Jonathan Spicer, who plays in Dubai next week, gets in some late practice. (Picture by Adrian Miller, 0601113)

JONATHAN SPICER will be heading for the event of his life in Dubai later this month.

The 13-year-old is taking part in the Dubai Junior International chess tournament, against the top under-14 players on the planet.

Spicer is looking forward to the event and is hopeful that he can spring a surprise or two along the way. ‘I can’t wait to get there. I know that I’m one of the weakest players in the draw, but I’m still going to go there confident that I can do well,’ he said. There will be 140 competitors in the competition, 15 of whom will be from the UK, including Spicer.

The tournament uses a Swiss system, meaning that every player will play nine times over the fortnight. The opportunity came about after Tony Corfe, who comes to Guernsey each October half-term to organise chess matches for children, courtesy of his company Mind Sports. It was here that Spicer impressed him and the Guernsey lad was offered the chance to go to Dubai.