PRESS RELEASE
Roseau, Dominica – The Dominica National Chess Team has made a confident step forward at the second edition of the prestigious Caribbean chess tournament, CARICOM Classic 2025, held in Guyana. The event took place at the renowned Pegasus Hotel & Suites and was organised to a high standard.
Once again, the event served as an important platform for sharing experiences and showcasing the growing standard of chess in the region. For Dominica, participation in the CARICOM Classic 2025 marked a significant stage of development and brought a number of notable achievements.
Key Successes of Team Dominica in 2025
For the first time in competing at the CARICOM Classic, Team Dominica secured victory in a team match alongside a draw in another, earning three total match points. This represents an important breakthrough compared with 2024, when the team finished without wins on the match scoreboard.
Individual performances also improved significantly. The total number of board points increased by more than 60%, rising to six and a half points in 2025. Last year, only two players scored, whereas this year all four contributed points, reflecting a stronger team balance and growing potential.
A major highlight was the strong performance by the women on the team, bringing to the fore the rising prominence of female players in Dominican Chess.
In the final standings, Dominica climbed one rank from last year, finishing 9th out of all the competing teams. Given the high level of competition, especially on the top boards with titled players, the team demonstrated clear progress in both individual gameplay and the team competition overall.
Team Line-up and Individual Performances
- Ayani Casimir, a 16-year-old local female champion, was the team’s leading scorer. She showed consistent play and scored 2.5 points, carrying the team’s overall results.
- Liudmila Domennova made a confident tournament debut, winning two of her games.
- CM Nigel Francis achieved an important victory in Round 9.
- Edger Berridge played solidly on Board 2, contributing a point to the team’s overall score.
Every team member contributed to the final score, which was the main difference compared with the previous year, when only two out of four players scored points.
Youth Debut: Dominica’s Participation in the CARICOM Classic Junior U16
This year, the tournament included a dedicated youth section — the CARICOM Classic Junior U16 Tournament, offering young chess players from across the region a platform for competition and development.
Dominica was represented by Cajani Dejean, the country’s sole participant in the Under 16 category. Despite making his debut on the international stage, Cajani demonstrated resilience by achieving three wins, including an impressive opening round victory. His participation was an important milestone in the development of youth chess in Dominica and showed promising potential for future success.
Cajani’s performance paves the way for expanding youth programmes in the country, from school clubs to international competitions.
Progress Confirmed by Results
Dominica improved nearly all key indicators: final placement, points scored, wins and draws, and the performance of the entire squad. These improvements are an objective confirmation of the progress the team has made over the past year.