Chicago, City of Chess

You could easily have concluded that Chicago was the chess capital of the world today, if you did as I did and took to the streets on this glorious late-July Sunday. First I visited the chess pavilion at North Avenue and the lakefront, where about ten games were in progress at all times throughout the afternoon. FM Aleksandar Stamnov and another gent were playing some kind of game that involved playing cards and chess pieces. I didn't understand it. Chess expert and pavilion mainstay Ron Washington, who usually cruises easily to victory there against unsuspecting patzers and tourists, had his hands full playing a series of three-minute blitz games against a young man who was every bit his equal.

After that it was off to Cecil Locke's chess tables in front of the Art Institute, which were rife with activity as usual. I played a boy named Alexander from Newberry Academy. Though I had a material advantage he lured me into stalemate and the game ended in a draw. He was a solid player, though he's not in a chess club because he says there's none at his school. All this talent shouldn't go to waste. Anybody at Newberry up for starting a chess club?

Pasalic Earns Third IM Norm

Congratulations to Chicago FM Mehmed Pasalic, who has just earned his third norm for the International Master title during the 11th North American FIDE Invitational, at the Touch Move Chess Center in Chicago.

“Last night after a draw with Robert Loncarevic, Mehmed played Aleksander Stamnov and won, securing his final IM norm,” said tournament organizer Sevan Muradian of the North American Chess Association.

Mehmed is a member of the Chicago Blaze and will become the team's third IM, joining Angelo Young and Jan van Der Mortel.

The tournament action concludes tonight. Go up to Touch Move to see it in person, or follow it on MonRoi.

In other news, congratulations to the Niles North High School chess team, which got a nice write-up in a North Suburban newspaper this week. The team's star, Ilan Meerovich is, you guessed it, a member of the Chicago Blaze.

Chicago and the Siege of Miami

Road trip for two top local players

Next week’s Miami Open promises to be one of the biggest national chess tournaments of the year, and besides Shabalov, Nakamura, and the other usual suspects, Chicago’s very own FM Aleksandar Stamnov and Expert Ron Washington will be there as well. They’re our guys, so let’s all root for them. Internet access permitting, we may even get some reports from them at the scene.

Are any other Illinois players going to the tournament?

Aleksandar Stamnov

Ron Washington

Notes from Blogistan
Glenn Panner has a blog. This is good news for chess in the Chicago area, so now that he’s online, everybody please go there, leave comments, and give Glenn encouragement to blog often.

Glenn has a great deal to offer the chess conversation in this area. He’s an Expert (rating > 2000), a National Tournament Director, and he’s been active in chess in the South Suburbs and all across the state for decades. He also sponsors many chess events and organizations.

I met Glenn for the first time only recently, during last month’s Billy Colias memorial tournament, of which he was the director, but his reputation had preceded him. The respect he enjoys in the local chess community is considerable. The Illinois Chess Bulletin, the excellent house organ of the Illinois Chess Association, calls Glenn ”Solomonic.”

Glenn is not the only local chess blogger, thank goodness. If you want a global perspective on chess, Sevan Muradian provides one at the North American Chess Association, reporting on news from all over the world. . . . Vince Hart continues to blog about his chess adventures, though to his credit he is not seized with the need to feed the bloggish maw incessantly or even every month, for that matter. He just posts when he has something to say. What a concept! . . . Chess mom Cheryl doesn’t write only about chess, but since her son Trevor Magness is a strong player (he recently reached Expert status at the Illinois Open), chess is a frequent theme at her blog A Round Unvarnish’d Tale.

For all of this information I owe a big tip of my hat to Chessdad64, from whom I know about Glenn, Vince, Cheryl and so many other people on the chess scene. For years he has published the Midwest’s leading chess blog, the 64 Square Jungle, though it’s been quiet of late while he explores other channels of expression, even as he remains active in local chess. Likewise, Lamarr Wilson’s excellent but short-lived Chess4Chicago.com is alas no more.

Stamnov photo: johhnyscars via flickr

Blogging's a Carnival

A “blog carnival” is an online event in which posts on a common topic from different blogs are brought together in one place for the convenience and delectation of readers. It’s pretty common in the blogosphere, but not in chess—until now. Enterprising blogger Jack Le Moine has just put together the first chess blog carnival. See it here.

In other news, IM Angelo Young, the defending Illinois state chess champion, beat FM Aleksandar Stamnov in round three of this year’s Illinois Open, and with a score of 3.0/3.0 is now tied for first place with FM Andrew Karklins. The tournament is taking place all weekend at the Fairfield Inn & Suites in Lombard. Get the latest developments from Tim Just’s Chess for Life.

Marco Sighted in ChiTown

Sightings of Elvis have doubtless been on the rise this week, it being the thirtieth anniversary of his putative death, but The King isn’t the only one being spotted in unexpected places. Marco Codenotti, the former Ray School chess star who returned to his native Italy two years ago, has been seen in Chicago, where he is spending the summer. He is of course active in chess, training with local GM Dmitry Gurevich and playing in the odd tournament, most recently the August 12 Third Coast Challenge by Renaissance Knights in Northbrook.

Marco with his co-winners in Dubai

Marco, you may recall, made headlines in the chess world a few months ago when he beat an International Master in a tournament on the island of Elba. Since then he’s been quite the globetrotter. His father reports that he played in a major international youth tournament in Dubai, finishing first in the U10 division and second in the tournament overall. He finished right behind FM (FIDE Master) Srinath Narayanan of India and ahead of another FM, Ulvi Bajarani of Azerbajian, who came in third. Meanwhile, the Italian blogger Mida, himself a FIDE Master, spotted Marco playing in a major tournament in Bergamo. Marco’s World Chess Federation rating is now 1969. Not bad for a ten-year-old.

Speaking of last Sunday’s Third Coast tournament, congratulations to Chicago FM Aleksandar Stamnov for winning it, which he did against stiff competition, including the remarkable Brian Luo of Wisconsin, who’s about Marco’s age and rated over 2000 USCF; and Indiana IM Emory Tate, about whom we have discoursed before.

Touch Move: Mortals Welcome

Its storefront home on North Ashland Avenue is small and nondescript, but from the moment it opened six months ago, the Touch Move Chess Center gave Chicago something it hadn’t had for a long time: a chess club that’s open more than one day a week.

Touch Move is the brainchild of International Master Angelo Young, and its mission, he says, is to “revitalize the chess club scene in Chicago through club tournaments, scholastic and adult training sessions, hosting small international chess tournaments . . . and providing a quality environment for chess socialization through friendly play.”

And he adds, “The Touch Move Chess Center cares about bringing chess to everyone and most importantly making chess fun!”

Almost immediately after it opened the center became a mecca for the top players in town. (A nice article in the Chicago News-Star certainly didn't hurt. Hat tip: Lamarr) A casual glance at recent crosstables reveals that habitues include masters Albert Chow and Aleksandar Stamnov and expert Isaac Braswell.

Sevan Muradian of the North American Chess Association—he’s Mr. FIDE in this neck of the woods—has made Touch Move the venue of choice for international tournaments of IMs, GMs, and those seeking to earn norms for those titles.

Fine for the masters, experts, and Class A players, you say, but what about us patzers?

As it turns out there’s a place at the table for us, too. The center is hosting a series of tournaments on Saturdays—June 2, 9, and 16—with a “U1400” section—for players whose chess rating is under 1400. Angelo is also interested in holding chess lectures if there’s enough interest, so if you are interested in lectures, please let him know.

For details on the upcoming tournaments go to the center’s Web site or the Illinois Chess Association calendar.

New York has the Marshall, San Francisco the Mechanics Institute, and Boston the Boylston Chess Club. Can the Touch Move Chess Center grow to take its place in this pantheon of great urban chess clubs? Here’s wishing it the best.