8 Irish chess players were in Berlin over the St. Patrick’s Day weekend to play a nine round rapid tournament against German players.

Led and organised by ICU webmaster and ICU delegate Jonathan O’Connor, the delegation also included two time Irish champion IM Mark Heidenfeld, Oisin P. Benson, Gerard and Declan Buckley, Steven Guerin, Kynesha Ryder and Berlin born Yannick Woods. The venue couldn’t been more prestigious: the new World Chess Club in Berlin, close to the Brandenburg Gate, opened its doors for the players to play the Green Flower Cup. The Green Flower Cup is an initiative by the German Erich-Lasker-Foundation to build cultural bridges with other nations “to share the values of chess“ with each other. 

This year Team Germany, led by GM Elisabeth Paetz, won the event, but a return event is already planned for the German National Day in October 2025 in Dublin. IM Mark Heidenfeld (7/9) was the highest scoring player on Irish side. The rest of the team performed very well against strong opposition.

The event was concluded with a cultural evening including the prize giving with special guest GM Judith Polgar. 

Many thanks to our German hosts, Thomas Weischede and the Erich-Lasker-Foundation and the World Chess Cafe for organising a great event.