Chess & Bridge is one of the main sponsors of the EJCOA National Youth Championships Finals, and the learning partner of EJCOA. Please take a look at our Recommended Books & Software at Chess & Bridge.
The Nottinghamshire Chess Foundation (NCF) is also a main sponsor of the National Youth Championships Finals. The NCF provides financial support and grants to develop and improve chess participation and achievement in the Nottinghamshire area.
The English Junior Coaches and Organisers Association National Youth Championships is an event originated from the need to improve standards across England in respect of junior chess. The Championships provides further competitions for children. There will be age group categories as follows: U8, U10, U12, U14 , U16, U18, U20.
You can qualify for the 2025 EJCOA National Youth Championships Finals in one of three ways:- By winning your age section in a Zonal of the EJCOA National Youth Championships (one boy and one girl qualify from Under 8, U10, U12, U14, U16, U18 and U20 age groups).
List of EJCOA National Youth Championship Zonals » - By rating. Any player with a published current minimum ECF or FIDE standard play rating (as below) is entitled to enter the EJCOA National Youth Championships:
Under 8: 800
Under 10: 1000
Under 12: 1200
Under 14: 1400
Under 16: 1600
Under 18: 1700
Under 20: 1800 - Wild Card entries. These players will be invited by the EJCOA Selection Committee, based on a combination of:
A) Performance in an EJCOA National Youth Championships Zonal
B) Performance in other recent events
The event will run first in a national zonal qualification stage at various venues across England. From each Zonal, the top boy and top girl will qualify for the final. The Zonals will be rapidplay graded. The final will take place in Nottingham , and will be ECF graded as well as FIDE rated.
The national coaching group have identified an issue in junior chess that has existed for quite some time: there are simply not enough FIDE rated events for juniors to play in unless they are willing to travel to various parts of England on a weekly basis. That said, the situation now is much better than it used to be. We aim to improve the position for juniors still further.
In order to gain a significant title such as International Master (IM) or Grandmaster (GM), you need three norms, plus you must have reached a rating band, currently 2400 for IMs and 2500 for GMs
Juniors can gain norms from Swiss system tournaments with 9 or more rounds. However, there are hardly any of these in England. In addition, the possibility of gaining a norm is totally reliant on who a player is paired against, and so even good play may not be enough.
The best way for a talented junior to get a norm is through an all-play-all event. A points tally for a norm is set before the event, normally around 6.5 / 9. This is based on the average grade of the 9 players taking part. However, juniors who have low FIDE ratings despite their actual strength being much higher will not get invited to such events, as they would drag the average rating down to a point that a norm all-play-all becomes not viable. England is littered with talented juniors who are the right playing strength for a norm all-play-all and have a high English Chess Federation rating but a dreadfully low FIDE rating. These juniors do not get invited to such events, and so the cycle continues.
The EJCOA National Youth Championships is designed to help bridge this gap at a younger age. The final will be FIDE rated all the way down to Under 8s, giving young players the chance to get on the FIDE ladder at a younger age. As the Championships evolve over the years, we will be trying to provide more FIDE rated games for children.
There are a number of Zonals in various places across England:
List of EJCOA National Youth Championship Zonals »
