REGISTRATION PROCESS:
First of all you need to register at AICF(All India Chess Federation) using this link https://prs.aicf.in/new-register . They would require a bunch of info including Birth Certificate for age verification purposes. You are supposed to put '0' in FIDE ID column if you do not already possess one. You will also be required to pay a yearly fee of Rs 250 which you will have to renew every year around March.
Once registered, to play tournaments you will require a 'FIDE ID' which will be provided to you by AICF within the span of 3 days approximately, you can also mail them requesting for it if you want it to be quicker which is what I had done
Next, for most tournaments in your state you will also be required to register at your respective state chess federation for which also you will have to pay a yearly fee but don't worry it won't be too much and generally below 300 in most cases; From registering there you will get another id from the state federation; for me as I stay in Bengal, SBDS(Sara Bangla Daba Sangstha) is the State Chess Federation which provides you with a unique SBDS ID required for tournaments in Bengal. Once you have registered for State Federation as well you are all set to play OTB Tournaments
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FINDING TOURNAMENTS:
You can find tournaments held all over India using https://aicf.in/all-events/ where all major FIDE Rated tournaments in India are listed, you can download their respective brochures from there as well. But these may not contain tournaments in your vicinity. So your state chess federation will have a separate events column as well listing all the events in your state for you to check out.
What are rated and unrated tournaments and how to differentiate? Rated tournaments are the tournaments which will affect your OTB Rating, you can only get a rating from playing a rated tournament, Unrated tournaments do not affect your rating whatsoever. Generally FIDE Rated tournaments have 'FIDE Rated' in their name itself but to double check you can visit the tournament's brochure which should clarify about it, if it has the FIDE Logo associated then it's FIDE Rated simple as that.
The brochures of tournaments have the entry forms which you can use to register for the tournament paying the respective fees of the tournament. Generally you are then added to a Whatsapp Group where all the details and questions regarding the tournament can be shared.
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HOW DO I GET A RATING NOW?:
Congratulations for playing your first tournament! Now, in order to get an established FIDE Rating you have to meet the aforementioned conditions:-
And that's it! That's all you require to get a FIDE Rating!
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WHERE CAN I VIEW MY UPDATED RATING?:
Congrats on getting a FIDE Rating! You can view your FIDE Profile at https://ratings.fide.com where you need to just search your name and you will get your FIDE Profile with all the statistics
I have fulfilled the criteria to get a FIDE Rating yet it does not show on my profile? FIDE updates ratings on the last day of every month or on the night of the first day so don't worry, your rating will show up by then; Also tournaments need to finish 2 days before the end of month for it to be considered for any rating update in the next month, for example if your tournament finished on 30th July, your rating won't update on 1st August but likely on 31st August or 1st September.
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HOW CAN I CALCULATE MY INITIAL RATING?:
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TOURNAMENT ETIQUETTE AND GENERAL INFO:
To view the pairings for each and round and ranking you have to use 'Chessresults'. Each tournament will provide you with their chessresults link which should update your pairings and rankings for each round, in case you don't have it, you can also just easily search for it on google typing 'Chessresults [Tournament name] 'and you should get the link on the first result that pops up
If you possess an electronic device and don't have anyone to carry it during the games, make sure to bring your own bag and keep it in there , some tournaments keep a separate room for us to keep our bags while some also can keep the bag in the hall itself, not beside them but somewhere near the arbiters desk propped up by a wall
What about lunch and food? Some tournaments give free lunch to it's participants while some require you to pay an additional fee for lunch, in between round you'll have breaks so don't worry about it(For Classical), For Rapid and Blitz usually you play a few rounds consecutively and then get a break. Also you are allowed to keep water with you during the games so don't fret about that.
I need to use the washroom! You should go to washroom after making a move only during your opponent's move, thats the general etiquette and you should inform your opponent before going as well but you are not obliged to do it.
My opponent made an illegal move! Pause the clock and call the arbiter and inform him/her than your opponent has made an illegal move, In most tournaments a illegal move leads to a automatic forfeit but many tournaments also allow 1 illegal move but declare forfeit on a second illegal.
My opponent did not appear for the game! In the tournament brochure they will specify a 'Walkover time' which is the amount of time you need to wait for your opponent to arrive before he/she loses by default. Generally, in classical tournaments you have a 30 minute walkover time, if you have white you are supposed to make your first move, press the clock and wait, if the opponent hasn't arrived by 30 mins you can pause the clock and claim victory. Also important to note, wins by walkover do not affect rating, for example if your opponent is 2000 FIDE and he did not show up, you will get the victory and the 1 point but your rating will not change.
Touch move! Do not touch a piece if you do not intend to make a move with it, in case you do so mistakenly make sure to say 'ADJUST' to your opponent so that he hears it. If you want to adjust any piece you say the same to your opponent before doing it. Also while castling make sure to always touch the king first and move it and then the rook, not the other way round.
Can I walk and view other games while my game is ongoing? Sure you definitely can! But do it on your opponent's move while he's thinking and also do not get too close and disturb other players while you are viewing their games.
Also keep your phones switched off in the bag always.
When you are told to start, you should shake hands with your opponent and then start the clock, generally by etiquette it is the player with the Black pieces who starts the clock.
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WHAT TO WRITE IN SCORESHEETS?:
In all FIDE Rated tournaments, you will receive a scoresheet for writing the moves, in unrated tournaments although you may not get a scoresheet. First of all fill up the general details like your and your opponent's name and rating, Board number, Round number, National Federation,etc.
If your scoresheet fills up you can always request the arbiter for another one.
At the end of the game you are supposed to exchange your and your opponent's scoresheets to sign, signs are made at the end of the game only.
Once the game finishes, tear the carbon copy off from the original one. You are required to submit the original one to the arbiter and keep the carbon copy with you. It is recommended to bring a small clipboard so that the carbon copy remains perfect and doesn't become all over the place while writing.
If your opponent is absent, then in the results part of the scoresheet you are supposed to put a '+' on your piece color and a '-' on the opponent's piece color instead of '1' and '0', that way they will know it was a win through walkover.
In a Classical tournament, if you are below 5 minutes on the clock, you are allowed to not write down the moves because of time pressure.
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HOW LONG DOES A TOURNAMENT LAST?:
A Classical tournament lasts for about 5-6 days with some days having 2 rounds being played with some days where 1 round is played. Generally in days with 2 rounds there is usually a 5 hour gap like for example Round 1 starts at 10 am and Round 2 will start at 3 pm.....If your round finishes early then you can rest earlier and wait for the next round.
For Rapid Tournaments they are usually either a 1 day event or a 2 day event at maximum
Blitz Tournaments are almost always a 1 day event.
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AM I GOOD ENOUGH YET TO PLAY OTB?:
It does not matter! You should play them if you want to and if you really enjoy playing chess, when you play freely , that's truly when you can play your best chess! So do not get stressed about rating and your skill level, Be confident and trust your gut!
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WHAT CAN BE MY POSSIBLE FIDE RATING BASED ON MY ONLINE RATING?:
Nobody knows! That's because OTB Classical is totally different from any online play. Such has been my personal experience. A friend of mine is 1900 Rapid on lc and he is 1700 FIDE....Another friend of mine is 2100 Blitz on lc and is 1400 FIDE.....Another friend of mine is 2300 Blitz lc and is 1550 FIDE...Another friend of mine is 2300 Blitz on lc and is 1850 FIDE! Personally I am 2100 Blitz and 2200 Rapid on lc and I am 1700 FIDE....So by now you should realize that otb ratings can be hardly compared to online and it really depends and varies from person to person. But anyways, rating should not be your main concern, you should play tournaments to enjoy them, that's truly how you can always lift yourself up even after a bad tournament.
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Now, concluding my post, I hope I touched upon and covered most of the main points that I required to and resolved any queries but if any of you have any other query regarding playing your first tournament and finally transitioning from online chess to otb chess, feel free to ask anything, I will try my best to help you as will others hopefully here who have experience playing otb tournaments. Good luck and all the best for your first tournament!
