2021 National Collegiate Women Team Championship

2021 US National Collegiate Women's Team Cup

Sunday, October 31, 2021, Online: collegiate.chess.stream

Joining Zoom with camera is required for this tournament!
Zoom link will be here during the tournament:


 

  1. GOALS

    1.1. Determination of the 2021 U.S. National Collegiate Women’s Team Cup Winner.
    1.2. Popularization and growth of collegiate chess in the U.S.

  2. ORGANIZER AND ARBITER

    2.1. The tournament is endorsed by the U.S. Chess Federation.
     
    2.2. The tournament is organized by the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.
    2.3. Chief Organizers: GM Bartek Macieja and GM Alexander Mista.
    2.4. Chief Arbiter: IA Grant Oen, [email protected]

  3. VENUE, FORMAT AND TIME CONTROL

    3.1. The tournament is hosted on the chess platform www.lichess.org
    3.2. The build-in lichess.org rules will be used.
    3.3. The pairings, registration, and information of the tournament can be found at: collegiate.chess.stream
    3.4. The time control shall be game in 10 minutes, with a 5-second increment from move one (G/10+5).
    3.5. The clocks will be started by the arbiter one minute after the start of the round. Players who do not show up in time to make their first move before they run out of time will be forfeited and removed from the tournament unless the Chief Arbiter decides otherwise.
     

  4. SCHEDULE


    4.1. The tournament is a 1-day event. It will take place on Sunday, October 31, 2021.
    4.2. The first round will begin at 11 am Central Daylight Time.
    4.3. The 2021 U.S. National Collegiate Women’s Team Cup will be a 5 round team Swiss tournament.

    4.4. Schedule
     
    DAY CENTRAL TIME EVENT
    Sunday, October 31
         		 10:00 AM Registration Closes
    10:45 AM Players Must be Online
    11:00 AM Round 1
    11:40 AM Round 2
    12:20 PM Round 3
    01:00 PM Round 4
    01:40 PM Round 5

     

  5. TEAM COMPOSITION


    5.1. A team shall be made up of two female players.
    5.2. No alternates are allowed.
    5.3. Teams with only one registered player will not be allowed to participate.
    5.4. If one player doesn’t show up for her game, her teammate’s game will be forfeited as well.
    5.5. The tournament will be paired strictly team vs. team. Board one of team A will play board one of team B..

  6. REGISTRATION AND ELIGIBILITY


    6.1. Teams and players shall register at collegiate.chess.stream by October 30, 2021.
    6.2. Team officials and players shall use their official college email address for the registration and communication purposes.
    6.3. There is no entry fee.
    6.4. A USCF membership is not required.
    6.5. The tournament is open to students of any U.S. collegiate post-secondary school (university, college, community college, academy, seminary, conservatory, institute of technology, etc.) enrolled in at least one class in the Fall 2021 semester.
    6.6. Students are not required to have already graduated from a high school (dual enrollment).
    6.7. Players having a title of GM/IM/WGM/WIM shall be full-time degree seeking students in the Fall 2021 semester. In the final semester of their degree program, students can be enrolled in fewer classes, if it suffices to complete their degree requirements.
    6.8. Faculty and staff are not eligible to compete. In this context, “staff” is not intended to include student workers or teaching assistants.
    6.9. If you have any problems with the registration, please send an email to Chacha Nugroho [email protected]

  7. RATINGS


    7.1. The tournament shall use the most current published USCF regular ratings, if a player has one.
    7.2. If a player doesn’t have a USCF regular rating, then her FIDE standard rating shall be converted using the following formula:  
      a) USCF = 180 + 0.94 x FIDE , if FIDE no more than 2000
    b) USCF = 20 + 1.02 x FIDE , if FIDE more than 2000
    c) If a US resident has neither a USCF regular rating nor a FIDE standard rating, then she shall be considered as rated 100 USCF for the purpose of the team average rating calculation.
    d) If a resident of a country other than the US has neither a USCF regular rating nor a FIDE standard rating, then the Chief Arbiter will estimate her USCF rating for the tournament purposes using his best judgement.
    7.3. Teams are ranked in order of the average rating of both students.
    7.4. Any player rated over 2400 shall count as only 2400 when determining whether a team has a legal average.
    7.5. The average rating of a team cannot exceed 1900.0.
    7.6. There is no limit as to the number of teams per educational institution. Multiple teams will be designated as "A," "B," "C," etc., with "A" designating the team with the highest average rating.
    7.7. For schools with multiple teams, the average rating of teams “B”, “C”, etc., cannot exceed 1500.0.
    7.8. The chief TD is the final authority for resolving disputes regarding players’ ratings.

  8. STANDINGS


    8.1. A win is worth 1 point, a draw is worth ½ point, and a loss is worth 0 points.
    8.2. A match win is worth 2 match points, a drawn match is worth 1 match point, and a match loss is worth 0 match points.
    8.3. The Final Standings shall be determined by (in a descending order):
      a) Number of match points.
    b) Number of game points.
    c) U.S. Amateur Team East (USATE). In the USATE system, you multiple your wins against each individual opponent’s final score. Thus, if you defeated a 1st round opponent by a 1.5-0.5 score and they ultimately scored 2 match points in the tournament, your team would then get 3 tie-break points (1.5 x 2). If you drew 1-1 in round two against a team that would ultimately score 5 match points, then your team would get 5 tie-break points (1 x 5).
    d) Direct Encounter between all teams with the same number of match points.
    e) Bucholz Cut 1.
    f) Bucholz.
    g) Sonneborn-Berger.

  9. AWARDS


    9.1. The winning team will receive a trophy and will be named the 2021 U.S. National Collegiate Women’s Team Cup Winner.

  10. DISCONNECTIONS AND TECHNICAL ISSUES


    10.1. A short disconnect will keep the clock running. A longer disconnect will result in a forfeit. However, the game is drawn if the position is such that the opponent cannot checkmate the player’s king by any possible series of legal moves.
    10.2. If a player also disconnects from a video call, the arbiter shall decide whether further sanctions are appropriate.
    10.3. It is every player’s individual responsibility to have:
      a) Working playing device,
    b) Working camera,
    c) Working microphone,
    d) Stable Internet connection,
    e) Account created and verified on lichess.org,
    f) Knowledge and experience how to play on lichess.org.
    10.4. Players are required to be on a video call via Zoom and remain visible in their cameras during their games. The room lighting should be sufficient to allow broadcasting and movement of a player's eyes. Players are required to move their camera to show the arbiters their playing area upon request.
    10.5. The Zoom link will be e-mailed to all the participants before the start of the first round.
    10.6. Players are required to share their screen with the Zoom call.
    10.7. Players are not allowed to use virtual background.
    10.8. Players shall have their microphones off.
    10.9. The tournament staff may turn on a player’s microphone for the purpose of ensuring fair play.
    10.10. Players without a camera, or refusing to turn it on, will be forfeited for that round.
    10.11. Players shall remain in front of the camera during the game. Players that go off-camera may be forfeited for that round.
    10.12. For the purpose of the championships, the playing area is defined as a room in a dwelling where a player has the device connected to Zoom.
    10.13. Players are required to move their webcam to show the Chief Arbiter their playing area upon request.
    10.14. Zoom monitoring sessions, including video or/and audio, may be recorded for the purpose of ensuring fair play.
    10.15. Headphones, earphones and any kind of audio device or electronic devices not used for playing is not allowed during the rounds.
    10.16. Hats, caps, hoodies and any other unnecessary items covering the head are not allowed.
    10.17. No other software shall be running during games besides:
      a) Operating System,
    b) Antivirus,
    c) Zoom,
    d) Web browser that is connecting to lichess.org,
    e) Software needed to make the camera work,
    f) Software needed to make the microphone work.
    10.18. Outside assistance of any kind is strictly prohibited.
    10.19. No spectators are allowed in the playing area.

  11. FAIR PLAY


    11.1. Players shall obey the Terms of Service of lichess.org.
    11.2. Fair play concerns will be governed by the Fair Play Panel nominated by the Organizers.
    11.3. The Fair Play Panel will actively monitor the course of the championship and inform the Chief Arbiter on suspected fair play violations.
    11.4. The Fair Play Panel may use resources of lichess.org and approved external tools.
    11.5. A fair play violation may potentially lead to severe punishments, including:
      a) Warning,
    b) Forfeit of a single game,
    c) Expulsion from the championship,
    d) Other penalties the Chief Arbiter deems adequate.
    11.6. Upon consultation with the Fair Play Panel, it is at a sole discretion of the Chief Arbiter to choose the most adequate penalty for a fair play violation.
    11.7. Serious fair play violations may be reported to players’ colleges or/and to the US Chess Federation Ethics Committee. Players found guilty of cheating may be excluded from further chess competitions, including over-the-board events.
    11.8. If a player was forfeited for a violation of the Fair Play Rules or the Terms of Service of lichess.org, the opponent shall receive:
      a) One point (1.0), if the following round has not started,
    b) Extra half point (0.5) for that game, not to exceed one point (1.0), if the following round has started.
    11.9. Upon the completion of the last round of the championship, the Chief Arbiter will be given 2 weeks to analyze fair play data gathered by lichess.org and the Fair Play Panel. This time can be extended, if deemed necessary.
    11.10. By entering the tournament, each player accepts the above-mentioned fair play measures as a condition of entry in a voluntary event and agrees that his/her participation takes place subject to these fair play measures. Each player acknowledges and agrees that he/she consents to the transfer of all his/her personal data by lichess.org to the tournament staff and the US Chess Federation, including his/her real name, games played, evidence of non-compliance with the fair play rules, including audio or/and video recording of games (if any).

  12. MISCELLANEOUS


    12.1. Decisions of the Chief Arbiter are final.
    12.2. The final interpretation of this document belongs to the Chief Organizers.
    12.3. If you have any questions send email to Chief Organizer GM Bartek Macieja, GM Alex Mista [email protected], Chief Arbiter Grant Oen, [email protected] or Deputy Chief Arbiter Chacha Nugroho, [email protected]
    12.4. Teams wishing to withdraw during the tournament shall inform the Chief Arbiter before the pairings for the next round have been published.
    12.5. Teams wishing to cancel/withdraw before the tournament shall use this form, or send an email to Chacha Nugroho if any problems.