Events

The Australian Junior Chess Championship is the most significant chess event of the year for Australian Juniors. The top juniors from around the country have the opportunity to compete for the official Australian Junior Chess Champion titles!

Classical Events:

The main feature of AJCC is the classical events. Divisions are: U18, U16, U14, U12, U10 & U8 Open and U18, U16, U14, U12, U10 & U8 Girls. The winners of each these divisions can officially call themselves Australian Junior Champions! Not all divisions run for the entire duration of the event. The schedule and time control of each division can be found here.

Australian Junior Blitz Championships:

The Australian Junior Blitz Championships will be held on Friday, 15th January commencing at 2:00pm. This is a rest day for all classical events. There will be two divisions: U18 Open & U12 Open. However, Australian Junior Blitz Champion titles and 1st, 2nd & 3rd place prizes will still be given for all age categories, both open and girls. More information on how prizes are awarded for combined events can be found here.

Problem Solving Competition:

The problem solving competition will be held on Friday, 15th January, commencing at 10:00am. This is a rest day for all classical events. Participants will have limited time to attempt to solve a series of interesting, creative (and difficult!) chess puzzles. Similarly to the Australian Junior Blitz Championships, there will be two papers: U18 Open & U12 Open. 1st, 2nd and 3rd place prizes will be awarded for all age categories, both open and girls.

ELIGIBILITY

• A player's age is considered to be their age on the 31st of December, 2026.

• The term 'Under' means that a player must be less than that age to be considered eligible to play in that division.

This means that a player who turns 10 in 2027 (i.e born in 2017) is eligible to play in U10 or a higher division. A player born in 2016 is NOT eligible to play in the U10 division and must enter into U12 or a higher division instead.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I enter in multiple divisions?

A: Yes, players can choose to play in multiple divisions, provided that they are eligible for both divisions and that the schedule permits it. For example, U8 & U10 Open participants may wish to also play in the U12 or U14 Open divisions, or U8 & U10 Girls participants may wish to also play in the U8 or U10 Open divisions. If you wish to play in multiple events please make sure to register for each event separately.

Q: What is the time control for each division?

A: The time controls for each division are:

90 minutes + 30 seconds per move:   U18 & U16 Open.

60 minutes + 30 seconds per move:   U14 & U12 Open, and U18, U16, U14 & U12 Girls.

60 minutes + 10 seconds per move:   U10 & U8 Open, and U10 & U8 Girls.

3 minutes + 2 seconds per move:       U18 Open Blitz & U12 Open Blitz.

Q: Which divisions are ACF and FIDE rated?

A: All classical and blitz divisions will be ACF rated. This is the primary rating system for all divisions and will be used for seeding purposes. U12 through to U18 Open & Girls will also be FIDE rated, subject to sufficient entries. U8 and U10 divisions may also be FIDE rated if there are enough participants with FIDE ratings.

Q: How do playoffs and tiebreaks work?

A: If players end on the same score, their position in the standings will be determined by tiebreaks. The primary tiebreak system will be the Sum of Progressive Scores (SPS), followed by Sum of Progressive Score Cuts (SPSC).

In the event of a tie for first place, the winner will be determined by a playoff. If there are more than two players tied for first, automatic tiebreaks will be applied to select the top two players who will participate in the playoff. The format of the playoffs will be:

• Two games (one with each colour) of 13 minutes + 2 seconds per move. If the players are still tied,

• Two games (one with each colour) of 3 minutes + 2 seconds per move. If the players are still tied, they will continue playing two-game blitz matches until the tie is broken.

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