Executive Director of the U.S. Chess Center
This past Saturday, March 26, 2022 was the final class of our Chess Kids program for 2021-2022. Stay tuned this fall when we open registration again for the 2022-2023 sessions. In the meantime, here are some photos from Chess Kids this spring.
A curious reader of our website sent in the following question:
“In the Big Nate comic strips, there is a recurring theme: Nate is put into check, and Nate responds by making one move to checkmate his opponent. This led me to wonder about actual plausible board configurations that could result in this outcome. Has anyone come up with such configurations?”
It doesn’t happen often, but here is a silly example:
This specific position would not likely arise in a game, but the concept of answering a check with a winning discovered attack is known in chess. Thanks for your question!
One of the co-founders of the U.S. Chess Center in 1991, International Chess Master Eugene Meyer was instrumental in the success of the Center in establishing chess classes in hundreds of local schools.
IM Meyer was among the twenty highest-rated players in the country for a couple of decades and was an active participant in local and national tournaments and leagues, winning many championships. For many years, until he emigrated to Virginia, he was the District of Columbia’s highest-rated player.
In honor of his 29 years of service and generosity to the U.S. Chess Center, Executive Director Christopher McCleary presented IM Meyer with an award last week. Thank you, IM Meyer!
Sunday Chess is a weekly class on Sunday from 1:30pm – 5:00pm ET. The class meets in-person in the basement of 1340 Old Chain Bridge Rd, McLean, VA 22101 (Map) or students may participate online via Zoom.
The U.S. Chess Center is pleased to bring back the Metro Area Chess League (MACL), the high school chess league we ran from 1985 through 2012. A previous incarnation of the league ran from 1950 through 1975.
The 2021-2022 season began last night with Round 1 and will continue over the next few months, concluding with play-offs at the end of March 2022. We have 20 teams competing.
Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, MD and Justice High School in Falls Church, VA won their matches and led the round with four board victories each—a clean sweep—tying them for first place.
James Hubert Blake High School (Silver Spring, MD), Gonzaga College High School (Washington, DC), and Thomas S. Wootton High School (Rockville, MD) also won their matches last night, but scored three board wins each and are tied for third place.
11/24 update: South Lakes High School (Reston, VA) won 3-0 in their postponed match against SEED Public Charter School (Washington, DC), joining the third place tie.
Good luck to all the teams! Full results and Round 2 pairings below…
| Place | School | Match Points | Board Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st (Tie) | Justice High School | 1 | 4 |
| 1st (Tie) | Montgomery Blair High School | 1 | 4 |
| 3rd (Tie) | Gonzaga College High School | 1 | 3 |
| 3rd (Tie) | James Hubert Blake High School | 1 | 3 |
| 3rd (Tie) | South Lakes High School | 1 | 3 |
| 3rd (Tie) | Thomas S. Wootton High School | 1 | 3 |
| 7th (Tie) | BASIS DC | .5 | 2 |
| 7th (Tie) | Georgetown Preparatory School | .5 | 2 |
| 7th (Tie) | Richard Montgomery High School | .5 | 2 |
| 7th (Tie) | Rochambeau, the French International School | .5 | 2 |
| 7th (Tie) | Rockville High School | .5 | 2 |
| 7th (Tie) | St. Anselm's Abbey School | .5 | 2 |
| 7th (Tie) | West Springfield High School | .5 | 2 |
| 7th (Tie) | Woodrow Wilson High School | .5 | 2 |
| 16th (Tie) | Col. Zadok Magruder High School | 0 | 1 |
| 16th (Tie) | McLean High School | 0 | 1 |
| 16th (Tie) | Northwest High School | 0 | 1 |
| 18th (Tie) | Don Bosco Cristo Rey High School | 0 | 0 |
| 18th (Tie) | E.L. Haynes Public Charter School | 0 | 0 |
| 18th (Tie) | The SEED Public Charter School | 0 | 0 |
| N/A | St. Albans School | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | Washington International School | N/A | N/A |
Round 2 will be held on December 14, 2021 at 7:15pm ET (7:30 games start) with matches played on https://lichess.org.
Rockville High School vs. Thomas S. Wootton High School
Washington International School vs. St. Albans School
Woodrow Wilson High School vs. E.L. Haynes Public Charter School
James Hubert Blake High School vs. Richard Montgomery High School
Georgetown Preparatory School vs. Rochambeau, the French International School
Justice High School vs. South Lakes High School
West Springfield High School vs. Montgomery Blair High School
Gonzaga College High School vs. St. Anselm’s Abbey School
The SEED Public Charter School vs. BASIS DC
Don Bosco Cristo Rey High School vs. Col. Zadok Magruder High School
McLean High School vs. Northwest High School
Round 2: December 14th
Round 3: January 11th
Round 4: January 25th
Round 5: February 8th
Round 6: TBD (February 22nd or March 1st)
Round 7: March 8th
Round 8: March 22nd
Playoffs: Saturday, March 26th with top 4 teams in-person
Our Saturday Chess Kids program resumed again this past Saturday, October 23, 2021 at the DC Housing Finance Agency auditorium in the Shaw / U Street neighborhood of Washington, DC.
Chess Kids, which has been operating since the U.S. Chess Center’s founding, is an individualized, highly structured program for students in Grades K – 6 that meets on Saturdays from 10:00 am – 11:30 am. Chess Kids students are placed in groups based on their ability and everyone plays games each week and receives lessons. Through Chess Kids, we make learning chess fun!
To register your student for Chess Kids, click here. Chess Kids operates in four-week sessions, and students are welcome to register for multiple sessions. Session 2 begins November 20th.
Thank you to DC HFA for providing a great venue and support for this program.
Thank you to Money Muscle BBQ and everyone who came out on Thursday, October 14, 2021, to spend the evening with us playing chess, eating barbecue, making new friends, and enjoying beautiful fall weather under Piggy Smalls’ tent.
Want to play more chess? Our offices are finally re-opening for limited hours and open play starting this Saturday, October 16th from 1:00-5:00pm.
WHERE
U.S. Chess Center
8560 Second Avenue, Suite 118
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910
WHEN (New Hours)
Saturdays 1:00pm – 5:00pm
For the rest of October, play chess for free. Starting in November table fees are $5/day, but Chess Center Members always play for free, so Become a Chess Center Member!
Please join the U.S. Chess Center team and our friends at Money Muscle BBQ for an evening of “Bishops & BBQ.” Come play chess and enjoy delicious barbecue at this family-friendly event while helping support the U.S. Chess Center.
WHAT: Bishops & BBQ
WHEN: Thursday, October 14, 2021 from 5:30 – 7:30pm ET
WHERE: Money Muscle BBQ Tent: 8620 Fenton Street, Silver Spring, MD 20910
(If raining, find us at All Set Restaurant)
Door prizes for lucky guests and Money Muscle BBQ will donate a percentage of event sales to the U.S. Chess Center, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Chess play and conversation is free!
To make a donation in support of our mission to promote self-confidence, social skills, and academic success for all, click here.
Every year we recognize one or two kids who were particularly good students in our Sunday Chess program. Our second award, for Outstanding Performance, was presented to James.
He earned the trophy both for being the most improved player during the year and for his leadership in the group. Despite his relative youth (being in middle school) other students respected his opinions and enjoyed their games with him.
When asked what he likes about chess, James said, “Whether you are a master or a beginner, chess is an incredible way to unleash your creativity and experience the joy of learning and competing.”
He and others are returning to Sunday Chess this coming week. Sunday Chess will be a hybrid this year with many students coming to McLean in-person while others will be joining us online.
Students in grades 7 – 12 are welcome to register for Sunday Chess classes (either in-person or online) at https://chessctr.org/classes/sunday-chess/
Every year we recognize one or two kids who were particularly good students in our Sunday Chess program. Our first award, for Outstanding Performance, was presented today to Ryan.
“Chess is cool,” Ryan said accepting the trophy recognizing his hard work and dedication during Sunday Chess this past year. Ryan got excited about chess this year as he developed an appreciation for learning the strategy of the game and he looks forward to competing in person this year, including the tournament coming up next month for high school students at Eastern High School.
July 20th is International Chess Day, the day the International Chess Federation (FIDE) was founded, in 1924. First proposed by UNESCO in 1966, International Chess Day has been celebrated annually ever since, and on December 12, 2019, the UN General Assembly unanimously approved a resolution also recognizing the day.
How are you celebrating International Chess Day? Send us a picture of you and/or your student(s) playing chess; or share an anecdote about learning or playing chess; or how it has made an impact in your life; and we’ll feature your pictures/stories right here on our blog, Notate. Email your photo or story to: admin@chessctr.org.
Support the U.S. Chess Center: In honor of International Chess Day, please donate to help us teach students to play chess in order to promote self-confidence, social skills, and academic success.
The U.S. Chess Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and charitable donations, which are tax-deductible to the maximum extent allowed by law, enable us to:
► Keep our fees exceptionally low;
► Provide scholarships/discounts to financially challenged families;
► Offer free or low-cost chess instruction to Title I public schools.
Thank you!
Some Fun Facts About Chess
► Mathematically there are more possible games of chess than there are atoms in the Observable Universe.
► 605 million adults play chess regularly.
► Chess comes from the 6th century Sanskrit game chaturaṅga, which translates to “four arms.” The arms refer to the elephants, horses, chariots, and foot soldiers of the Indian army, which evolved into the modern bishops, knights, rooks, and pawns.
► Although the rule allowing pawns to move two squares on their first move was first proposed in the late 13th century, it was not generally accepted until 1492 when a large group of chess players in Paris also adopted the en passant rule.
Kendrick Smith: I didn’t come to the game of chess until 2012, when I was thirty-six years old. I picked up a book by John Nunn entitled, Learn Chess. My first attempts to play were against friends, whom had been playing since their childhood. It is inevitable to say that they annihilated me causing me to take an early hiatus. Fast forward to April 2020, the pandemic. To implement social distancing in our office, they broke our team up into a day and a night shift. To keep people engaged and morale up, someone had a bright idea to bring in a chess board, where the night shift would play a move against the day shift. I thought to myself, it would take forever to finish the game. So I brought in a board of my own, and set it up at my desk. When work was slow, my coworkers would stop by to play. I got beat often, but I began to learn. I had read that five was a good age to introduce a child to chess, which was the exact age that my son was. Each day that I came home from work, I showed him a piece and how it moved. I next showed him pawn promotion, En passant, and castling. Then the following week I showed him how to set up the board. We immediately began playing games. The beautiful thing was that on the days I was teaching Manny about chess, my wife would be at the island in the kitchen, listening and watching. She quickly picked up the game just from our sessions. We would each then take turns playing one another. it was it at this point that I began to enjoy the game of chess. I began watching several movies about chess, i.e., Fresh, The Queen’s Gambit, Critical Thinking, Brooklyn Castle, The Knight’s of the South Bronx, End Game, and Searching for Bobby Fischer. We now play every chance we get. Win, lose, or draw, we love the royal game. As matter of fact, when we’re eating at restaurant’s outdoors, we’ll play games, while waiting on our food. Attached is a picture of my son Manny and I playing at our favorite Ethiopian restaurant, Cher Cher. We plan on having Manny join the chess center this fall.
Ashwin, a Chess Center student, playing chess:
On Sunday, June 20, 2021, friend of the U.S. Chess Center and Grandmaster, Dr. Alexander Sherzer, joined our Sunday Chess class to answer questions and play a simultaneous exhibition (simul) against the students. Dr. Sherzer talked about his chess experiences, including his friendship with the Polgár sisters and meeting Bobby Fischer.
View the 10 games played in the simul on Lichess at: https://lichess.org/simul/zixkDp4j or below (click the board to view that game on Lichess).
The U.S. Chess Center has over a thousand used chess books for sale, starting at $1.00 and up. We have been working to inventory our collection and enable online perusal. Check out the list of books we’ve cataloged for sale so far in this Google Sheet or on our Libib Bookshelf. 2021-07-16 UPDATE: Peruse and purchase books here: https://chessctr.org/usedbooks/
Email admin@chessctr.org with inquiries or to purchase any books. Buyer pays shipping or local pick-up is available. Your purchase helps support the charitable mission of the Chess Center. Thank you!
The US Chess Center played a match with a team from the Lusaka Province Chess Association (LPCA) in Lusaka, Zambia, on Saturday afternoon (evening in Africa), June 12th. Each team was supposed to field 12 students, but the Zambian team had a few technical difficulties and only nine were able to participate. The games were hard-fought, with every player having plenty of opportunities.
Before and after the match, the students went to break-out rooms to meet and learn about each other. In addition to having common interests in sports and music, the kids from both locations like to play video games and have parents who restrict how much time they may spend online.
The coaches discussed the challenges of attracting and keeping girls involved with chess. In Zambia, much competition is played among teams and the leagues require that at least one player per six-person team be female. The coaches have succeeded in educating parents about the long-term value, both cultural and educational, of chess so that their attrition rate is low.
An excellent relationship was established and more matches between the two groups are expected to occur starting this summer.
Here are some of the games played (Click the board to view the game at Lichess):
Congratulations to Robin Ramson and Chess Girls DC for another successful All Girls Tournament! It was our pleasure to help with another wonderful event.
Catholic University again hosted the outdoor event, which attracted 13 players. Anna Miller, among the most active members of Chess Girls DC, swept the four-round event.
Directing the tournament was US Chess Center President David Mehler, assisted by Robert Teachey. DC Girls Champion Amanda Lossef also helped, analyzing games and teaching first-timers how to record their moves.
On Wednesday, June 2, we partnered with the Friends of Oxon Run Park to offer the first of several free introductory chess lessons for children (and play opportunities for adults) to be held over the summer at the amphitheater in this Washington, D.C. park. Everyone who participated (and endured the cacophony of cicadas) also received a US Chess Center chess set courtesy of the Friends of Oxon Run Park.
Keep an eye out for more chess in Oxon Run Park later this summer.
Thank you to Brenda Richardson and the Friends of Oxon Run for hosting this event!
This Saturday, June 5, 2021 at 9:30 am ET, the All Girls K-12 Spring Tournament will be held outdoors at Catholic University’s Edward J. Pryzbyla Center (on the patio), weather permitting.
PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED (walk-ups will not be permitted). The Fee is $15.00.
Masks will be required at all times during the tournament or you will be asked to leave and will be disqualified. No exceptions.
For more information, or to register, please visit: https://dcscholasticchess.org/tournaments
Congratulations to Benjamin Nemelka and Benjamin Tyrrell for earning the right to represent the District of Columbia in the GM Arnold Denker National Tournament of High School State Champions (Denker) and the Dewain Barber National Tournament of Middle School State Champions (Barber).
The qualifying tournaments were held this past Saturday, May 22nd, outdoors on the Catholic University campus. Organized by DC Chess League Scholastic Coordinator Robin Ramson and directed by David Mehler, ten players braved the sunshine and cicadas for a morning of excellent competition.
Mrs. Ramson announced the DC All-Girls tournament will be held at the same location on June 5, and that Amanda Lossef will represent the District in the WIM Ruth Haring National Tournament of Girls State Champions (formerly the National Girls Invitational Tournament).
These are a few of the games played (click the board to view the game at Lichess):
Time forfeit.
Zach was in time trouble and in the scramble lost.
Congratulations to DC International School for their victory in the Spring 2021 PCSAA Middle School Chess League. Saturday, May 15 was the final Match Day (Rounds 13 & 14) and DCI dominated yet again, maintaining the lead they established at the start of the season, and securing victory with 13.5 match points. DCI almost achieved a perfect record, but BASIS DC, our second place team with 11 match points, fought DCI to a draw in Round 12 last week.
Imagine Hope edged out Howard University for third place, despite both teams having 8 match points. The decision came down to the tie-breaker of board points (Imagine Hope had 31 to HU-MS²’s 28 board points).
Thank you to all the teams, students, and coaches! We hope to see all the teams return in the Fall for a new season.
| School | Match Points | Board Points (Tiebreaker Only) |
|---|---|---|
| DC International School | 13.5 | 51.5 |
| BASIS DC | 11 | 42 |
| Imagine Hope Community Charter School | 8 | 31 |
| Howard University Middle School of Mathematics & Science | 8 | 28 |
| E.L. Haynes Public Charter School | 4 | 20.5 |
| 3 | 16 | |
| 2 | 11 | |
| Meridian Public Charter School | 1 | 12 |
Results after Round 14 (Saturday, May 15, 2021)
Woman Grandmaster (WGM) Jennifer Yu, the 2019 US Women’s Champion, spent time with our Sunday Chess group on May 16, answering students’ questions and playing a consultation game with them. Jennifer spoke about her training for tournaments, her expectations of playing chess indefinitely but not making it her career, and her passion for doing the best she can. Watch some of the Q&A here:
After chatting with the students, WGM Yu played a consultation game with them. In a consultation game, a group (in this case the US Chess Center’s Sunday Chess students) plays collectively, discussing and determining each move together as a team.
Nearly three hours later, the match resulted in a draw. Watch each move in the match on Lichess here: https://lichess.org/kl7LM8LG#1
Thank you to WGM Yu for spending a Sunday afternoon with our students!
This Saturday, May 22, 2021 at 9:30 am ET, the qualifiers for the Denker (grades 9-12) and Barber (grades 6-8) Tournaments of Champions will be held outdoors at Catholic University’s Edward J. Pryzbyla Center (on the patio), weather permitting.
PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED (walk-ups will not be permitted).
All competitors must also be members of the US Chess Federation to play, and due to COVID-19 and space restrictions, each category (students in grades 6-8 for the Barber, grades 9-12 for the Denker) is limited to a maximum of 16 players. Masks will be required at all times during the tournament or you will be asked to leave and will be disqualified. No exceptions.
For more information, or to register, please visit: https://dcscholasticchess.org/tournaments
The inaugural season of the DC Public Charter High School chess league concluded on Tuesday, May 11th, and went well. Among three teams it was close throughout, and Somerset is ready to be competitive in the fall.
In the fall, we will be re-launching the Metro Area Chess League (MACL) for all interested high schools in the DC metropolitan area. The 2021-2022 MACL season will begin in mid-November 2021 and conclude with play-offs at the end of March 2022. Schools that want to participate should send us a note at: hs-league@chessctr.org
We also welcome high school students to our Sunday Chess class. Registration for the Fall 2021 session will begin in late August 2021.
Saturday, May 8 was the penultimate Match Day (Rounds 11 & 12) of the Spring 2021 PCSAA Middle School Chess League. One more Match Day to go!
DC International School maintains their lead in first place and will face Howard University and Imagine Hope in the final two rounds on Match Day 7. Both schools could present a challenge, but DCI just needs one more match point to insure their overall victory. Meanwhile, our second place stalwart, BASIS DC, needs strong victories against both of their Round 13 & 14 rivals (Howard University and E.L. Haynes, respectively) and for DCI to endure their first two outright losses. Anything could happen!
Yet, the fiercest competition of the Spring 2021 PCSAA League continues in the fight for third place with Imagine Hope and Howard University continuing their rivalry. Both are still in strong contention, but Howard University has the more challenging schedule to overcome as they face our two current leaders, DCI and BASIS DC, in the final rounds.
Good luck to all the schools and players!
| School | Match Points | Board Points (Tiebreaker Only) |
|---|---|---|
| DC International School | 11.5 | 43.5 |
| BASIS DC | 9.5 | 37 |
| Imagine Hope Community Charter School | 7.5 | 29 |
| Howard University Middle School of Mathematics & Science | 7.5 | 26 |
| Statesmen College Preparatory Academy for Boys | 3 | 15 |
| E.L. Haynes Public Charter School | 3 | 16.5 |
| Meridian Public Charter School | 1 | 10 |
| The Children’s Guild DC Public Charter School | 0 | 5 |
Results after Round 12 (Saturday, May 8, 2021)
Saturday, May 1 was Match Day 5 (Rounds 9 & 10) of the Spring 2021 PCSAA Middle School Chess League.
First and second place remain the same from last week with DC International School and BASIS DC comfortable in their positions. The intense struggle for third place continues, however, with Howard University Middle School for Mathematics and Science and Imagine Hope Community Charter School separated by only .5 match points (and .5 board points, too). With two match days (or 4 rounds) still to go anything could happen.
Good luck to all the teams!
| School | Match Points | Board Points (Tiebreaker Only) |
|---|---|---|
| DC International School | 10 | 37.5 |
| BASIS DC | 8 | 32 |
| Howard University Middle School of Mathematics & Science | 6 | 21.5 |
| Imagine Hope Community Charter School | 5.5 | 22 |
| Statesmen College Preparatory Academy for Boys | 2.5 | 13 |
| E.L. Haynes Public Charter School | 2 | 12.5 |
| Meridian Public Charter School | 1 | 8.5 |
| The Children’s Guild DC Public Charter School | 0 | 3 |
Results after Round 10 (Saturday, May 1, 2021)
Saturday, April 24 was Match Day 4 (Rounds 7 & 8) of the Spring 2021 PCSAA Middle School Chess League.
DC International School held onto their lead and has pulled away from BASIS DC. Howard University Middle School for Mathematics and Science and Imagine Hope Community Charter School continue their fierce battle for third place. Meanwhile, Statesmen College Preparatory Academy For Boys made big gains — moving up two places. We might be seeing the start of a Statesmen surge!
Three more Match Days (or 6 Rounds) to go.
Good luck to all the teams!
| School | Match Points | Board Points (Tiebreaker Only) |
|---|---|---|
| DC International School | 8 | 30 |
| BASIS DC | 6.5 | 28 |
| Howard University Middle School of Mathematics & Science | 4.5 | 17 |
| Imagine Hope Community Charter School | 4 | 16 |
| Statesmen College Preparatory Academy for Boys | 2.5 | 11.5 |
| E.L. Haynes Public Charter School | 2 | 11.5 |
| Meridian Public Charter School | 1 | 6.5 |
| The Children’s Guild DC Public Charter School | 0 | 2.5 |
Results after Round 8 (Saturday, April 24, 2021)
Saturday, April 10 was Match Day 3 (Rounds 5 & 6) of the Spring 2021 PCSAA Middle School Chess League.
DC International School moved into the lead with BASIS DC still in contention. Howard University Middle School for Mathematics and Science and Imagine Hope Community Charter School continue to spar for third.
Four more Match Days (or 8 Rounds) to go.
Good luck to all the teams!
| School | Match Points | Board Points (Tiebreaker Only) |
|---|---|---|
| DC International School | 6 | 23 |
| BASIS DC | 5 | 20 |
| Howard University Middle School of Mathematics & Science | 4 | 14 |
| Imagine Hope Community Charter School | 3 | 12 |
| E.L. Haynes Public Charter School | 2 | 8.5 |
| Meridian Public Charter School | 1 | 5 |
| Statesmen College Preparatory Academy for Boys | 0.5 | 5 |
| The Children’s Guild DC Public Charter School | 0 | 2.5 |
Results after Round 6 (Saturday, April 10, 2021)
International Master David Recuero will play blitz games with students in the US Chess Center’s Sunday Chess class, broadcasting his commentary on Twitch of the games as he plays them. The games begin at about 1:30 pm ET on Sunday, April 18, 2021.
International Master Recuero, of Oviedo, Spain, lived in Washington, DC, until recently and is the 2020 District of Columbia Chess Champion. He is temporarily located in Lima, Peru.
WATCH LIVE: IM David Recuero plays blitz chess with US Chess Center students on Twitch
Saturday, March 27 was Match Day 2 (Rounds 3 & 4) of the Spring 2021 PCSAA Middle School Chess League.
DC International School and BASIS DC continue their fierce battle for the lead with Howard University Middle School for Mathematics and Science and Imagine Hope Community Charter School close at their heels.
We still have five Match Days (or 10 Rounds) to go. Good luck to all the teams!
| School | Match Points | Board Points (Tiebreaker Only) |
|---|---|---|
| DC International School | 4 | 16 |
| BASIS DC | 4 | 15 |
| Howard University Middle School of Mathematics & Science | 3 | 11 |
| Imagine Hope Community Charter School | 3 | 10 |
| E.L. Haynes Public Charter School | 1 | 5.5 |
| Meridian Public Charter School | .5 | 2 |
| Statesmen College Preparatory Academy for Boys | 0 | 2 |
| The Children’s Guild DC Public Charter School | 0 | .5 |
The new Spring 2021 Season of the PCSAA Middle School Chess League kicked-off this past Saturday, March 20th, and we’re pleased to welcome three new schools/teams to the league: Children’s Guild, E.L. Haynes, and Meridian Public Charter Schools.
In the Fall 2020 Season, BASIS DC narrowly edged out DCI to win, but with eight teams in the league now the competition has increased. Good luck to all the teams!
School
BASIS DC
DCI
E.L. Haynes
HU(MS)2
Imagine HOPE
Meridian
Children’s Guild
Statesmen
Match Points
2
2
1
1
1
0.5
0
0
This past Saturday, March 13, 2021, elementary school students of the U.S. Chess Center played a friendly re-match with students from GM Vassily Ivanchuk’s Chess Club in Lviv, Ukraine.
This is the third international match U.S. Chess Center students have played this year.
Fifteen students represented each team, playing for 90 minutes using the lichess.org Arena Chess platform.
These international matches are one of the great benefits of chess, as people from different cultures meet over the chessboard. Chess is the only language the students had in common and they had a wonderful time with their new friends.
The U.S. Chess Center welcomes friendly challenges from clubs around the world with the expectation that chess will continue to be a force for peace and goodwill among nations.
