Swiss Railwaymen champion 2023
I joined the SBB in January 2023 as a software engineer. It was a surprise for me to learn that the swiss public transport companies have their own sports federation, and that they even have a chess section.
I registered for the annual individual championship tournament.
It took place in the end of May in the pittoresque mountain village of Leysin (Vaud). The competition was rude, but the ambiance very friendly, and the wine as fine as is known of the region around Aigle.
After 4 rounds and a surprising loss to the reigning champion O. Bürgi in a winning position, the chances of success relied on him losing in the last round against the lowest-rated player with white, and me winning against a very solid player around 2000. Incredibly, planets aligned, and I now am:
Schweizerischen Eisenbahner Einzelmeister
A very fun weekend, where I met new friends and from which I brought back the trophy plus quite some quantity of wine :-D
Arthur Tönz
