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Maurice Ashley

Oprah, GM Maurice Ashley and the Chess Center Connection

Maurice Ashley, the first Black grandmaster, featured heavily on the latest episode of Oprah Winfrey’s podcast exploring the importance of character development and learning.  Winfrey, alongside Wharton professor of psychology Adam Grant, explored Ashley’s journey as teacher for the Harlem-based “Raging Rooks” chess team of young students. Despite lacking the resources enjoyed by many of their chess contemporaries at private schools, the team, coached by Ashley, rose to compete for national championships by focusing on disciplined learning and toughness in the face of adversity.

Ashley’s outlook on teaching chess echoes many philosophies similar to what we espouse at the U.S. Chess Center.  When he began his work with the Raging Rooks team Ashley, as Grant observed during the interview, did not task his young students with memorization or early specialization (intense focus on one individual aspect of the game, to the exclusion of others).  These are practices that can drive short-term improvement at the expense of long-term development and interest in the game.  Instead, Ashley’s approach emphasized the development of character traits such as confidence and resilience, to ensure that his charges were equipped psychologically to deal with the various unpredictable challenges chess threw their way.

Ashley earned the grandmaster title in 1999, and in the decades since then he has been one of America’s best-known ambassadors for the game of chess, especially among young people.  In 2011, during one of his many trips to Washington, D.C., he performed a simultaneous exhibition at the U.S. Chess Center’s former location on M Street.  We were happy to see that some photos from that simul made it to the Oprah segment (these photos are shown beginning at the 22 minute, 6 second mark of the video).

Whether or not you are a chess afficionado, if you are interested in the role of perseverance, resilience, and curiosity in driving long-term success, Ashley’s story is well worth your attention.

American Chess Magazine: Worth Supporting

American Chess Magazine is a publication worth reading and supporting. In its most recent issue (#46) it published an article I wrote about the Alex Sherzer Memorial Mid-Atlantic Masters, and for the first time I read the entirety of the 82-page glossy. 

Having not played competitive chess in more than 30 years, I found some of the grandmaster analysis beyond me but can appreciate the effort that went into it. The magazine enlists many of the world’s top players to prepare articles and analyze games. The amazing Polgar sisters, Judit, Sofia, and Susan, seem to be regular contributors. Many other well-known names have had by-lines: GM Boris Gulko, GM Wesley So, GM Maurice Ashley, GM Joel Benjamin, GM Alex Fishbein, as well as our local phenom WGM Jennifer Yu.

Most of the articles are written so well that they are accessible to every level of chess-playing reader. The American Chess Magazine receives awards for the high caliber of its journalism every year.

The articles cover all aspects of chess, from current events in America, to tournament results all over the world, to human interest stories and chess history, and, in this most recent issue a special feature of strong female players beating strong male players.

In addition to the best players in the world contributing to the magazine, one of the editors is a high school American girl who impresses both over the board and off. There are great book reviews. The layout is superb. I do not see a weakness in this bi-monthly periodical and believe it offers quite a bit for people interested in chess at any level, although those trying to improve their skills will benefit most.