All participants have achieved big successes in the youthful competitions; have medals of the national, European and World championships. And two of them, fourteen-year Dmitry Andrejkin (Russia) and Jury Kuzubov (Ukraine) are International Masters already! They and also last year's winner - Russian Jan Nepomnjatshchy and Sergey Zhigalko from Byelorussia are indisputable favorites. They are in the meanwhile Fide Masters, but have ELO ratings coming nearer to Grandmaster's! Whether other juniors manage to make them a real competition, the course of tournament will show.

Nowadays organization of even large tournaments and national championships frequently leaves much to be desired. One wants to tell the organizers the move kind words for what they have done already. The dramatized opening of the tournament has taken place to the motives of the fairy- tale "Alice in Wonderland" realized by a troupe of local amateur performances, and spectators have liked it very much. As Head of the Protocol Department of the "KINEF" O.J. Fyodorova has told me that selection and preparation of the participants of this unforgettable show continued during half a year! Hat greetings to the participants have been directed by president of the RChF (Russian Chess Federation) Alexander Zhukov, by ex-world champions Vladimir Kramnik and Alexander Khalifman. However, Alexander Valerievch personally has been present on the opening and after its termination he has given a session of simultaneous display to cadets of military schools of the city on the river Neva. It is curious, that the teacher at whom President of Russia V.V.Putin once studied is engaged in education of patriotic and aesthetic qualities of the future officers of the Russian army. She's Vera Dmitrievna Gurevich. One cadet only has managed to make a drawn game. But International Master I.J. Blechtsin has had to solve a more difficult problem. He has encountered the strongest chessplayers of Kirishi and his victory (9,5:6,5) looks less convincing. Igor Jakovlevich promotes popularization of chess for many years and in different roles. By the way, he has a direct relation to the sharp rise of interest for this ancient game in the Petersburg "University of Economy and Finance".

Perfect conditions have been created to young chessplayers for disclosing their creative abilities. The chessplayers and their seconds have been placed in the comfortable four- stars hotel "Youth", and it takes three minutes of walking from the hotel to the tournament half in a modern Palace of Culture. Now it is their turn to please the chess world, their fans and critics. Competition will be prolonged till June 29, and on the 24-th all of them have to go on a fascinating excursion to a suburb of Saint Petersburg, town of fountains Petrodvorets.

update 11-10-2004