Chess Scotland Adult Selection Criteria

[andyburnett]

Here's an issue that could apply. Some leagues update results at end of the season for grading meaning that in the middle of the season all of your games may not be up for grading. Thus would it be sensible to have criteria being 15 games (8 FIDE) in 6 months or 30 games (16 FIDE) in 12 months and if any of the two apply they're classed as active

Interesting and useful point Kenny Will have a look at that aspect.

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Reading through the posts, I have a few questions (apologies if these have already been addressed, or if I have misunderstood anything...:

Firstly, is selection based on FIDE rating or CS grade (and is that active grade or published grade)? I see that players are often compared by FIDE rating which would be useful to compare level in international and larger tournaments, and I feel is appropriate for more "full-time" players, however for others (thinking more about female players), FIDE rating and CS grade can be significantly different. Which has more value for selection?
Firstly, is selection based on FIDE rating or CS grade (and is that active grade or published grade)?

Hi Alice. Welcome to the forum! The selectors will look at both ratings/grades, the number of each played, levels of play etc when deciding.

I saw that the idea of "supporting chess in Scotland" came up as being something worth considering during selection. From a personal point of view, I currently study at uni in England, therefore can rarely play in Scotland (only during holidays); is this something that would count against being selected due to little activity in Scottish tournaments?

Absolutely not. We have many players living all over the globe who have represented Scotland both now and in the past. The selectors aren't fussed if you live in Moscow, Russia or Moscow, Ayrshire!

I'm slightly unsure as to whether the period of play being considered would be in the last 6 months or the last 12 months... I tend to think it should be in the last 12 months as this would ensure to include the Scottish and (in cases such as mine) would help increase the number of FIDE games considered (as well as games in Scotland), which players may have less opportunities to attend at other times during the year.

The 'previous 6 months' has been chosen as the most recent and indicative level of play, although as I mentioned before this may be tweaked, with the number of games rising accordingly from my viewpoint at least. The inclusion of the Scottish is currently under consideration/discussion too.

I fully understand that choosing to play chess over other things in life would increase chance of selection, and I totally agree that more committed players who make more of an stretch to attend more tournaments should perhaps be selected over similarly or slightly higher rated players; however looking at the top 10 or so females in Scotland, it may be difficult to support commitment and activity as much as level of play (for example Ali and myself playing less due to studies, and Elaine decreasing activity due to family)- due to the unfortunate lack of female players in Scotland, we could quickly run out of strong enough players who have been active all year round...

Of course, everyone has other commitments (even me, someone who plays around 100 FIDE-rated games per year). Finding that bit extra time to play to ensure a chance of international honours is...worth it. I do see the point that because of a smaller player pool there could be some issues which the Open teams might not encounter and will give serious thought to that. Thanks!

(My first post on the Chess Scotland Forum- Woop Woop!!! ). Woohoo - time to take bets on how long you'll last

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This updated criteria sounds much better to me : They were suggestions and possibilities only, but nothing is set in stone yet