Tournament
Chess in the Park: Eastern Market Metro Park
The U.S. Chess Center, in partnership with Barracks Row Main Street, is pleased to present a FREE chess tournament at Eastern Market Metro Park. Students in grades 2-8 that know the real rules of chess and understand tournament etiquette are invited to participate in a friendly (and free) chess competition on Saturday, June 4th from 10:00am until 1:00pm. There is no cost to participate in this tournament and students may play one or more games. Space is limited, however, so please register in advance and arrive at 10:00am to ensure your place. Drop-ins and on-site registration will be allowed; however, we can only accommodate a maximum of 40 players at a time.
There will be areas where families may wait during the games, but there will not be space for spectators in the playing area.
Pre-register here: https://register.chessctr.org/a/easternmarketmetro
DC Denker and Barber Qualifiers This Saturday
The Denker Tournament of High School Champions is an annual invitational event for the champions of all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Named for the late Grandmaster Arnold Denker, a former U.S. Champion and a tireless promoter of chess among young people, the tournament has been one of the most prestigious national events for students in grades 9-12 since its inception 38 years ago.
The Dewain Barber National Tournament of Middle School Champions, now in its 12th year, is the corresponding annual event for students in grades 6-8. This year both the Denker and Barber tournaments will be held in the Westin Mission Hills Golf Resort & Spa in Rancho Mirage, California, from July 30 – August 2. This coming Saturday, April 2, Washington, DC will hold its qualification tournaments to determine who will represent the District in these events.
The qualifiers will be held at the DC Housing Finance Agency at 815 Florida Ave., NW., Washington DC 20001. The event is open to DC residents only, and is nationally rated by the U.S. Chess Federation, so participants must join the USCF if they are not already members. Proof of COVID vaccination is required to participate.
The entry fee is $20. This is a four-round Swiss system tournament with time control: Game/25 + 10. Players should bring clocks if they have them. The first round starts at 1 P.M.
Online registration is available at: https://dcscholasticchess.org/tournaments (scroll midway down the page).
Metro Area Chess League 2021-2022 Season
The U.S. Chess Center will be re-launching the Metro Area Chess League (MACL) in Fall 2021. The league is open to all interested high schools in the Washington Metropolitan Area. The 2021-2022 season will kickoff in mid-November 2021 and conclude with play-offs at the end of March 2022. Schools that are interested in participating should contact us at: hs-league@chessctr.org Or to view the league rules or participating teams, visit: https://chessctr.org/play/macl/
League matches will be played on Tuesday evenings on https://lichess.org/.
Virginia Scholastic Chess Championships
Qualification Tournament 2 (of 3)
Through participation in these Qualification Tournaments players earn Team Points for their schools, and individual players qualify to play in the Virginia Scholastic Chess Championships to be held in April or May this year.
To maximize your school’s Team Points you and your schoolmates should play in ALL THREE tournaments. Playing in all 3 events also increases your chances to qualify for the State Championship Invitational Tournament!
When is it being Played?
Saturday and Sunday, February 27-28, 2021. This is NOT an elimination event, players play all 5 rounds. This is an online tournament being hosted by Chesskid.com. You DO NOT need to be a member of Chesskid.com to play. All players will receive an event-specific username for this tournament
Rounds 1-3 are on Saturday Feb 27 at 10AM, 1:30PM and 5:00 PM (this is a change from 4:30 PM). The Time Control for all 3 rounds is Game in 60 minutes, with 10 seconds added for each move. The “official time” for each player is the time displayed by the Chesskid.com virtual chessboard on the player’s screen.
Rounds 4 and 5 are on Sunday, Feb 28 at 10AM and 3PM. The Time Control for the Sunday games is Game in 75 minutes, with 10 seconds added for each move.
You do not need a separate chess board or chess clock to play. You also do not need to take Chess Notation (it is optional).
Who Can Play?
The answer is YES if you can meet any of these Eligibility Requirements:
- Players in grades pre-K through High School who are enrolled in school in Virginia
- Virginia residents who are attending K-12 school in WV, MD, NC, DE or an adjacent state or Washington, DC
- Children of active duty military personnel who are stationed in Virginia
- You are being Homeschooled in Virginia
Registration
http://www.vachess.org/
The Early Entry Fee period of $35 will close at midnight on Tuesday, February 18th.
Starting Wednesday, Feb 19th, the Entry Fee increases to $50.
Registration closes at 9AM on Tuesday, February 23, 2021