Bart Van Tichelen
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Bart took the initiative to organize the BK 2024 and, together with the enthusiasts listed below, founded the non-profit organization BK Schaken Lier, of which he is chairman. As tournament director, he is responsible for the overall coordination of the festival. He draws on more than 25 years of experience as an administrator at both the Antwerp Chess League, the Flemish Chess Federation, and the Royal Belgian Chess Federation. He was the organizer of the BK 2017 in Niel with the Antwerp Chess League non-profit organization and also organized the Flemish Championship multiple times. As an arbiter, he was active during the Belgian Championships of 2013 and 2015 (as chief arbiter of the open tournament). As a player, he is active with SK Oude God Mortsel. |
Erik Laporte
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Co-founder of ChessLooks Lier, where he is a highly appreciated tournament director, ensuring that all internal and external competitions run smoothly. For the past 2 years, he has also been active as an administrator and secretary at the Antwerp Chess League. Further passionate about quizzes, music, and athletics. Since the pandemic, he has found great satisfaction in (very long) walks and trails. During the BK, he co-leads the team responsible for catering. |
Patrick Van de Perre
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Patrick has been an administrator of the Antwerp Chess League since 2008. He started as a tournament director. In 2013, he became vice-chairman, taking on various tasks. In 2020, he succeeded Bart as chairman of the League. Additionally, he is a competition leader and has led competitions in the national interclubs, League tournaments, and the BK 2015 in Schelle for many years. He was also involved in organizing the BK 2017 in Niel and various Flemish Championships organized by the Antwerp Chess League. During the upcoming BK, he will be part of the arbiter team led by Sylvin De Vet and Luc Cornet. |
Sander Vandevenne
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Sander has been an avid chess player since his youth. After being off the scene for a few years, he now plays for ChessLooks Lier. Besides playing on the first board, he has also taken responsibility for the ChessLooks Academy since last year. The BK 2024 is his first experience in organizing a major chess tournament. He is responsible for sponsorship and accommodation. Additionally, he is involved in numerous side activities that make our tournament a festival! |
Patrick Verrijssen
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Co-founder and one of the driving forces of ChessLooks Lier. He is not only enthusiastic about handling the chess pieces himself but also enjoys organizing, writing, photographing, chess history, and collecting. As long as it involves chess. He is particularly proud of his very diverse (and urgently needs to be inventoried) chess collection. He is responsible for press and communication. He supports various side activities. He finds in this BK-slash-chess festival the perfect excuse to put Lier on the Belgian chess map. |
Emmanuel Wildiers
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Emmanuel’s eldest son was inspired to start playing chess after watching The Queen’s Gambit in 2021, leading Emmanuel to join ChessLooks Lier, where he has been a youth leader since last year. Under his enthusiastic leadership, the youth activities of ChessLooks are further developed. Within the BK organization, he takes on the roles of treasurer, webmaster, and initiator of Chess Boxing. He also gives an Academy presentation on how chess computers work and assists as an auxiliary arbiter in the main tournament for a day. |