The British Chess Championship is organised by the British Chess Federation. There are separate championships for men and women. Since 1923 there have been sections for juniors, and since 1982 there has been an over-sixty championship.
The championship was originally open to citizens of any Commonwealth country, although only British players won the title until 2002, when the Indian R. B. Ramesh finished first and several other Indians took top prizes. This led to many top Brits not competing in the 2003 championship and accompanied criticism that the British Championship was not serving the interests of British players. This, combined with the victory of Indian Abhijit Kunte in 2003, led to an annoucement from the organisers that from 2004 only British and Irish players would be eligible to take part.
List of British Men's Chess Champions
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