ALBERTA CHESSASSOCIATION Box 11839 Main P.O. Edmonton, Alberta l~.lJ~ T6J 3K9 April 14,2005

FROM: Ford Wong 17535 - 55 Avenue,

Edmonton, Alberta T6M 1 C9 APR, 4 ZOOS

TO: Anita Moore,

..,\,~ S\W"of(f Community Services Advisory Board, Cr"" ..'" . ,.."c CIO Community Services Grants Coordinator,

P.O. Box 2359, Edmonton, Alberta T5J 2R7

Re: NOTICE OF APPEAL: City of Edmonton - 2005 Community Investment Hosting Grant

My apologies for submitting this appeal after the deadline date of Thursday April 7th. This is because the letter informing us of the Community Services Advisory Board's decision to recommend that the Alberta Association (ACA) be denied funding for the 2005 Canadian Open Chess Championship, was sent to the association's mailbox and not to my home address. The ACA's mail box was not checked until yesterday and hence I was not aware of the decision until then. I trust that this submission will be accepted.

Having reviewed the reasons given for why the ACA's request was rejected, I believe that there were errors in assessment as follows:

GROUNDS FOR APPEAL: 1. The Canadian Open 2005 was deemed an invitational tournament. It is "Nor. Although there are certain featured players, the tournament is "OPEN" to everyone. It is not a closed event limited to invitees only. This gives everyone a chance to play some of the best players in the \YOnd. As specified in the guidelines: Eliaible amateur and reaeation events must: be open events that are not restricted to members of a certain arOUD or club. The Canadian Open 2005 is open to everyonewho wants to playas stated in the title of the event. We anticipate upwards of 200 people who will come to play. In addition, in the reasoning "there is not a Qualification process that determines the participants ability to enter/participate ". This statement is undear as under event eligibility there is no mention of qualification process. 2. The 2005 Canadian Open chess championship satisfies Eliaible amateur and recreation events must: determine the ChamDion for the resDective level of comDetition(Provincial. Western Canadian.

National or World ChamDion: The winner of the 2005 Canadian Open 2005 Chess Championship is the "National" champion as opposed to being the "Alberta" or Western Canadian Champion. This is because the event allows anyone from all over and abroad to attend. Although in the original request, the description of the Canadian Open Chess Championship does not specifically state that the winner is the National Champion for the Canadian Open, it is implied. Attached please find the list of the past 10 champions. The Canadian Open is the only "National" tournament held each year so that this event is truly unique for Canada. LIST OF PAST CANADIAN OPEN CHAMPIONS 2004 Alexander Moiseenko, Dimitri Tyomkin 2003 Alexander Moiseenko 2002 , Jean-Marc Degraeve, 2001 Larry Christiansen, Anthony Miles 2000 Joel Benjamin, Jonathan Rowson, 1999 Georgi Or1ov, Kevin Spraggett 1998 Michael Oratovsky, Evgeny Prokopchuk, Kevin Spraggett, Dimitri Tyomkin 1997 Julian Hodgson 1996 Kevin Spraggett 1995 , Ron Livshits, , Eduardas Rozentalis, Kevin Spraggett

For the complete list of Canadian Open champions please see the following website: http://www.ncf.carieton.caJ-bw998/Champions.html

IMPACT: The CanadianOpen 2005 is on a very tight budget and the supportof the City of Edmontonwould alleviate shortfallsand prevent cutting back on the quality of the event such as tournamentsupplies/equipment and additionalactivities. I trust that this information will be sufficient to justify a successful appeal. Please let me know if require a hearing or need additional information. I can be reached to 420-3975 (wk) or 481-6474 (hm). t