2017 Canadian Chess Player of the Year

**David Ottosen** · Tuesday, 19th April, 2022, 01:51 PM

Can't say anyone really leaps out at me here.

When I look at these, I always look for:

1) a signature moment/performance (eg, winning an international event, or receiving a meaningful title). Kovalyov's performance (including eliminating Anand) is there but the unfortunate circumstances (absolutely none of which was his fault and he is to be commended for standing up for himself) that followed kind of dampens everything related to that. I don't think any other one off thing leaps out at me from the list.

2) results in the most prestigious Canadian events, notably the Closed, the Open, and the Quebec Open. With a win in the Closed and a 2nd in the Quebec open, Sambuev to me is the clear leader.

3) volume of solid results and you can make an argument between Sambuev and Hambleton

So, to me, it's Sambuev.

**Erik Malmsten** · Tuesday, 19th April, 2022, 05:34 PM

Originally posted by David Ottosen View Post

Can't say anyone really leaps out at me here.

When I look at these, I always look for:

1) a signature moment/performance (eg, winning an international event, or receiving a meaningful title). Kovalyov's performance (including eliminating Anand) is there but the unfortunate circumstances (absolutely none of which was his fault and he is to be commended for standing up for himself) that followed kind of dampens everything related to that. I don't think any other one off thing leaps out at me from the list.

2) results in the most prestigious Canadian events, notably the Closed, the Open, and the Quebec Open. With a win in the Closed and a 2nd in the Quebec open, Sambuev to me is the clear leader.

3) volume of solid results and you can make an argument between Sambuev and Hambleton

So, to me, it's Sambuev.

An impressive thing about Sambuev is the large number of Canadian tournaments he plays in, giving local players a rare chance to learn from a Grandmaster. I wonder if he plays more CFC games than all the other GMs combined.

**Fred McKim** · Sunday, 8th May, 2022, 04:26 PM

The vote is in and the 3 Finalists for 2017 are Grandmasters Aman Hambleton, Nikolay Noritsyn, and Bator Sambuev. We'll reveal the winner in a few days. Comments are welcome.

**Cecil Rosner** · Tuesday, 10th May, 2022, 07:22 PM

Just a reminder of where to find my columns in the Globe and Mail. I have done short profiles on many of the top Canadian players, with more coming each week: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/puzzles-and-crosswords/

**Kerry Liles** · Wednesday, 11th May, 2022, 11:19 AM

Originally posted by Cecil Rosner View Post

Just a reminder of where to find my columns in the Globe and Mail. I have done short profiles on many of the top Canadian players, with more coming each week: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/puzzles-and-crosswords/

Cecil - thanks for posting that link... May I suggest you repost that as a separate (main) topic so that potentially more chesstalkers will see it?

**Fred McKim** · Wednesday, 11th May, 2022, 01:04 PM

The vote is in and the 2017 Canadian Player of the Year is GM Bator Sambuev.

1. Sambuev - 50
2. Noritsyn - 24
3. Hambleton - 23
4. Kovalyov - 18
5. Chiku-Ratte - 10
6. Preotu - 2
=7. Demchenko - 1
=7. Ouellet - 1
=7. Song - 1