Cecil "Carver" Moncur was recently awarded the FIDE Master (FM) title by the World Chess Federation after his stellar performance at the 42nd Chess Olympiad in Baku, Azerbaijan. (Photo: Bahamas Chess Federation)

Cecil "Carver" Moncur was recently awarded the FIDE Master (FM) title by the World Chess Federation after his stellar performance at the 42nd Chess Olympiad in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Moncur was a member of the five-player squad that represented The Bahamas in the biennial tournament that featured 170 teams in the open section and 142 in the women's. Joining Moncur in the competition were Elton Joseph, Kendrick Knowles, Valentine Cox and Franklyn Gibson - all with prior Olympiad experience.

Moncur won an exceptional six of his first nine games against top players from England, Guatemala, Lesotho, Swaziland, Eritrea and Haiti, to achieve the minimum 65 percent win percentage required for the prestigious title. The FM title is a first for The Bahamas and brings the country one step closer to  claiming the first chess grandmaster in the English-speaking Caribbean.

The Chess Olympiad took place September 1-13. More than 1,500 of the world's best chess players participated in the 11-round event.

The United States finished undefeated to win its first gold medal in the open section since 1976. Capturing silver was the Ukraine, followed by Russia - the pre-tournament favorite, in third place.

The Bahamas settled for 157th place, close to its original seeding. The next Chess Olympiad will be hosted by the country of Georgia in 2018.

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