The daily summaries below are taken from the International Festival of Draughts daily updates.

  Day One: Alex Takes Early Lead!
This long awaited World Championship Match began this morning following the official opening ceremony of the "International Festival of Draughts" by Janice McAleese of the Northern Ireland Events Company.

The opening ballot for Game One and Two produced 9-14 22-17 6-9 with Alex selecting the 26-22 attack while Ron selected the 25-22 attack. The first game resulted in a win for Alex after Ron played a losing move at his 9th and Alex executed the win in masterly fashion involving 24 moves each and 75 minutes of play. Their second game remained relatively even and was agreed drawn after 48 moves each and 65 minutes of play. Games Three and Four were played on 9-13 24-20 11-15 and produced two draws along Wagram lines. The time limit of 24 moves per hour was certainly of no problem to either player with game three involving 48 moves each in a combined 110 minutes while game four had 56 moves each in a combined 104 minutes.

Score: Alex Moiseyev leads Ron King by the score of 1-0 & 3 games drawn.

  Day Two: Ron Evens the Score
The ballot for games Five and Six today produced 10-14 22-18 11-15 and resulted in two spectacular games. Ron arrived 15 minutes late for the start of game five and the subsequent deduction left him short of time in the ending. In game Six, Ron (playing White) scored a fine win to level the match after "mixing" the play at his 3rd move. Afterwards Alex paid Ron a compliment when he stated that he was confident he would have drawn the game against any other player in the world!

Yesterday had seen a big interest from the Newspapers with numerous press photographers in attendance. Today it was the turn of the T.V. and Radio to take a keen interest. Readers in Northern Ireland should tune into BBC "Newsline" tomorrow evening at 6.30pm for a live update on the match! Both contestants praised the professional organisation of the match stating it was "on the top with the best" they had seen. The Ulster Television company will be attending on Friday evening.

In the evening, games Seven and Eight produced the ballot 10-15 23-18 9-14 resulting in two hard fought draws. In contrast to yesterday the games were played at slower pace and Alex found himself in time trouble during the eighth game having to make eight moves in the last one minute to reach the time limits. These first two days have produced games of the highest calibre and it's estimated that we've seen new play in seven of the eight games played!

Score: Alex Moiseyev: 1 win, Ron King: 1 win, & 6 games drawn.

  Day Three: Alex Back in Front
The third day's play in this great match continued to produce the kind of excitement that we've seen on the first two days of play. The Three Move Opening balloted this morning was 9-13 24-19 10-14, and Alex won the first game with the White side. Ron played strongly in the second, but it resulted in a drawn game.

Today has seen a very large gathering of spectators witnessing this historic match with the viewing room packed to capacity. One local school took time out of class today to visit and meet the contestants.

The afternoon session produced the 9-14 24-20 5-9 opening and two draws resulted. This now means that Alex has regained the lead with the score of 2-1 and 9 games drawn. Play continues tomorrow morning at 10:00 am.

Score: Alex Moiseyev: 2 wins, Ron King: 1 win, & 9 games drawn.

  Day Four: Pitching Into the Battle
Each morning, a coin is tossed into the air to decide who will play which color in the first game, with the colors alternating in the first game of the afternoon session. The odds of starting each of the four morning games with the same colour are 1:15 yet that's what has occurred. This morning Alex got the "White" side for the 4th consecutive time and the ballot drawn was 9-14 24-19 11-16. It resulted in two drawn games. In keeping with the pattern so far, Ron King has managed to switch Alex out of published play in the mid-game of almost every opening to date while forcing him to play with great precision in the endings to survive.

Today's first game (13th game) produced a thriller with Alex pitching a piece at the 14th move and regaining it at the 23rd move, only to pitch again on his 32nd move and again regain it on the 37th before concluding in a draw. Alex later described it as "perhaps 80% original". In a tremendous battle of ability Ron King’s creativity is being checked by Alex Moiseyev's precision across the board.

The afternoon session again produced what might been seen as a relatively even ballot in 10-15 22-17 11-16, but as we witnessed yesterday, these opening are not lifeless in the hands of these players. Again twisted mid-games produced original endgames.

Tomorrow evening will bring the players to the half-way point in this great match. There will be no play on Saturday and they will recommence the second half on Sunday. The likelihood is that this match will go "all the way".

Score: Alex Moiseyev: 2 wins, Ron King: 1 win, & 13 games drawn.

  Day Five: Have Ron's Chances Been Cooked?
Well, it happened again - Alex began with the "White" side this morning. Players might note this "choosing colors" each morning to be a departure from previous schedules, but these things are not set in stone - and why should they be? The previous method guaranteed that whoever started the first day with the "Red" side would start every day of the match with that color. Considering that "Red" is often the "weak" side of the ballot, you might appreciate why this innovation has been introduced. This idea was felt to be more fair.

The ballot for games 17 & 18 produced 11-15 21-17 15-19 and resulted in two lively games which ended as drawn.

In the afternoon the ballot produced 11-15 23-18 15-19 (better known as the "Montrose Cross"), and the first game (game 19) was relatively uneventful. However, in the second game, Alex Moiseyev sprung a heavyweight "cook" with the White side which knocked out published play and scored a fine win over Ron. It was a game that may have a decisive bearing on the outcome of the match. Alex has now taken a 3-1 lead with 16 games drawn. The players will have a day off tomorrow to recuperate and return to battle on Sunday morning. Ron King has assured Alex there will be "bruises" in the second half.

Another of the innovations in this match is the fact that every game played has been recorded live by CCTV and relayed to an adjoining room for viewing by the large following who have attended each day. There the games are analysed, dissected, and argued over while they're ongoing at another location! All moves and all conversation are taped and can be replayed afterwards in the event of any possible dispute. It has left the job of the referee a much easier one!

Score: Alex Moiseyev: 3 wins, Ron King: 1 win, & 16 games drawn.

  Day Six: Ready for Part Two
Play recommenced this morning after the players enjoyed a day off yesterday. The ballot for games 21 & 22 produced a bland opening, 9-13 21-17 5-9, and as might be expected at this level, they soon ran out two uneventful drawn games. This suited Alex very well while Ron was hoping for something with a bit more "substance" to it. Getting wins will be difficult without some good material to work with.

The evening session attracted a large group of spectators, and they were not disappointed - in fact, the word "spellbound" might be more appropriate! The ballot for games 23 & 24 produced 10-15 23-18 7-10. Again, complications were the name of the game with Ron King having to pitch a piece to get out of difficulty in the first game, while their second game saw Ron pressing hard. Alex noted afterwards that he felt Ron had missed a win in the second game.

Score: Alex Moiseyev: 3 wins, Ron King: 1 win, & 20 games drawn.

  Day Seven: Controversy Strikes
Today, games 25 & 26 ended in two draws. Game 27 was the center of a controversy regarding the clock. This resulted in the game being stopped for two hours at the 20th move, with Ron King looking like he was in a winning position. Eventually the clock was restarted. With Ron making just two moves instead of the required 4 moves in the remaining time before the "flag" fell, Alex was awarded the game. The second game (Game 28) was posponed until Tuesday morning. When it recommenced on Tuesday, Alex scored a win with the White side (12-16 21-17 9-14) to take a 5-1 lead in the match with 22 games drawn.

Score: Alex Moiseyev: 5 wins, Ron King: 1 win, & 22 games drawn.

  Day Eight: Hard Three-Mover Draws Blood for Both Contestants
The ballot for games 29 & 30 produced 11-15 23-18 12-16 and as we have come to expect, this quickly resulted in complex games. In the end, Ron King won game 29 while playing the White side. In the 30th game, Alex also score a win with the White side, maintaining his lead in match score. In the evening, games 31 & 32 were played on 10-15 23-19 6-10 (Ron playing Red in game 31). While we had superb play by both contestants, both games resulted in draws. The score now stands at 6-2 and 24 draws in favour of Alex with just 8 games to play.

Score: Alex Moiseyev: 6 wins, Ron King: 2 wins, & 24 games drawn.

  Day Nine: Alex Moiseyev, Undisputed Three-Move World Champion!
Play resumed this morning for games 33 & 34, and the ballot drawn was 9-14 22-18 11-15. In both games, Ron King attained what would be seen as advantageous positions, but Alex met both games with precision play and scored wins on both endings. That increased his lead to 8-2 with 24 games drawn. In the evening session, another evenly balanced ballot was played, and Alex Moiseyev attained the necessary drawn game to become the World's Three-Move Champion by the score of 8-2 and 25 games drawn. Congratulations, Alex!

In a radio interview this afternoon, Ron "Suki" King stated that he had not prepared properly for the match and that this was a telling factor. He related that as he had been World Three-Move Champion for the past nine years, he had found it hard to motivate himself for this match but that Alex Moiseyev has now given him a reason to return to some serious study and play. Ron King remains GAYP World Champion. As Alex Moiseyev said earlier this week on the radio, "This is not our first match, and it's unlikely to be our last!" There will be a presentation ceremony tomorrow night (Thursday, October 23) at 8:30 pm. This will be attended by an array of renowned players, including Women's World Champion Patricia Breen, Challenger Jan Mortimer of New Zealand, and Alan Millhone, Hon. President of the American Checker Federation (ACF), who has been an interested spectator at the match for the past three days.

Final Score: Alex Moiseyev: 8 wins, Ron King: 2 wins, & 25 games drawn.

  Day Ten: Awards Ceremony
Thursday, October 23, saw the official prize-giving ceremony of the Three-Move World Championship Match. A large number of players and supporters turned out to pay tribute to two great World Champions for providing what was an exciting and historical match. Hugh Devlin officiated at the ceremony and thanked a number of people who had worked hard to ensure this great match became a reality, including George Miller (England), David "Prophet" Clarke (Barbados), Charles Walker (USA), and John Reade (England). He paid a special tribute to the Northern Federation of Draughts Committee, which saw to tournament arrangements at the local level such as arranging transportation, gaining sponsorship, arranging accommodations, and meeting all other requirements of the Festival.

After the official declaration of the match result, congratulations were extended to Alex Moiseyev, the undisputed Three-Move World Champion. Presentations were then made to Alex Moiseyev, Ron King, and John Reade.

Alex thanked everyone for making this match possible. He related that it was indeed a great moment in his life and one he'll always remember. He paid tribute to Ron King, stating that the result could have been much closer if Ron had desired that, but it was a tribute to Ron to continue fighting with every move of every game in his desire to win. Alex stated that their style of play was very different with Ron King continually seeking winning opportunities while Alex sought to make the strongest possible move on every turn.

Ron King accepted the result graciously and told Alex he only had the title on loan for 12 months. He said there was no animosity between himself and the match referee John Reade. In fact, when a new world governing body is put in place, he'll propose that John Reade be put in charge of all referees in major international events as he now knows every rule inside and out!

A special welcome was extended to Jan Mortimer of New Zealand and to Patricia Breen of Carlow, Ireland, leading Hugh Devlin to remark that the room was full of world champions! Mr. Devlin said he hoped the upcoming match for the Women's World Title would be as exciting as the one they'd just witnessed. He outlined the exciting schedule of events still to come in the Festival and said that he hopes the world of draughts / checkers will be greatly strengthened by these events. Congratulations were passed on from Ivan Shovkoplyas (President of the FMJD) among others. Alan Millhone spoke on behalf of the American Checker Federation and thanked everyone for making this all possible.

This will be a busy weekend in Cookstown with players arriving in Ireland from across the world in preparation for the All-Ireland Open Draughts Championship.