Ladies and Genetelmens

I am glad to welcome all the sympathizers of chess, especially the competitors of XVI NATO Chess Championship. This venture is a very important sports and cultural event. Championships are a wonderful opportunity to make, and to deepen friendly relationship between the competitors and soldiers from different countries.

Sport has been allways taken a very important place in a military activities, because it improves a physic, and psychical soldiers' fitness and health and develops these features of their character, which are useful on the modern battlefield.

The sportsmen soldiers' personally way of thinking is conductive to create appropriate attitude of all the crew.

I wish all the competitors of XVI NATO Chess Championship a lot of sports emotion, unforgettable atmosphere, and pleasant visit in Kolobrzeg which linked with tradition and glorious history of the Polish Army.

I hope that the Championship will leave in your memory positive impression from PoLand.

Jerzy Szmajdzinski

1. Belgium 6 + 3
2. Canada 5 + 3
3. Denmark 7 + 3
4. England 6 + 2
5. France 6 + 2
6. Germany 6 + 2
7. Italy 4
8. Netherlands 6 + 2
9. Norway 4
10. Latvia 6 + 2
11. Poland 9 + 2
12. Spain 6 + 2
13. Turkey 7 + 3
14. United States 6 + 2

INTERNATIONAL MILITARY CHESS COMMITTEE
Secretariat: H.Th. Wagenaar, Chopinstraat 1, 3533 EJ Utrecht, The Netherlands
tel/fax: (home) +31-30-2936228; e-mail (home): htwj.wagenaar@wxs.nl
tel (work) +31-35-5776616; e-mail (work): HT.Wagenaar@mindef.nl

To: Addressee
Voorburg, June 9, 2005

Dear chess friends,

A little later than usual, this annual letter to the members of the International Military Chess Committee, team captains and chess friends interested in the NATO Chess Championships.

This letter always appears between two NATO Chess Championships, to keep you abreast of the latest developments within the NATO Chess community. There is not really much to write about right now. The 15 th Championship in The Netherlands is already way behind us. A record total of thirteen countries took part in this tournament. Lieutenant Colonel Johan Engelen and his staff deserve a lot of praise for a superbly organised tournament. The venue was well chosen, the food was delicious, the accommodation was outstanding and, above all, the tournament was run like clockwork by our two arbiters, Dutch international arbiter Jos Pots and, well known by now, Belgian arbiter Luc Cornet.

The German team did it again and won first prize with a total of 21 points, but was not sure about the first place until the last round. The strong Polish team finished second (19 points), and Norway occupied third place (18,5 points). It is a pity that the Norwegian Ministry of Defence has informed us recently that, because of budget cuts, there shall be no more participation of a Norwegian military chess team in the NATO Chess Championship. Also, Norway will not be organising the Championship in 2008. The IMCC is trying to reverse these decisions, but for now they seem final. Alas for team captain Major Steinar Moen and his sympathetic (and strong!) players. We can only hope to see them back soon. The individual tournament was won by International Master Lorenz Maximilian Drabke (6,5 points/7 games). Three players finished second (5,5 points): Poland 's Rafal Przedmoiski , Britain 's Andy Hammond and Matthias Kraft from Germany .

The organisation of the 16 th NATO Chess Championship in Kolobrzeg , Poland , is well under way. I hope that still new countries will find their way to the tournament. We received messages from Greece , Latvia and Spain , so we have high hopes for yet a bigger tournament. I wish Lieutenant Colonel Tomasz Malinowski and the organising committee a lot of success in putting this event together.

In The Netherlands, there was a meeting of the members of the International Military Chess Committee. It was decided that, in order to keep our beautiful website ( www.natochess.org ) in the air, an amount of 150 Euros a year (taken from the entrance fees for the NATO Chess Championships) is to be handed over to Mr. Finn Stuhr (team captain of the Danish military chess team) to give to the webmaster. Furthermore, it was decided that the planning of future tournaments is as follows:

2005 – Poland (Kolobrzeg)

2006 – United Kingdom (confirmed)

2007 – Turkey (confirmed)

2008 – (to be decided)

2009 – Germany (confirmed).

With so many confirmed tournaments ahead of us, the NATO Chess Championship is alive and kicking. I hope to see you all in Kolobrzeg.

With chess greetings,

(signed)

rs. H. Steffers

Brigadier-General RNLA (ret.)

Chairman of the International Military Chess Committee