Quote Originally Posted by Pierre Dénommée View Post
If the only question is how to make it appealing, then it is clear that a return to the traditional time slot of December 26th to December 30th would be in order. All juniors in Canada are not in school at this time and almost none are working. Summer is another possibility, but many students do have jobs in the summer. Spring Break is a poor time because even in Quebec, not all schools are breaking in the same week,

The problem that I have faced is that the rental price for a venue is much higher at this time of the year. On my last attempt, the Junior Coordinator told me that the bid was not acceptable because of the prohibitive cost of the venue. The problem is that most non-profits with inexpensive venues to rent are closed at this period of the year and they charge a hefty premium for opening.

Since I have moved away from Montreal, I am now facing another problem which is a lack of accommodations. Irrespective of the price of the venue, the players would have nowhere to stay and we have only a single small restaurant. A shuttle service would be required to moved the players from the hotel to the playing venue. The largest hotel around has a whooping 47 rooms.

Another problem is that the participants to the Junior Championship are mainly local residents. We should find a sponsor to cover the cost of travel. This alone should increase the participation.
Yes, Pierre, the only question we're discussing now - is how to make Canadian Junior more appealing.

There are several ways to do so.

Yes, we could try a different time slot.
I personally doubt that the traditional time slot of December 26th to December 30th would be better:
it's the traditional time of North American Inter-Collegiate Championship, North American Open, and many people are planning family vacation for this time.
This year's time - January 5th to January 8th is similar - all juniors in Canada are not in school at this time and almost none are working.
In my view, the best time slot is end of April - beginning of May - immediately after spring session in Universities and before summer jobs. At this time is easier to get a space at University campus and affordable accommodation at University residence.
But this issue depends on Canadian Junior organizers. If we will have several bids at the AGM, we could choose the most appropriate time slot.
Unfortunately, we can't do it at this meeting.

Yes, we could try a different location.
It's always better to host Canadian Junior where the majority of potential participants live.
On the other hand, we can't host Canadian Junior in Toronto area year after year - we need to develop chess in all provinces.
Again, this issue depends on Canadian Junior organizers, and we can't resolve it at this meeting.

Yes, we could find a sponsor to cover the cost of travel.
This issue we can't resolve it at this meeting neither.

What we can do now - is to allow Canadian Junior Champions to choose their prize:
World Junior or Pan-American Junior.

This small change would bring at least one more Canadian Junior participant - please see http://www.chesscanada.info/forum/sh...15440#poststop

Thank you for your consideration!