Roland Smith 1931 - 26/6/2024

[Kevin Thurlow]

Roland was involved in chess organization with Inland Revenue and Civil Service for a very long time. He was also a very talented player both at classical and correspondence chess. He received a BCF President's Award and a Civil Service Sports Council Merit Award, the latter in recognition of more than 50 years of chess organization.

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Thank you for the notice, Kevin. Do you know what years he received those awards? I am assuming some time ago given his advanced age, but may be wrong. Do we have any examples of his best games?

[Richard Bates]

Thank you for the notice, Kevin. Do you know what years he received those awards? I am assuming some time ago given his advanced age, but may be wrong. Do we have any examples of his best games?

2003

https://www.ecfresource.co.uk/ecf-awards/

[Kevin Thurlow]

The CSSC Merit Award was 2007, after 53 years' service to CS chess. The CS Chess Association nominated him after 50 years, but CSSC turned the nomination down as he had not done enough... If you spent a handful of years on a CSSC committee, that counted more than actually running activities. Someone grumbled in 2006ish and the person that had blocked him had retired and someone more sensible pushed it through.

He also became President of both the London Civil Service League and the CS Chess Association, having earlier been Vice-President of both organizations. He did an enormous amoiunt of work.

I probably have some games somewhere, and I have more detail on his date of birth.

[Ihor Lewyk]

Roland was the first organiser of the Inland Revenue chess team rapidplay at the IR Sports Multi event over 30 years ago. He ran it for a decade before handing over the reigns.
Roland would always put everyone at ease, many of which had never played a chess tournament, by telling one of his amusing stories in his inimitable style. Although he would officiate with authority, he also did so with humour and grace and because of this many of the beginners and novices were keen to return.
He thoroughly deserved all his accolades for services to Civil Service Chess. A truly gentle man.

[John Torrance]

I'm so sad to hear this news.

I first met Roly at The Beckenham Jazz Club in late 2016. He attend there with his wife, whenever there was a band with a vocalist on the bill. We always chatted during the interval, at these shows.

We somehow got around to mentioning our hobbies during these chats, and discovered that we were both Chessplayers. He mentioned his Civil Service Career, and it's associated Chess connection. I understood that he had been a very strong player, about 2300 Rating. He was ever so unassuming and modest about this achievement.

He was a gentle person, and so kind. He and his wife made such a lovely couple.

As he had given up playing chess a few years before we met, he offered me his large collection of NIC Yearbooks, for free. The measure of the man! I couldn't accept his kind offer for free, so I surprised him, with some good whisky and fine bottles of Sauvignon Blanc. He was much pleased at this.

Our last communication, was in late March 2020, during the Covid Lockdown. We exchanged some related jokey
e-mails of that time. Thereafter, I moved away to Bournemouth, and lost touch with him.

RIP Sir.

[Brendan O'Gorman]

Not the best quality, but a photo of Roland in action in a Civil Service league game in October 2012.

Roland Smith 1.jpg (451.09 KiB) Viewed 1433 times