NMBCU Trials 4 2026 (U14)

Open SwissStandard

22 players participated in this 6-round tournament, held from 24 Apr 2026 to 25 Apr 2026 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Top 10 Elo average was 1350, and top seed was Matthew Koutsouvelis (🇿🇦 RSA, 1640).

Fabian Bownes (🇿🇦 RSA, 0) won with 5.0/6, ahead of Matthew Koutsouvelis (5.0) and Khwezi Sonti (4.5). Bownes won on tie-break after catching the field in the final round.

The biggest upset came in round 5: Khwezi Sonti (1428) beat Ciara ADAMS (1529), a +101-point gap.

Location

🇿🇦Port Elizabeth, South Africa

Dates

24 Apr 2026 → 25 Apr 2026

Time control

Standard: 60 minutes for game

System

Swiss · 6 rounds

Top seed

🇿🇦Matthew Koutsouvelis1640

Avg top 10

1,350

Participants

Federations · 1 represented

🇿🇦South Africa×16

Top 3

🥇
Fabian Bownes
🇿🇦RSA
5.0pts·1533perf0.0
🥈
Matthew Koutsouvelis
🇿🇦RSA·1640
5.0pts·2263perf+32.4
🥉
Khwezi Sonti
🇿🇦RSA·1428
4.5pts·1681perf+40.0

How it unfolded

Top 6 · 6 rounds

Tight race until R6; 2 players tied at 5.0/6, decided on Buchholz.

Co-leaders

Koutsouvelis5Bownes5Sonti4.5NELL4Murray4Bambalaza4

R6 · TIEBREAK CLUSTER

2 players finish on 5.0/6. Bownes takes the title on Buchholz Cut1 (17.5).

WIN STREAKS · 2 top finishers

Matthew Koutsouvelis 5 wins (R1–R6)Fabian Bownes 5 wins (R2–R6)

Key matchups · top 4

Head-to-head between the four finishers

Player	1	2	3	4
1Matthew Koutsouvelis	*	—	1	—
2Fabian Bownes	—	*	—	1
3Khwezi Sonti	0	—	*	1
4Chelsea Jane NELL	—	0	0	*

Grille américaine

#	Player	Elo	Fed	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	Pts	Bu C1	Bu	SB	Perf	Δ
1	Bownes, Fabian	0	RSA	−10B	+14N	+?B	+5N	+7B	+4N	5.0	17.5	17.5	14.50	1533	0.0
2	Koutsouvelis, Matthew	1640	RSA	+16N	F	+8B	+11N	+10B	+3N	5.0	16.0	16.0	16.00	2263	+32.4
3	Sonti, Khwezi	1428	RSA	+21N	+5N	=10B	+7N	+13B	−2B	4.5	18.5	19.5	13.00	1681	+40.0
4	Murray, Chloe	1492	RSA	+18N	−11B	+9N	+15B	+6N	−1B	4.0	18.0	20.0	12.00	1497	+0.8
5	NELL, Chelsea Jane	1496	RSA	+17N	−3B	+11N	−1B	+16N	+12B	4.0	17.5	19.5	10.00	1655	+32.4
6	Bambalaza, Sakhuvuyo Ed	0	RSA	+14B	+8N	=7B	=10N	−4B	+13N	4.0	17.0	20.0	12.75	1510	0.0
7	Van Huyssteen, Nathan	0	RSA	+22B	+12N	=6N	−3B	−1N	+15B	3.5	19.0	19.0	7.50	1459	+4.8
8	Grobler, Mia	0	RSA	+?N	−6B	−2N	+18B	=9N	+17B	3.5	16.5	16.5	5.75	1551	0.0
9	FIDE 14384035	0	—	−12B	+22N	−4B	+?N	=8B	+10N	3.5	13.5	13.5	4.75	690	0.0
10	Dikana, Inam	0	RSA	+1N	+15B	=3N	=6B	−2N	−9B	3.0	22.0	24.5	11.75	1520	0.0
11	Arbi, Imaan	1505	RSA	+13N	+4N	−5B	−2B	−12N	+18B	3.0	19.0	21.0	9.00	1539	+7.6
12	Mabutho, Simingayo	0	RSA	+9N	−7B	+17N	−13B	+11B	−5N	3.0	17.0	19.0	8.50	1498	-24.4
13	ADAMS, Ciara	1529	RSA	−11B	+19N	+16B	+12N	−3N	−6B	3.0	16.5	18.5	7.00	1338	-31.2
14	Sana, Enzokuhle	0	RSA	−6N	−1B	+20N	+17B	−15N	+21B	3.0	15.0	16.0	4.50	1475	0.0
15	Schreinders, Mia	1490	RSA	=20B	−10N	+19B	−4N	+14B	−7N	2.5	15.5	17.0	5.75	690	-20.0
16	Swartz, Jane	1456	RSA	−2B	+18N	−13N	+21B	−5B	F	2.0	15.0	15.0	3.00	756	0.0
17	Cerfonteyn, Raees	1460	RSA	−5B	+21N	−12B	−14N	+22B	−8N	2.0	14.5	14.5	1.00	696	-18.0
18	FIDE 14369974	0	—	−4B	−16B	+22N	−8N	+?B	−11N	2.0	12.5	12.5	0.00	683	0.0
19	FIDE 14389797	0	—	F	−13B	−15N	+20B	−21N	+?B	2.0	8.0	8.0	1.50	710	0.0
20	FIDE 534043055	0	—	=15N	F	−14B	−19N	F	+22B	1.5	7.5	7.5	1.25	1490	0.0
21	FIDE 14360861	0	—	−3B	−17B	F	−16N	+19B	−14N	1.0	13.5	13.5	2.00	648	0.0
22	FIDE 534014268	0	—	−7N	−9B	−18B	F	−17N	−20N	0.0	12.5	12.5	0.00	660	0.0

Key insights

Biggest movers and upsets — the story behind the numbers.

Top rating gainers

1Sonti, KhweziRSA
+40.0
4.5 pts · #5
2Koutsouvelis, MatthewRSA
+32.4
5.0 pts · #2
3NELL, Chelsea JaneRSA
+32.4
4.0 pts · #1

Top rating losers

1ADAMS, CiaraRSA
-31.2
3.0 pts · #10
2Mabutho, SimingayoRSA
-24.4
3.0 pts · #3
3Schreinders, MiaRSA
-20.0
2.5 pts · #19

Biggest upsets

R5+101 Elo gap
Sonti, Khwezi1428 beat ADAMS, Ciara1529