Last weekend, Tarun and I played in the Galway Speed Chess Championship 2025, and what a journey it was! Hop on—we’ll take you through our little chess-filled adventure, train rides, sibling rivalry, and some sunny Galway vibes.
The Journey Begins
We woke up around 6 a.m.—not exactly our natural wake-up time—and headed to the Portarlington train station.
The train ride to Galway takes about two hours. We dozed off for the first half (definitely not morning people!), but once we woke up, we were greeted by the breathtaking coastal views rolling past our window.
We even ran into some fellow chess players on the train who were on their way to the tournament too!
Strolling Through Sunny Galway
We arrived in Galway around 10:20 a.m., with enough time to make the 20-minute walk to the OLBC Youth Club, the tournament venue. The weather was on our side—it was sunny, breezy, and perfect for a relaxed walk.
The Rapid Tournament
The rapid tournament had 7 rounds. My day started strong—I won the first four games. But in Round 5, I faced Yaroslav Dumansky, the second seed. He was in time trouble, repeating moves, but I got greedy trying to push for more… and it backfired. Lost a few pawns and eventually the game. A tough pill to swallow.
In the penultimate round, I had a promising position against Adam Collins, but slipped up and ended with a draw. I salvaged a win in the final round thanks to a neat tactic, finishing the rapid with 5.5/7 and placing 5th. Knowing I hadn’t played my best, I was determined to step up in the blitz.
Tarun, on the other hand, lost to Adam in Round 3, but bounced back, scoring 6/7, sharing 2nd place.
Jacob Flynn clinched first scoring 6.5/7
Full standings here
Blitz Time: My Redemption
After a quick bite, we jumped straight into the 11-round blitz. We both started strong. Tarun dropped half a point early on but caught up, and—as fate would have it—we were paired against each other again and the game ended in a draw.
In the penultimate round, I had a nice win against Jacob Flynn.
Going into the final round, I only needed a draw to win the tournament. If I lost and Tarun won, we would’ve shared first place—but of course, I wasn’t going to let my brother take the top spot! I won my last game and clinched the tournament with a score of 10/11.
Full standings here
Wrapping Up
The event was brilliantly organized by Brian Gallagher and Ivan Baburin, who kept everything running on schedule. With things finishing on time, we managed to catch our train back home.
It was a great weekend of chess, and the sunny Galway charm. Until the next one!