The 3rd Barnstaple Rapidplay took place on Saturday 10th October 2026 with a great turnout of 31 players and a relatively strong field with FIDE Master Chris Gant and Grand Master John Nunn, who was once in the top 10 in the world! The event was organised by Barnstaple chess club and opened by Pete Worthington. The location was the Alverdiscott Community Hall, an excellent venue with a comfortable and spacious playing area. Jack Rudd was arbiter for the day. 
Play proceeded pretty much to form with the top 4 ranked players meeting in round 4 where Chris Gant and John Nunn both won their games against Paul Hampton and Jon Underwood respectively. Chris and John met in round 5 with John winning that tie and he was then leading on 4.5/5 having drawn with Giles Body in round 2. 
There was still everything to play for in round 6 with Petra Nunn and Adam Clark joining the top 3 boards on 4/5. Paul Hampton held on for a draw with John and a win for Chris meant first place was shared between Chris and John both with (5/6).
A draw between Petra Nunn and Jon Underwood took them both out of a share of 1st, but they both still secured a podium position in 3rd place, shared with Paul Hampton.
Grading Prize winners were:
- Emile Doran 4/6 Grading Prize (1550-1849)
- Martyn Maber 3.5/6 Grading Prize (U-1550 and unrated)
Full results can be found on Chess-Results Server here.
Many thanks to Barnstaple Chess Club for organising and thanks to all those of made some lengthy journeys to get there!
This event is part of the DCCA DCCA Rapidplay Grand Prix
Report by Paul Hampton
