The 4th
annual Triathlon tournament attracted a field of 13 players, headed by Ruari Coffey with Harrison Harrison as 2nd
seed. The numbers were down from last years event, but still on a par with the first two
tournaments. Six of the players have competed in all four Triathlons.
The round 1 blitz featured one major upset, when Leonard Goodison defeated top seed Ruari Coffey. In
the round 2 rapid, Caitlin Barnett starred with an upset victory over Harrison Harrison; while in the round
3 classical, Leonard Goodison once again stepped up with a draw against experienced veteran Kevin
Perrin. In round 4, it was Caitlin Barnett again, scoring a blitz victory over Rob Loveband, while in the
round 5 rapid Caitlin gave herself a chance of gold! with a draw against Patrick Cook.
However, it was not to be; Ruari Coffey defeated Caitlin to win the Gold medal with 5/6, while Patrick
Cook defeated Harrison Harrison to finish as runner-up on an undefeated score of 4.5/6.
The Silver medal for best reserves score was taken by Tom Oppenheim on 3/6, ahead of Lewin Blanch
and Jasan Barnett on 2.5/6.
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The idea for holding a "Triathlon" - a mix of blitz, rapid and short standard games held on the one day, was conceived by Jasan Barnett. It was well received, with many members expressing support for the tournament as a fun way to end the year of chess. The inaugural tournament was held in the Hooper Room of the Ballarat Mechanics' Institute, the club's new domicile from 2017.
