15 minutes from the beginning of the game, the player who is present will be awarded a win.  If the player arrives in less than 15 minutes after the beginning of the round, he/she can start the game and once a clock is obtained, the player who arrived late will be penalized by having time subtracted from his/her clock.  The penalty time will be determined at the Tournament Directors discretion. (This rule is a deviation from the USCF and FIDE rules).

 

6.  If there is a dispute, or if a player wishes to introduce a claim, the player should stop both clocks and call the director by raising his (or her) hand.  A director who notices that the clock was not stopped should stop it before addressing the claim.

 

7.  Player cannot stop the clock during the course of the game to leave the playing area to get water or use the restroom. The opponent does not have to wait for the player to return before making his/her move.  The Chief Tournament Director may require the players to inform a tournament director before leaving the playing area for any reason. 

 

Illegal moves and positions:

1.  A player who makes an illegal move and hits the clock will incur a 2-minute penalty (added to his opponent’s time), if that illegal move was claimed by the opponent.

 

2.  If the illegal move is witnessed by the tournament director and was not noticed by either of the players, the player will be given a warning and the move will have to be replaced with a legal move. If there is a re-occurrence of the illegal moves by the same player, a 2 minute penalty will be used (added to the opponent’s time). Spectators must not point out any illegal moves, except to the director in a manner neither heard no noticed by the players.

 

3.  Incorrect initial position.  If, before the completion of the Black’s 10th move, it is found that the initial position of the pieces was incorrect, or that the game began with the colors reversed, then the game shall be annulled and a new game played.  The players shall begin the new game with their clocks still reflecting the elapsed time each player used in the annulled game.  If the error discovered after the Black’s 10th move, the game shall continue.

 

4.  Incorrect placement of the board.  If, during a game, it is found that the board has been placed incorrectly (correct position requires a white square in the nearer corner to the right of each player), then the position reached shall be transferred to a board correctly placed and the game continued.

 

Possible outcomes of the game: win, loss and draw

1.  Both checkmate and stalemate end the game, regardless of what happens after.  That means that if a player delivers checkmate and flags fall after that, the checkmate stands.  The same is true with stalemate which, of course, ends the game in draw even if there is a flag fall after.

 

2.  A player who runs out of time (flags) loses the game provided the opponent has enough mating material . Otherwise, the game is a draw.

 

3.  If both players run out of time, and neither player nor director noticed, the game will be declared a draw when someone finally notices.

 

4.  Draw by agreement. A player who wishes to offer a draw must say so (not just stick his hand out!).  A player can only offer a draw while on the move.  The proper way to offer a draw is to move, offer the draw, press the clock (to start the opponent’s time) and wait for the response.

 

5.  A player may accept a draw by saying so, or by offering a handshake after the draw has been offered.  A player may decline a draw by saying so, or by moving (or touching) a piece after the offer.  

 

6.  After a draw offer has been made, it cannot be retracted.  After a draw offer has been accepted, it cannot be declined.  After a draw offer has been declined, it can be reintroduced by either player, during their time, of course.

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7.  Fifty moves rule. A player who can prove that 50 moves (for both sides) have taken place, without a capture or advancement of a pawn, may claim a draw (50-move rule). 

 

8.  Insufficient material.  A lone King (K), King + Bishop (K+B), King + Knight (K+N), or King + 2 Knights (K+NN) and no other pieces is not enough mating material (insufficient mating material).  A King + Pawn (K+P), however, is, as the pawn has the potential to promote.  A player who runs out of time, and whose opponent has K+P loses the game.  Only a player (in his game) may claim a draw when both players have insufficient mating material.  A director may also declare a draw in this situation without a claim.

 

9.  Three-fold repetition of the position. A player who can prove that the same position (presently on the board) has occurred on three occasions, or is about to occur, may claim a draw (three-fold repetition).  This need not occur one right after the other – the repeated position may occur in the space of many moves.  The player will have to have a completed scoresheet to prove it.

 

Tie-Breaker

Tie-break regulations may be tournament specific but generally:

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If play-offs are required, the following parameters shall be set out in the specific tournament regulations, as needed:

1.  Whether play-offs are for all tied positions, or specific tied positions (e.g. 1st place only)

2.  Whether qualification for play-offs applies after application of none, some or all of the tie-breaks selected in Article 4.1.

3.  The format (e.g. Round Robin or Knockout)

4.  The method by which pairing numbers are allocated.

5.  The method by which colours are allocated.

6.  The time limit(s) for all of the games

7.  The schedule for the games, or the break between each game

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Ranking Criteria for BCF Events shall be as follows:

Direct Encounter

Buchholz

Sonneborn Berger

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