All Welcome!
Thursday afternoons at the BMI
All Welcome!
Thursday afternoons at the BMI
To all Ballarat Junior Chess Club members, parents, and chess players:
We are very pleased to announce that Chess coaching and games sessions for Term 4 of 2026 are back and present the information and registration details below.
We will be continuing using our improved format adopted last Term. There will be 2 new coaches joining our panel for Term 4, as Justin is leaving to concentrate on his studies. We are happy to see Declan Smith and Alberto Biju joining the panel of coaches. Declan is a FIDE Candidate Master and has been club champion for the past 2 years. Alberto is a rapidly improving player in the senior chess club and is actively involved in reporting club events for our website. He will be involved in a supporting role for the other coaches.
Simon will continue to take the 8 most advanced students whilst others will continue to use workbook folders enabling coaches to monitor their development. Scott has reviewed progress made by students in Term 3 and he will prepare more advanced worksheets for students who have progressed. Scott will decide if a student has progressed sufficiently to join the advanced group if places are available.
We request all students arrive and compete the sign in sheet by 5.20pm. At 5.30pm sharp there will be an interactive lecture style activity by Scott using a large demonstration board in the Humffray Room. This session will continue until 5.45pm when the students will break out into their respective coaching groups to start on their worksheets monitored and assisted by their coach. The coaching groups continue until 6.15pm when the League games session will begin. Awards will be made annually in Term 4 for League performances and encouragement awards for students who stand out at their respective levels.
As usual juniors not involved in the coaching session will be able to join the League games session for free.
Start Date: Thursday, 8 October
End Date: Thursday, 3 December
Time: 5.30 pm – 6.45/7.00 pm
Location: Humffray Room, Level 4, Ballarat Mechanics Institute,
117 Sturt Street, Ballarat.
Registration and Fees
Students from Term 2 of 2026 can now register and pay for Term 3 via this TryBooking link Register via TryBooking – https://www.trybooking.com/DQJFU
Students returning after a break should contact Kevin to confirm that a place is available. New students should complete the attached 2026 application form unless one has been provided recently. They should then contact Kevin to confirm that a place is available. Once confirmation is received, they can then register and pay at TryBooking.
If your child is not continuing in Term 4 of 2026, please let us know via email or text so we can allocate their place to someone on the waiting list.
5.20 pm: Arrival and register on sign-in sheet.
5.30 – 5.45 pm: Joint Lecture style activity for all students, except for more advanced students whose groups will start immediately.
5.45 – 6.15 pm: Formal sessions in allocated coaching groups.
6.15 – 7.00 pm: League games for all players, including those not in the formal coaching sessions (free to attend).
Students participating in the paid coaching program and their families will become members of the Ballarat Chess Club, allowing them to join senior club events (Thursdays from 7.00 pm) at no additional cost. Playing in the longer time control limit events at the senior club is the best way for a junior player to get both an Australian and an International chess rating.
As noted previously children will not be able to access their mobile phones during coaching and games sessions. Mobile phones should be turned off and either left with their parent/carer, put in their bags or placed in a box which will be provided. We have found that students accessing mobile phones become preoccupied and disengaged in the coaching and games sessions. They can also be distracting to other students and the coaches. If a student needs to contact their parent, then they should ask their coach or the co-ordinator for assistance.
Parents are responsible for their child’s conduct during sessions. Juniors staying for senior events must behave appropriately. For further details see the attached flyer.
Additional information, including the club’s Child Safe Policy, is available on the Child Safe page.
These guidelines aim to ensure the safety of all participants, respect for the venue, and a positive experience for everyone involved.
The Ballarat Mechanics Institute is a heritage‑listed building shared with other groups, including elderly patrons. It is essential that all juniors demonstrate respect for the venue and its users by following the rules outlined below.
Contacts:
Please fill in your details on the
enrolment page and follow the prompts to make payment.
For enquiries about the course or payment, contact BCC Treasurer
Kevin Perrin (0418 533 517).
Dear Ballarat Chess Club and Ballarat Junior Chess Club families,
What a fantastic day of chess we had at our Winter Cup on Tuesday!
We had junior players of different ages and playing levels competing across eight rounds, with plenty of hard‑fought games, new challenges and, most importantly, lots of chess being played.
🏆 Winter Cup Results
1st – Terrance Wang
2nd – Anirudh Weerakkody
3rd – Johan Stanley
Congratulations to all three!
Terrance takes home the Winter Cup 1st Place trophy and a chess clock, while 2nd and 3rd place received chess sets and medals.
We also awarded a Best Girl prize, with congratulations to Minsadi Wansapura, who received a chess clock.
Intermediate Group
1st – Jamie Galante
2nd – Aaron Du
3rd – Luca Golante
The Intermediate players were competing for chess clocks and chess boards as prizes, giving everyone another goal to work towards throughout the tournament.
A big congratulations to all of our prize winners — and to everyone who took part. An eight‑round tournament is a big day of chess, and it was great to see the players challenging themselves, learning from their games and enjoying the day together.
New to Chess?
A great site for learning the basics from a fun video, improving with puzzles, and playing against QWERTY the chess computer. Visit ChessKid.com.
Want to learn how to write down your games? Chess notation made easy .
