A trainee accountant from Colchester is poised to become the number one player of a fiendish brain game enjoyed by millions around the world.
Neil Jenner, 22, will log on from his home in St John's this weekend for the concluding sessions of the World Tantrix Championship final.
Nearly 200 expert exponents of the complex strategy game from 28 countries on five continents have competed in the internet tournament, which began in August.
Now Neil, a maths and computing graduate, is within a few games of claiming the title in a best-of-nine battle of wits with Yorkshireman James Else.
Tantrix, which can be played both online and with a real board, was invented in the late 1980s and presents competitors with 56 hexagonal bakelite tiles, covered in coloured lines and curves.
The winner is the player who manages to create the longest continuous line before the stock of tiles is exhausted.
Neil, who works at Ipswich firm PKF, took up the game three years ago and rose rapidly up the world rankings after taking tips from pal Rob Morton, a previous world championship finalist.
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Published Thursday, November 24, 2005
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