tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46145578751720828962024-03-05T15:29:08.586-06:00Welcome to Webster University ChessWelcome! This site is where I provide chess enthusiasts with updates on my activities and important chess news relating to Webster University - SPICE. Everyone can productively discuss or ask questions about various chess issues! Your contributions & comments are welcome! PLEASE KEEP IT CIVIL & RESPECT OTHERS! - WIN WITH GRACE, LOSE WITH DIGNITY!(TM) - 2016 Susan Polgar ©Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.comBlogger129125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-13480768066233870522017-03-27T05:00:00.000-05:002017-03-30T16:47:46.956-05:00The SPICE National Championship Records<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", "Bitstream Charter", Times, serif; font-size: 16px;">
<a data-mce-href="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/2009-President-27s-Cup-Final-Four-UTD-Chess-Team-Mozilla-Firefox-452009-90320-AM.jpg" href="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/2009-President-27s-Cup-Final-Four-UTD-Chess-Team-Mozilla-Firefox-452009-90320-AM.jpg"><img alt="2009-President-27s-Cup-Final-Four-UTD-Chess-Team-Mozilla-Firefox-452009-90320-AM" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-297140" data-mce-src="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/2009-President-27s-Cup-Final-Four-UTD-Chess-Team-Mozilla-Firefox-452009-90320-AM.jpg" height="361" src="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/2009-President-27s-Cup-Final-Four-UTD-Chess-Team-Mozilla-Firefox-452009-90320-AM.jpg" style="height: auto; max-width: 100%;" width="259" /></a></div>
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The official records of SPICE National Championship Teams (3 wins - 3 ties - 0 loss at TTU and 15 wins - 0 tie - 0 loss at Webster).</div>
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We did not lose any match in 7 straight Final Four National Championships!<br />
<a data-mce-href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUdrSbCE1zlvpW_8O7mlISKj2qnksPrBuPcAr2_ZV91CLTfwdN3z99EEV-Suye8SyF-Lz3J8jM7a_8wkiqiVn5yBNMvmFRGHewnaWGfPoHW-WxqMjch_nqm244F8B3dJtbOKQAn832qzc/s1600/SPICE+Chess+Champs+-+texas-tech-chess-2011.jpg" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUdrSbCE1zlvpW_8O7mlISKj2qnksPrBuPcAr2_ZV91CLTfwdN3z99EEV-Suye8SyF-Lz3J8jM7a_8wkiqiVn5yBNMvmFRGHewnaWGfPoHW-WxqMjch_nqm244F8B3dJtbOKQAn832qzc/s1600/SPICE+Chess+Champs+-+texas-tech-chess-2011.jpg"><br /><img border="0" data-mce-src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUdrSbCE1zlvpW_8O7mlISKj2qnksPrBuPcAr2_ZV91CLTfwdN3z99EEV-Suye8SyF-Lz3J8jM7a_8wkiqiVn5yBNMvmFRGHewnaWGfPoHW-WxqMjch_nqm244F8B3dJtbOKQAn832qzc/s640/SPICE+Chess+Champs+-+texas-tech-chess-2011.jpg" height="401" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUdrSbCE1zlvpW_8O7mlISKj2qnksPrBuPcAr2_ZV91CLTfwdN3z99EEV-Suye8SyF-Lz3J8jM7a_8wkiqiVn5yBNMvmFRGHewnaWGfPoHW-WxqMjch_nqm244F8B3dJtbOKQAn832qzc/s640/SPICE+Chess+Champs+-+texas-tech-chess-2011.jpg" style="height: auto; max-width: 100%;" width="600" /></a></div>
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<strong>SPICE at TTU - 2011 (2 W - 1 T - 0 L) 7-5 – National Champions</strong></div>
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W 2.5 - 1.5 vs UTB<br />
T 2 - 2 vs UTD<br />
W 2.5 - 1.5 vs UMBC</div>
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GM Anatoly Bykhovsky - GM Davorin Kuljasevic - IM Itsvan Sipos - GM Andre Diamant (Head Coach: GM Susan Polgar - Coach/Chief Strategist: FM Paul Truong)</div>
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<strong>SPICE at TTU - 2012 (1 W - 2 T - 0 L) 8-4 – National Champions</strong></div>
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T 2 - 2 vs UMBC<br />
W 4 - 0 vs NYU<br />
T 2 - 2 vs UTD</div>
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GM Georg Meier - GM Elshan Moradiabadi - GM Anatoly Bykhovsky - GM Andre Diamant - GM Denes Boros - IM Vitaly Neimer (Head Coach: GM Susan Polgar - Coach/Chief Strategist: FM Paul Truong)</div>
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<strong>SPICE at Webster - 2013 (3 W - 0 T - 0 L) 9.5-2.5 – National Champions</strong></div>
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W 4 - 0 vs U of IL<br />
W 2.5 - 1.5 vs UMBC<br />
W 3 - 1 vs UTD</div>
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GM Georg Meier - GM Wesley So - GM Ray Robson - GM Fidel Corrales - GM Manuel Leon Hoyos - GM Anatoly Bykhovsky (Head Coach: GM Susan Polgar - Coach/Chief Strategist: FM Paul Truong)</div>
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<strong>SPICE at Webster - 2014 (3 W - 0 T - 0 L) 9.5-2.5 – National Champions</strong></div>
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W 4 - 0 vs U of IL<br />
W 2.5 - 1.5 vs UMBC<br />
W 3 - 1 vs TTUGM Le Quang Liem - GM Georg Meier - GM Wesley So - GM Ray Robson - GM Fidel Corrales - GM Anatoly Bykhovsky (Head Coach: GM Susan Polgar - Coach/Chief Strategist: FM Paul Truong)</div>
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<strong>SPICE at Webster - 2015 (3 W - 0 T - 0 L) 10-2 – National Champions</strong>W 3.5 - 0.5 vs UMBC<br />
W 3.5 - 0.5 vs UTD<br />
W 3 - 1 vs TTUGM Le Quang Liem - GM Ray Robson - GM Illia Nyzhnyk - GM Vasif Durarbayli - GM Fidel Corrales - GM Andre Diamant (Head Coach: GM Susan Polgar - Coach/Chief Strategist: FM Paul Truong)<br />
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<a data-mce-href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh42XWA4gR9gm_CLby4-hAYRiONnbjdKLhtansnvzk8tDkH1HfcXCGHWivgV7yMOvUyYhCirIvg3OXpCyc2-bzGP93JDvh_iZiDF-3pE_D_MXQtDC3ybcj7ZVzeXwz6b4v7UvAxKzjAW6g/s1600/Webster+U+Final+Four+Champs+2016.jpg" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh42XWA4gR9gm_CLby4-hAYRiONnbjdKLhtansnvzk8tDkH1HfcXCGHWivgV7yMOvUyYhCirIvg3OXpCyc2-bzGP93JDvh_iZiDF-3pE_D_MXQtDC3ybcj7ZVzeXwz6b4v7UvAxKzjAW6g/s1600/Webster+U+Final+Four+Champs+2016.jpg"><img border="0" data-mce-src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh42XWA4gR9gm_CLby4-hAYRiONnbjdKLhtansnvzk8tDkH1HfcXCGHWivgV7yMOvUyYhCirIvg3OXpCyc2-bzGP93JDvh_iZiDF-3pE_D_MXQtDC3ybcj7ZVzeXwz6b4v7UvAxKzjAW6g/s640/Webster+U+Final+Four+Champs+2016.jpg" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh42XWA4gR9gm_CLby4-hAYRiONnbjdKLhtansnvzk8tDkH1HfcXCGHWivgV7yMOvUyYhCirIvg3OXpCyc2-bzGP93JDvh_iZiDF-3pE_D_MXQtDC3ybcj7ZVzeXwz6b4v7UvAxKzjAW6g/s640/Webster+U+Final+Four+Champs+2016.jpg" style="height: auto; max-width: 100%;" width="600" /></a><br />
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<strong>SPICE at Webster – 2016 (3 W – 0 T – 0 L) 8.5-3.5 – National Champions</strong><br />
W 3.5 – 0.5 vs Columbia<br />
W 2.5 – 1.5 vs UT RGV<br />
W 2.5 – 1.5 vs TTU<br />
GM Le Quang Liem – GM Illia Nyzhnyk – GM Aleksandr Shimanov – GM Ray Robson – GM Vasif Durarbayli – GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez (Head Coach: GM Susan Polgar – Coach/Chief Strategist: FM Paul Truong)<br />
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<a data-mce-href="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Webster-University-Final-Four-Chess-Champions.jpg" href="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Webster-University-Final-Four-Chess-Champions.jpg"><img alt="Webster University Final Four Chess Champions" class="alignnone wp-image-348008" data-mce-src="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Webster-University-Final-Four-Chess-Champions-1024x683.jpg" height="400" src="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Webster-University-Final-Four-Chess-Champions-1024x683.jpg" style="height: auto; max-width: 100%;" width="600" /></a><br />
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<strong>SPICE at Webster – 2017 (3 W – 0 T – 0 L) 8.0-4.0 – National Champions</strong><br />
W 3.0 – 1.0 vs TTU<br />
W 2.5 – 1.5 vs UTD<br />
W 2.5 – 1.5 vs SLU<br />
GM Le Quang Liem – GM Illia Nyzhnyk – GM Ray Robson – GM Aleksandr Shimanov – GM Vasif Durarbayli – GM Priyadarshan Kannappan (Head Coach: GM Susan Polgar – Coach/Chief Strategist: FM Paul Truong – Assistants: GMs Manuel Leon Hoyos and Ashwin Jayaram)</div>
Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-26734297929753330812016-03-24T08:44:00.001-05:002016-03-24T08:44:15.035-05:00Webster University 2016 Final Four Team<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;">
<a data-mce-href="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Webster-U-Chess-Final-Four-2015.jpg" href="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Webster-U-Chess-Final-Four-2015.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-342171"><img alt="Webster U Chess Final Four 2015" class="alignnone wp-image-342171" data-mce-src="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Webster-U-Chess-Final-Four-2015.jpg" height="518" src="https://chessdailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Webster-U-Chess-Final-Four-2015.jpg" style="height: auto; max-width: 100%;" width="427" /></a></div>
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<strong>Webster University - SPICE (by USCF rating order) 2016 Final Four Team</strong><br />Mascot: Gorlok</div>
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GM Liem "Man of Steel" Le (Vietnam) - Junior/Finance - 2773<br />GM Ray "Fearless Attacker" Robson (USA) - Junior/International Studies - 2746<span class="text_exposed_show"><br />GM Illya "The Brain" Nyzhnyk (Ukraine) - Sophomore/Computer Science - 2720<br />GM Aleksandr "The Czar" Shimanov (Russia) - Grad Student/MBA - 2708<br />GM Vasif "Mr. CrossFit" Durarbayli (Azerbaijan) - Senior/Economics - 2686<br />GM Fidel "Pinar Romancer" Corrales Jimenez (Cuba) - Senior/Computer Science - 2593</span></div>
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Head Coach: GM Susan Polgar<br />Coach & Team Strategist: FM Paul Truong<br />Team Assistants: GM Manuel Leon Hoyos, GM Denes Boros, GM Ashwin Jayaram, IM Eric Rosen, IM Irene Sukandar, WGM Katerina Nemcova<br />
The following 4 universities have qualified for the prestigious annual College Chess Final Four Championship:<br />
<ul>
<li>Webster University #1 seed</li>
<li>Texas Tech #2 seed</li>
<li>University of Texas RGV #3 seed</li>
<li>Columbia University #4 seed</li>
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<strong>Round 1 (10 am – April 2):</strong><br />
Webster vs Columbia / Texas Tech vs UT RGV<br />
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<strong>Round 2 (5 pm – April 2):</strong><br />
Webster vs UT RGV / Texas Tech vs Columbia<br />
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<strong>Round 3 (9 am – April 3):</strong><br />
Webster vs Texas Tech / UT RGV vs Columbia<br />
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<strong>Rules for the 2016 Final 4 of College Chess </strong></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Eligibility</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: Each player must satisfy the eligibility requirements established by the USCF College Chess Committee (CCC). The requirements are the same as those for the Pan-American tournament played Dec 26-29. If not already provided in advance, each team must furnish the Chief TD with their Eligibility Letter printed on University stationery on Friday evening at the Team Captains’ Meeting. </span></span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Teams</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: Each team has four players and up to two alternates. Board-order based on March ratings (50-point transpositions allowed among USCF ratings) is also determined in the same way as for the Pan-American.</span></span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Scoring</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: The President’s Cup is a Team Round Robin scored by total individual points. In the event of a tie, the teams are declared Co-champions. The following tie-breaking systems are for sole possession of the President’s Cup and will be applied in this order:</span></span></div>
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<span class="auto-style15"><strong><em> </em></strong></span><span class="A7"><span class="auto-style15"><strong><em>Total team match wins.</em></strong></span></span></div>
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<li><div class="auto-style7">
<span class="auto-style15"><strong><em> </em></strong></span><span class="A7"><span class="auto-style15"><strong><em>Head-to-head outcome.</em></strong></span></span></div>
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<span class="auto-style15"><strong><em> </em></strong></span><span class="A7"><strong><em>Armageddon (5-4 minute “shootout”).</em></strong> White must win <span class="auto-style20">with 5 minutes</span>, and Black must <span class="auto-style20">win or draw with 4 minutes</span>. There is <span class="auto-style20">no delay or increment</span> time. Winner of a coin toss chooses color. Each team selects one team member to represent them. This team member can be any Player or Alternate from your Official Team Roster for the tournament, it does not have to be your “Board 1” player.</span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Team rosters</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: Each team’s Official Roster must be presented to the Chief TD no later than Friday at the Team Captains’ Meeting. Rosters will identify which team member is the Team Captain. If a Team’s roster is not in Board Order for Round 1, the Team Captain must ensure the Chief TD is aware of your team’s Round 1 lineup. Round 1 Lineups will be posted by the Chief TD one hour before the start of the round. After Round 1, Team Lineups for Rounds 2 and 3 must be submitted to the Chief TD at least one hour prior to the beginning of the next round. Otherwise, if the Chief TD does not receive a Lineup change, he will assume the previous round’s lineup is being used for the next round. The Chief TD will post the updated Team Lineups on the tournament web site as soon as possible and also will email copies to each team’s point of contact for the tournament.</span></span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Team Captains</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: There will be a Captains’ Meeting on Friday evening immediately after the Team Dinner concludes. It usually takes about 30 minutes. It is at this meeting where we all agree upon rules for certain situations that are not specifically addressed. At this meeting be prepared to provide the Chief TD with the phone number and email address of your team’s Captain and a backup point of contact. The Chief TD will use this information to distribute instructions, Lineup Changes, etc. during the tournament.</span></span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Communicating with others During Play</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: No player whose game is in progress may talk with another person without the Chief TD being present before the communications begin. This includes players wanting to talk with their Team Captain about whether to accept or decline a draw offer made by the opponent.</span></span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Cell Phones, Other Communication Devices and Calculation Devices</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: We will discuss this at the Captains’ Meeting on Friday night. The Chief TD’s initial position is: No player with a game in progress is allowed to physically possess (e.g. have on their person during the game) or to have access to any communication-capable or calculation-capable device. If you are playing a game during the Round, don’t bring such devices into the Playing Room.</span></span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Sets, Boards and Clocks</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: DGT Boards will be provided by the Tournament Organizer for play. They must be used. The TD is responsible for the Time Control programmed into the clocks provided by the Organizer, not for incorrect Time Controls set on clocks provided by a team.</span></span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Pairings</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: The team pairings/seeds are predetermined by the March 2016 US Chess Rating Supplement. There will be a drawing for Round 1 and Round 3 colors on Board 1 at the Friday evening meeting before the tournament.</span></span></div>
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<span class="auto-style15"><strong><em> </em></strong></span><span class="A7"><span class="auto-style15"><strong><em>Rd 1</em></strong></span><span class="auto-style15"><strong><em>: </em></strong><strong><em> </em></strong><strong><em>1 vs. 4; 2 vs. 3</em></strong></span></span></div>
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<li><div class="auto-style19">
<span class="auto-style15"><strong><em> </em></strong></span><span class="A7"><span class="auto-style15"><strong><em>Rd 2</em></strong></span><span class="auto-style15"><strong><em>: </em></strong><strong><em> </em></strong><strong><em>1 vs. 3; 2 vs. 4</em></strong></span></span></div>
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<span class="auto-style15"><strong><em> </em></strong></span><span class="A7"><span class="auto-style15"><strong><em>Rd 3</em></strong></span><span class="auto-style15"><strong><em>: </em></strong><strong><em> </em></strong><strong><em>1 vs. 2; 3 vs. 4</em></strong></span></span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style15">Official Time Controls</span><span class="auto-style15">: Game 90 with a 30-second increment each move.</span></span></div>
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<span class="A7">The tournament is FIDE & US Chess rated.</span></div>
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<span class="A7"><span class="auto-style14"><strong>Chief TD</strong></span><span class="auto-style15">: The Chief TD for this tournament is National Tournament Director and FIDE Arbiter Mike Hoffpauir from Virginia. Mike has been the Chief TD (and organizer) of several College Final 4 Championships and also has been the Chief of the Pan Ams. </span></span></div>
Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-10043214734769602672016-02-15T13:03:00.000-06:002016-04-06T17:48:37.561-05:00Rules & Conditions for the 13th Annual Susan Polgar Foundation Girls’ Invitational<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<strong>Rules & Conditions for the 13th Annual Susan Polgar Foundation Girls' Invitational - the richest all-girls championship in the world!</strong><br />($200,000+ in scholarships + $7,500 cash prizes)<br />July 23 (arrival day) – 28, 2016 at Webster University (St. Louis, Missouri)</div>
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The Annual SPF Girls' Invitational, in its 13th year, is the most prestigious All-Girls event in the United States. It is also the first All-Girls event approved and sanctioned by the USCF back in 2003. It is an invitational event, and will once again be held at Webster University (St. Louis, Missouri).</div>
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Each state, as well as each country in the American Continent (South, Central, and North America) is allowed to nominate one representative. Each Canadian province is allowed one representative to be nominated.<strong> </strong>In addition, automatic qualifying spots will be awarded to the reigning winners in each section of the annual Susan Polgar Foundation National Open for Girls and the Susan Polgar Foundation World Open for Girls.</div>
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Webster University will provide complimentary room and meal accommodation on campus for all qualifiers!</div>
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• There will be an intense training session with Susan Polgar and members of the SPICE team, followed by a 6 round (g/90+30) FIDE rated championship tournament.<br />• The traditional Blitz, Puzzle Solving, Bughouse events will stay the same as in previous years.<br />• There will be many chess prizes awarded, as well as scholarships to Webster University.</div>
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Official representatives should be nominated by June 10, 2016. Official representative alternates may be substituted no later than July 11, 2016. (Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee may allow the host state / country to enter an additional qualified player.) Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee may allow exceptions to the June 10 entry/alternate deadline. Should the state / country affiliate fail to respond to the notice for this tournament, Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee may determine the candidate from that state / country.</div>
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Players must have been enrolled in a school (up to 12th grade) located in the state or country they represent, also of the year in which the tournament is held. Home-schooled students who are under the age of 19 on July 22nd of the year in which the event is held or students who have never attended college on a full time basis prior to June 1 of the year in which the tournament is held, are eligible to represent the state in which they reside.</div>
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<b>Exception: </b>If a player graduates from high school early and is already attending college, she may still represent her state if nominated. This is the decision of each state affiliate or country.</div>
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<b>VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: </b>The participants of the Susan Polgar Girl’s Invitational DO NOT have to be high school students. <strong>Any qualifier under the age of 19</strong> (by July 22nd of the year in which the tournament is held) is eligible!</div>
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Special invitation for this year: All past participants of the SPNI and SPFGI (Susan Polgar National Invitational/Susan Polgar Foundation Girls’ Invitational 2004-2015) are invited to participate in the 2016 SPFGI. The idea is to have the past participants learn my method of training so they can go back home and share their knowledge with the younger players. However, registration MUST be made ASAP since space is limited. There will be mutual training sessions for all, however separate section & prizes for alumni participants over the age of 19.</div>
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Players are required to furnish the organizer an emergency phone number and the e-mail address of a parent/guardian.</div>
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There is no entry fee to participate in the 2016 SPFGI; however, players are responsible for their own travel.</div>
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For alumni participants, wild card/special invites, coaches, parents, or other family members, inexpensive accommodations are available for housing and dining on Webster’s campus. Please note that all reservations and registrations MUST be made (and accommodation expenses prepaid) no later than June 15, 2016.</div>
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Prizes: Trophies / plaques will be awarded to the winners of the Susan Polgar Foundation Girl’s Invitational Puzzle Solving, Blitz, Bughouse and the SPFGI Championship. Co-champions are recognized in the case of a tie, with each champion receiving a Champion’s Plaque or Trophy.</div>
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The Champion (or Co-Champions) of the main event will automatically be invited to defend her/their title (must meet age requirement).</div>
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<strong>Champion:</strong> Webster University scholarship* (full tuition and fees approximately $25,000 + per year x 4 years)</div>
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<strong>2nd place:</strong> Webster University scholarship (approximately $14,000 + per year x 4 years)</div>
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<strong>3rd place:</strong> Webster University scholarship (approximately $12,000 + per year x 4 years)</div>
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(In case of a tie, a playoff will used to determine the level of scholarships)</div>
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* The scholarships to Webster University must be exercised no later than Fall of 2019, and are not transferable. In addition, these scholarships cannot be combined with other academic scholarships, or stacked. If players won scholarships in past events, they can choose to exercise the highest one.</div>
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<strong>Additional CASH SCHOLARSHIP this year!</strong></div>
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1st place = $2,500<br />2nd place = $1,500<br />3rd place = $1,000</div>
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Top under 13 = $500<br />Top under 10 = $500</div>
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Triple-crown champion (main event, blitz, and puzzle solving) = $1,000</div>
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Biggest upset prize (each round) = $50 x 6 = $300 gift certificate</div>
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Best dressed player = $100 gift certificate</div>
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Best written essay about the SPFGI experience = $100 gift certificate</div>
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There will also be additional surprised prizes which challenge intellect and wit!</div>
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(In case of a tie, cash prizes will be shared)</div>
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The Polgar Committee’s goal is to have all 50 states (including two representatives for California, two for Texas, and two for Missouri), the District of Columbia, as well as each country in the American Continent (South, Central, and North America) represented. We strongly encourage each state and the District of Columbia affiliate to hold a scholastic championship tournament to determine each state’s champion and representative. Failing this, rating criteria may be acceptable. A scholastic girls’ champion or the highest rated girls’ scholastic player in a state who has no state affiliate of the USCF should contact the Polgar Committee as soon as possible.</div>
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Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee and its members may elect to award a limited number of wild cards each year for the Susan Polgar Girl’s Invitational.</div>
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Special qualifying events: The Polgar Committee will award automatic qualifying spots to the reigning winners in each section of the annual Susan Polgar Foundation National Open for Girls and the Susan Polgar Foundation World Open for Girls.</div>
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The SPFGI Chairperson is Martha Underwood (AZ).</div>
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NOTICE TO ALL STATE OFFICIALS: Please send the nomination from your state to the Polgar Committee (PolgarCommittee@gmail.com).</div>
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Contact info: Polgar Committee (PolgarCommittee@gmail.com)</div>
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The Susan Polgar Foundation can be contacted at 806-281-7424 or through info@PolgarFoundation.org.</div>
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Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-1944743726600201872015-02-19T14:25:00.001-06:002015-03-04T17:22:22.555-06:00Rules & Conditions for the 12th Annual Susan Polgar Foundation Girls' Invitational<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /><b> Rules & Conditions for the 12th Annual Susan Polgar Foundation Girls' Invitational<br /> (Over $200K in prizes and scholarships)</b><br /> July 25 (arrival day) – 30, 2015 at Webster University (St. Louis, Missouri)<br /><br />The Annual SPF Girls' Invitational, in its 12th year, is the most prestigious All-Girls event in the United States. It is also the first All-Girls event approved and sanctioned by the USCF back in 2003. It is an invitational event, and will once again be held at Webster University (St. Louis, Missouri). <br /><br />Each state, as well as each country in the American Continent (South, Central, and North America) is allowed to nominate one representative. In addition, automatic qualifying spots will be awarded to the reigning winners in each section of the annual Susan Polgar Foundation National Open for Girls and the Susan Polgar Foundation World Open for Girls.<br /> <br /> Webster University will provide complimentary room and meal accommodation on campus for all qualifiers!<br /> <br /> • There will be an intense training session with Susan Polgar and members of the SPICE team, followed by a 6 round (g/90+30) FIDE rated championship tournament.<br /> • The traditional Blitz, Puzzle Solving, Bughouse events will stay the same as in previous years.<br /> • There will be many chess prizes awarded, as well as scholarships to Webster University.<br /> <br /> Official representatives should be nominated by June 8, 2015. Official representative alternates may be substituted no later than July 6, 2015. (Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee may allow the host state to enter an additional qualified player.) Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee may allow exceptions to the June 8 entry/alternate deadline. Should the state affiliate fail to respond to the notice for this tournament, Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee may determine the candidate from that state or country.<br /> <br /> Players must have been enrolled in a school (up to 12th grade) located in the state or country they represent, also of the year in which the tournament is held. Home-schooled students who are 19 or under on the year in which the event is held or students who have never attended traditional college on a full time basis prior to July 1 of the year in which the tournament is held, are eligible to represent the state or country in which they reside.<br /> <br /> Exception: If a player graduates from high school early and is already attending college, she may still represent her state if nominated. This is the decision of each state affiliate. <br /><br /><b>VERY IMPORTANT NOTE:</b> The participants of the Susan Polgar Girl’s Invitational DO NOT have to be high school students. Any qualifier who is 19 or under (on the year in which the tournament is held) is eligible!<br /> <br /> Special invitation for this year: All past participants of the SPNI and SPFGI (Susan Polgar National Invitational/Susan Polgar Foundation Girls’ Invitational 2004-2014) are invited to participate in the 2015 SPFGI. The idea is to have the past participants learn my method of training so they can go back home and share their knowledge with the younger players. However, registration MUST be made ASAP since space is limited. There will be mutual training sessions for all, however separate section & prizes for alumni participants over the age of 20.<br /> <br /> Players are required to furnish the organizer an emergency phone number and the e-mail address of a parent/guardian. <br /> <br /> There is no entry fee to participate in the 2015 SPFGI; however, players are responsible for their own travel.<br /> <br /> For alumni participants, wild card/special invites, coaches, parents, or other family members, inexpensive accommodations are available for housing and dining on Webster’s campus. Please note that all reservations and registrations MUST be made (and accommodation expenses prepaid) no later than June 15, 2015.<br /> <br /> Prizes: Trophies / plaques will be awarded to the winners of the Susan Polgar Foundation Girl’s Invitational Puzzle Solving, Blitz, Bughouse and the SPFGI Championship. Co-champions are recognized in the case of a tie, with each champion receiving a Champion’s Plaque or Trophy. <br /> <br /> The Champion (or Co-Champions) of the main event will automatically be invited to defend her/their title (must meet age requirement).</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> <br /><b> Champion: </b>Webster University scholarship* (full tuition and fees approximately $24,000 + per year x 4 years) Champion's Cup. (In case of a tie, a playoff will used to determine the level of scholarships)<br /> <br /><b> 2nd place: </b>Webster University scholarship (approximately $14,000 + per year x 4 years)<br /> <br /><b> 3rd place:</b> Webster University scholarship (approximately $12,000 + per year x 4 years)<br /> <br /><b> Additional prizes this year! </b><br /> <br /> Top under 16: $1,000 scholarship to help defray expenses to the 2015 World Youth (if participating**)<br /> <br /> Top under 14: $1,000 scholarship to help defray expenses to the 2015 World Youth (if participating**)<br /> <br /> Top under 12: $1,000 scholarship to help defray expenses to the 2015 World Youth (if participating**)<br /> <br /> Top under 10: $1,000 scholarship to help defray expenses to the 2015 World Youth (if participating**)<br /> <br /> * The scholarships to Webster University must be exercised no later than Fall of 2018, and are not transferable. In addition, these scholarships cannot be combined with other academic scholarships, or stacked. If players won scholarships in past events, they can choose to exercise the highest one.<br /> <br /> ** After flight ticket has been purchased, a $1,000 reimbursement check will be sent to the winners.<br /> <br /> The Polgar Committee’s goal is to have all 50 states (including two representatives for California, two for Texas, and two for Missouri), the District of Columbia, </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">as well as each country in the American Continent (South, Central, and North America)</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> represented. We strongly encourage each state and the District of Columbia affiliate to hold a scholastic championship tournament to determine each state’s champion and representative. Failing this, rating criteria may be acceptable. A scholastic girls’ champion or the highest rated girls’ scholastic player in a state who has no state affiliate of the USCF should contact the Polgar Committee as soon as possible.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> <br /> Susan Polgar and/or the Polgar Committee and its members may elect to award a limited number of wild cards each year for the Susan Polgar Girl’s Invitational.<br /> <br /> Special qualifying events: The Polgar Committee will award automatic qualifying spots to the reigning winners in each section of the annual Susan Polgar Foundation National Open for Girls and the Susan Polgar Foundation World Open for Girls.<br /> <br /> The SPFGI Chairperson is Martha Underwood (AZ).<br /> <br /><b> NOTICE TO ALL STATE OFFICIALS:</b> Please send the nomination from your state to the Polgar Committee (PolgarCommittee@gmail.com).<br /> <br /> Contact info: Polgar Committee (PolgarCommittee@gmail.com)<br /> <br /> The Susan Polgar Foundation can be contacted at 806-281-7424 or through info@PolgarFoundation.org.</span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-60145439208738438402015-02-19T14:24:00.001-06:002015-02-19T14:24:23.382-06:002015 Webster University SPICE Chess Camp<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /><a href="http://www.webster.edu/spice">www.webster.edu/spice</a> <br /><br />314-246-8075<br /><br /><a href="mailto:chess@webster.edu">chess@webster.edu</a></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-58795059567613343022015-01-01T00:00:00.000-06:002015-05-11T19:42:38.914-05:002 world and 28 national titles since August 2012<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<i><b>If you would like to be a part of the #1 College Chess program in the United States, please feel free to contact me (<a data-mce-href="mailto:SusanPolgar@aol.com" href="mailto:SusanPolgar@aol.com">SusanPolgar@aol.com</a>). Full and partial scholarships available for qualified student players.</b></i></div>
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<b>Webster University – SPICE Chess Program Top Facts</b></div>
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1. Webster University has 10 Grandmasters, and players from 16 different countries. The SPICE program has 4 World Champions, 12 Olympians, and 19 National Champions…<br />2. Webster University chess team has been ranked #1 in Division I College Chess since its inception in August 2012 (with 4 freshmen and 1 sophomore on the A team), which is over 125 consecutive weeks.<br />3. Webster University A team has never relinquished the top ranking and has never lost a match.<br />4. Webster University team members won 2 world championships and 29 national titles in the past 2+ years.<br />5. Webster University won the 2013 PanAm InterCollegiate Chess Championship with a perfect 6-0 score, and won all 3 Final Four matches, to close out the season with an unprecedented perfect 9-0.<br />6. Webster University sponsors and hosts the annual SPF Girls’ Invitational, the most prestigious all-girls event in the U.S., as well as the annual prestigious SPICE Cup.<br />7. Students of Webster University actively volunteer in the community to bring chess into schools. They, as a team, also maintain a very high GPA.<br />8. The SPICE chess program has won 5 consecutive Final Four Championships, and has not lost a match in 5 straight Final Four Championships.</div>
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<b>2014 – 2015 Webster University – SPICE chess team members</b></div>
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1. GM Le Quang Liem (Vietnam) – World Blitz Champion, National Champion, Olympian<br />2. GM Wesley So (Philippines) – World University Champion, National Champion, Olympian (turned full time pro after winning Millionaire Chess)<br />3. GM Illia Nyzhnyk (Ukraine) – National Champion, European Champion<br />4. GM Ray Robson (USA) – National Champion, Olympian<br />5. GM Georg Meier (Germany) – National Champion, Olympian, European Champion<br />6. GM Vasif Durarbayli (Azerbaijan) – World Youth Champion, National Champion, Olympiad<br />7. GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez (Cuba) – National Champion, Olympian<br />8. GM Manuel Leon Hoyos (Mexico) – National Champion, Olympian<br />9. GM Andre Diamant (Brazil) – National Champion, Olympian<br />10. GM Denes Boros (Hungary) – National Champion<br />11. GM-elect Ashwin Jayaram (India) – National Champion<br />12. IM Vitaly Neimer (Israel) – National Champion<br />13. FM Jake Banawa (USA) – National Champion<br />14. WGM Anna Sharevich (Belarus) – National Champion, Olympian<br />15. WGM Katerina Nemcova (Czech Republic) – National Champion, Olympian<br />16. WIM Inna Agrest (Sweden) – National Champion, Olympian (graduated in December 2014)<br />17. WFM Luisa Mercado (Colombia) – National Champion<br />18. Mara Kamphorst (Brazil) – National Champion<br />19. Paul M. Truong (USA) – National Champion<br />20. Tori Whatley (USA)<br />21. Reginald Jackson (USA)</div>
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Webster students are around the world. There are 22,000+ students enrolled at Webster University – with students from 50 states and 148 countries around the world.</div>
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Webster University offers academic excellence in more than 100 programs offered at a vibrant home campus and at locations throughout the world, with all the benefits of a student-centered education and a real-world perspective.</div>
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<b><a data-mce-href="http://www.webster.edu/" href="http://www.webster.edu/">http://www.webster.edu</a></b></div>
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A historic mission. An inviting home campus: Founded in 1915, with five students and a pioneering educational mission, Webster has a history of shaping the future of higher education.</div>
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Local and global: With 22,000 students at locations around the world, Webster is defining global education for the future.</div>
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Students from 50 states and 148 countries: You experience the diversity of the world in a richly educational way.</div>
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Average class size: 10 : Small, highly interactive classes encourage innovation, collaboration, and self-expression.</div>
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Faculty-to-student ratio: 1:9 : Students have all the advantages of a student-centered university that supports personalized learning and gives every student an opportunity to excel.</div>
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Global locations: We have metropolitan, military, and corporate locations around the world, as well as traditional campuses in Asia, Europe, and North America. Our Study Abroad programs are ranked in the top 2 percent by U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges 2013.”</div>
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163,000 Alumni: A growing and involved alumni community are connecting online, in-person, and at worldwide events.</div>
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One and only: Webster is the only Tier 1, private, nonprofit university with campus locations around the world including metropolitan, military, online and corporate, plus traditional, American-style campuses in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia.</div>
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Diversity is a core value: Webster is one of the most diverse universities in the country, which is an enduring part of our history and central to our future.Undergraduate and graduate programs. More than 75 different majors and around 60 graduate programs in a supportive, educational environment that allows students to excel.</div>
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<b>A global, Tier 1, private, nonprofit university</b></div>
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* Global feature in academic programs. Globalized curriculum is our distinctive hallmark<br />* Academic programs engage your mind and stimulate your understanding beyond your home country and culture<br />* Every student experiences a global learning component<br />* Every student is exposed to a worldwide network of fellow students who live, work and study around the U.S., Europe, Africa and Asia<br />* Learn in class today and apply it in real life tomorrow<br />* Five schools and colleges: <a data-mce-href="http://www.webster.edu/arts-and-sciences/" href="http://www.webster.edu/arts-and-sciences/">Arts & Sciences;</a> <a data-mce-href="http://www.webster.edu/business-and-technology/" href="http://www.webster.edu/business-and-technology/">Business & Technology;</a> <a data-mce-href="http://www.webster.edu/communications/" href="http://www.webster.edu/communications/">Communications; </a><a data-mce-href="http://www.webster.edu/education/" href="http://www.webster.edu/education/">Education</a>; and <a data-mce-href="http://www.webster.edu/fine-arts/" href="http://www.webster.edu/fine-arts/">Fine Arts</a></div>
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<b>Titles won by Webster University – SPICE since August 2012 (2 world titles & 30 national titles)</b></div>
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<strong>World Championships (2)</strong></div>
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<strong>June 2013</strong><br />– 2013 World Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Le Quang Liem)<br />
<strong>July 2013</strong><br />– 2013 World University Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)<br />
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<b>National Championships (29)</b><br />
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<strong>August 2012</strong><br />– 2012 U.S. Open Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)<br />– 2012 U.S. Open Rapid (g/15) Championship: 1st place (GM Andre Diamant and IM Vitaly Neimer)<br />– 2012 U.S. Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Andre Diamant), 2nd place (GM Anatoly Bykhovsky)<br />
<strong>December 2012</strong><br />– 2012 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Both A and B team tied for 1st place<br />– 2012 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top reserve player (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)<br />
<strong>April 2013</strong><br />– 2013 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Georg Meier, Wesley So, Ray Robson, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, Manuel Leon Hoyos, and Anatoly Bykhovsky)<br />
<strong>June 2013</strong><br />– 2013 National Open: 1st place (GMs Wesley So and Manuel Leon Hoyos)<br />– 2013 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)<br />– 2013 National G/10 Championship at National Open: 1st place (GM Wesley So)<br />
<strong>August 2013</strong><br />– 2013 US Open G/15 Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)<br />– 2013 US Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)<br />
<strong>October 2013</strong><br />– 2013 US National G/30 Championship: 1st place (GM Georg Meier)<br />– 2013 US National G/60 Championship: 1st place (GM Georg Meier)<br />
<strong>December 2013</strong><br />– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: 1st place (A team won with a perfect 6-0 score)<br />– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 1 (GMs Le Quang Liem, Fidel Corrales Jimenez)<br />– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 2 (GM Anatoly Bykhovsky)<br />– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 3 (GM Wesley So)<br />– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 4 (GM Ray Robson)<br />– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top overall performance (GM Wesley So)<br />
<strong>April 2014</strong><br />– 2014 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Le Quang Liem, Wesley So, Georg Meier, Ray Robson, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, and Anatoly Bykhovsky)<br />
<strong>June 2014</strong><br />– 2014 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)<br />
<strong>July 2014</strong><br />– 2014 World Open: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)<br />
<strong>August 2014</strong><br />– 2014 US Open: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)<br />
<strong>December 2014</strong><br />– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: 1st place (A team scored 5.5 – 0.5)<br />– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 1 (IM Ashwin Jayaram)<br />– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 2 (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)<br />– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 3 (Ray Robson)<br />– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 4 (Andre Diamant)<br />
<strong>February 2015</strong><br />- 2015 USATN: Top College Team (WGMs Anna Sharevich, Katerina Nemcova, WFM Luisa Mercado, Mara Kamphorst)<br />
<strong>March 2015</strong><br />– 2015 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Le Quang Liem, Ray Robson, Illia Nyzhnyk, Vasif Durarbayli, Fidel Corrales, Andre Diamant)</div>
Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-91007533333055603052014-05-31T23:03:00.000-05:002014-06-10T19:10:48.531-05:002014 Final Four Champions, Back to Back - Webster University!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Round 1</b><br /><br />Webster University won<b> 4-0</b> University of Illinois<br />TTU won <b>2.5-1.5</b> UMBC<br /><br /><b>Round 2</b><br /><br />UMBC lost <b>1.5-2.5</b> Webster University<br />University of Illinois lost <b>1-3 </b>TTU<br /><br /><b>Round 3</b><br /><br />TTU lost <b>1-3</b> Webster University<br />UMBC won <b>4-0</b> University of Illinois<br /><br /><b>2014 Final standings:</b><br /><br />1. Webster University 9.5 points<br />2. UMBC 7<br />3. TTU 6.5 <br />3. University of Illinois 1.0</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Round 1</b><br /><br />Webster University won <b>4-0 </b>University of Illinois<br />UTD won<b> 3-1</b> UMBC<br /><br /><b>Round 2</b><br /><br />UMBC lost <b>1.5-2.5 </b>Webster University<br />University of Illinois lost <b>1-3</b> UTD<br /><br /><b>Round 3</b><br /><br />UTD lost<b> 1-3 </b>Webster University<br />UMBC won <b>2.5-1.5</b> University of Illinois<br /><br /><b>2013 Final standings:</b><br /><br />1. Webster University 9.5 points<br />2. UTD 7 <br />3. UMBC 5<br />4. Illinois 2.5</span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-67057129373182100332014-05-10T21:52:00.000-05:002015-05-11T19:43:22.282-05:00Welcome to the life of a female coach in a male dominated world!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><br /><b>Webster - SPICE Top 10 Facts</b><br /><br />1. Webster University chess team has been ranked #1 in Division I College Chess since its inception in August 2012 (with 4 freshmen and 1 sophomore in the A team)!<br /><br />2. Webster University A team has never relinquished the top ranking!<br /><br />3. Webster University A team has never lost a match!<br /><br />4. Webster University won the last 2 straight Final Four Championships, both by 2.5 points, the largest ever margin in College Chess history! <br /><br />5. Webster University won the last PanAm InterCollegiate Chess Championship with a perfect 6-0 score, and won all 3 Final Four matches, to close out the season with an unprecedented perfect 9-0!<br /><br />6. Webster University sophomore Wesley So won the World University Championship, and is ranked #15 in the world!<br /><br />7. Webster University freshman won the World Blitz Championship, and is ranked in the top 40 in the world! <br /><br />8. Webster University sponsors and hosts the annual SPF Girls' Invitational, the most prestigious all-girls event in the U.S., as well as the prestigious annual SPICE Cup.<br /><br />9. Students of Webster University actively volunteer in the community to bring chess into schools. They, as a team, also maintain a very high GPA.<br /><br />10. The SPICE chess program has won 4 consecutive Final Four Championships, and has not lost a match in 4 straight Final Four Championships!<br /><br />In spite of the clear facts that no other university even came close to the unprecedented achievements of Webster University - SPICE, and its students, we have NEVER won the College of the Year honor. Can you imagine Connecticut or Florida State not getting the top honor after winning the division I basketball and football national championships?<br /><br />But in chess, that honor went to a team which did not make the Final Four last year, and a team which finished 3rd this year. There was even rumbling about not allowing any female coach (me) in men's division I chess. <br /><br />That idea quickly went away after seeing how chess fans react, especially on Social Media. One fellow male coach even told me that the ONLY reason why my teams win is because of my looks, and it has nothing to do with my coaching ability and credentials! <br /><br />Welcome to the world of College Chess in America! Welcome to the life of a female coach in a male dominated world!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Titled won by Webster University - SPICE </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>World Championships (2) </b><br /><br /><b>June 2013 </b><br /><br />- 2013 World Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Le Quang Liem) <br /><br /><b>July 2013 </b><br /><br />- 2013 World University Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So) <br /><br /><b>National Championships (23) </b><br /><br /><b>August 2012 </b><br /><br /> - 2012 U.S. Open Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos) <br /> - 2012 U.S. Open Rapid (g/15) Championship: 1st place (GM Andre Diamant and IM Vitaly Neimer) <br /> - 2012 U.S. Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Andre Diamant), 2nd place (GM Anatoly Bykhovsky) <br /><br /><b>December 2012 </b><br /><br /> - 2012 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Both A and B team tied for 1st place <br /> - 2012 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top reserve player (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos) <br /><br /><b>April 2013 </b><br /><br /> - 2013 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Georg Meier, Wesley So, Ray Robson, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, Manuel Leon Hoyos, and Anatoly Bykhovsky) <br /><br /><b>June 2013 </b><br /><br /> - 2013 National Open: 1st place (GMs Wesley So and Manuel Leon Hoyos)<br /> - 2013 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)<br /> - 2013 National G/10 Championship at National Open: 1st place (GM Wesley So) <br /><br /><b>August 2013 </b><br /><br />- 2013 US Open G/15 Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos) <br />- 2013 US Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos) <br /><br /><b>October 2013 </b><br /><br />- 2013 US National G/30 Championship: 1st place (GM Georg Meier) <br />- 2013 US National G/60 Championship: 1st place (GM Georg Meier) <br /><br /><b>December 2013 </b><br /><br />- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: 1st place (A team won with a perfect 6-0 score) <br />- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 1 (GMs Le Quang Liem, Fidel Corrales Jimenez) <br />- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 2 (GM Anatoly Bykhovsky) <br />- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 3 (GM Wesley So) <br />- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 4 (GM Ray Robson) <br />- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top overall performance (GM Wesley So)<br /><b><br /> April 2014</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /> - 2014 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Le Quang Liem, Wesley So, Georg Meier, Ray Robson, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, and Anatoly Bykhovsky)<br /><br /><b>June 2014</b><br /><br />- 2014 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)<br /><br /><b>July 2014</b><br /><br />- 2014 World Open: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)<br /><br /><b>August 2014</b><br /><br />- 2014 US Open: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)</span></div>
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Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-62646957035430798742014-04-30T16:01:00.002-05:002014-04-30T16:03:26.375-05:00The importance of College Chess<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Paul Truong, coach of the <a href="http://www.webster.edu/"><b>Webster</b></a> chess team and Director of Marketing & PR for <a href="http://www.webster.edu/spice"><b>SPICE</b></a>, just made the following statement regarding the recent big surge in interest in College Chess. Due to space limitation, he decided to have it posted here and provided a link for readers of the Washington Post and FOX Sports:</i><br /><br />First of all, kudos to Mike Rosenwald, the author of <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/is-webster-university-spending-1-million-to-dominate-college-chess-and-crush-umbc/2014/04/28/15b9f7dc-cf0c-11e3-a6b1-45c4dffb85a6_story.html"><b><span style="color: blue;">this article</span></b></a>, and Louis Ojeda, Jr., author of <a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/southwest/story/college-chess-becoming-more-like-football-and-basketball-042914"><b>this article</b></a> for covering a very interesting issue.<br /><br />Secondly, I would like to correct a few misconceptions about College Chess, budgets, and recruiting, etc. College Chess has a long history; however, it has grown dramatically in the past seven years, and now receives serious attention from the media.<br /><br />As I pointed out to Mike in an email, the secret of building a national championship team has little to do with an arms race. As a head coach, Susan Polgar has led her teams to four consecutive Final Four Championship wins with 2 different universities. The first victory came with a team that was dubbed the “Cinderella team,” the organization with the smallest budget, and by far the lowest rank. No team had ever won the Final Four being the bottom seed until her team did it in April 2011.<br /><br />So how did they win? Hard work, team work, good strategy, and good coaching! She knows how to coach and how to motivate her players. Her players respect her and they will always fight hard for her.<br /><br />She is labeled as the most controversial chess coach. Why? Because she sets very high standards for her students, and constantly challenges them to achieve these goals! She demands that her student players focus on their school work. The average GPA of the national championship team is around 3.6 or 3.7, with multiple players with 4.0. She insists that they work out physically to stay in shape and enhance stamina. Many members of her team do CrossFit, and all of them pay attention to fitness. She also asks her players to volunteer in the community, conduct themselves professionally on and off the board, respect one another, stay out of trouble, and be productive global citizens. Some think that is too much to ask. She disagrees.<br /><br />Today, many universities have world class coaches such as Onischuk, Macieja, Yermolinsky, Milovanovic, etc. Being the only female coach in a division I men’s chess team, Susan has to work much harder to prove that she belongs on the male-dominated elite level. Therefore, she knows that her every move will be severely scrutinized by doubters and sexist individuals. Being a pioneer is never an easy task.<br /><br />As for the size of the budgets and scholarships, this is another major misconception. As the Washington Post has pointed out, UMBC provides full tuition and a $15,000-a-year food and housing stipend for their fellows. That is quite a bit more than Webster currently offers (when the full value is calculated) and there is no way Webster could match that. The size of chess teams from UT Dallas, Texas Tech, and UT Brownsville, etc. also are all bigger than Webster, so when the full value of their programs are calculated, they too exceed what Webster spends. Webster provides academic and need-based scholarships to the Chess team members, and those students qualify for these types of scholarships just as any other students.<br /><br />To compare budgets between various chess programs is like apples and oranges. Some programs count office space, utilities, office supplies, and other various miscellaneous expenditures as a part of their budgets while others do not. Some programs are under various Deans / Provosts, which means that whole sections of their budgets aren’t actually counted as being part of the “chess” budget, but rather are calculated as part of someone else’s expenditures. As the famous saying by Mark Twain: "There are lies, damned lies and statistics." This was explained to reporters, but all failed to mention this in their stories.<br /><br />Another completely false narrative is the reason why Webster University chess team is ranked #1 in the country and won the last two Final Fours. Many have repeated the myth all members of the Texas Tech team left with Susan and enrolled at Webster. This is completely false and can easily be debunked. The fact is four of the five top members of the Webster University National Championship team were freshmen (Grandmasters Wesley So of the Philippines, Ray Robson of the US, Manuel Leon Hoyos of Mexico, and Fidel Corrales of Cuba), and therefore weren’t even in college when Susan left for Webster. This year, grandmaster Le Quang Liem of Vietnam also came to Webster as a freshman. Only one of the top five players on Webster’s team transferred from Texas Tech. He was a sophomore when he did that, having only spent one year at Texas Tech.<br /><br />All of Webster’s players were heavily recruited by other universities, including many of our rivals. So why did they choose to come to Webster? They did not choose Webster because of better scholarships. If they were interested in a free education, they easily could have gone to other schools that offer top chess players full scholarships, room, board, book money and stipends, something Webster does not do. These players chose Webster because of the reputation of the coach, just like Nick Saban of Alabama football or Mike Mike Krzyzewski of Duke basketball. These players want to learn and play for the best. Simple as that! None of them has ever heard of Webster until the chess program was announced. <br /><br />And Susan helps them achieve success. Two of her players won world titles last year. Le Quang Liem became the World Blitz Champion and Wesley So won the World University Championship. Three of her players qualified for the World Cup. Eight of her players are Olympians from different countries. This is unprecedented. When Wesley So came to Webster University in August 2012, he was ranked 99 in the world. After a little more than a year training with Susan, he shot up to #18, while winning 11 big events. This is why there is a long list of students wanting to train with the Head Coach of Webster. <br /><br />So what is the bottom line? Webster University is a small global private tier one university in St. Louis with students from all 50 states and 148 countries around the world. They offer excellent education but they do not have the billions of endowment as some other big universities. They obviously could not match the financial numbers of other giant schools. But the top administrators at Webster University, President Stroble and Provost Schuster made a compelling pitch to why Susan Polgar and her SPICE (Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence) program should relocate to Webster in the Summer of 2012. They understood the value which a top level chess program can bring to any institution in major publicity, image building, and recruiting, etc. They also understood the importance of chess in education and in the global market. A few weeks ago, Susan co-taught a credit course at Webster with Professor O’Bannon: SPICE’ing up Business Strategy with Chess. It was a huge success with big turnout. She is working with several Deans and Professors to incorporate chess into various grad/undergrad courses. This is just the beginning of the new revolution, chess in higher education and the real business world. <br /><br />That is why she picked Webster over others, and for less money. Winning national championships is great but it is a secondary thing. Giving young deserving students a great education, on and off the chess board, and building characters, are much more important. And this is what Webster University and SPICE is all about!<br /><br />Paul Truong<br />Coach of the Chess Team<br />Webster University</span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-8058234990162200892013-09-09T22:53:00.000-05:002013-09-09T22:53:07.577-05:00#1 again in 2013<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifkU-9dOOp9r95WMTqiqBbX-29nyf4sYuUOzNWXsR1WVi6TWEZzejgRKn3j9Jd6M_ghW5Ie5eHLyY7Ag9_RSQbGwQzh9W_Eq-Q7-0pK3c9qUqocd1br-k-pE26X0p4dVaY1lG33crQSQ/s1600/Webster+SPICE+BW.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifkU-9dOOp9r95WMTqiqBbX-29nyf4sYuUOzNWXsR1WVi6TWEZzejgRKn3j9Jd6M_ghW5Ie5eHLyY7Ag9_RSQbGwQzh9W_Eq-Q7-0pK3c9qUqocd1br-k-pE26X0p4dVaY1lG33crQSQ/s320/Webster+SPICE+BW.jpg" width="319" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />Sep 6, 2013, 12:58pm CDT <br />Webster Chess team: We’re No. 1 <br />Matthew Hibbard <br />Social Engagement Manager </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">St. Louis Business Journal<br /><br /><a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/profiles/company/us/mo/st_louis/webster_university/3245064">Webster University’s</a> chess team has only completed two weeks of the school year, but they’re already getting high marks in the chess community.<br /><br />The chess team was ranked the No. 1 Division I team in the United States by the U.S. Chess Federation, according to <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/search/results?q=Susan%20Polgar">Susan Polgar</a>, Webster’s coach, chess grandmaster and World and Olympiad champion.<br /><br />Polgar said the top rating allows Webster to attract the best chess players in the world and further brands St. Louis, and specifically Webster, as a chess powerhouse.<br /><br />“Everyone wants to be the top seed,” Polgar said. “It’s a great honor.”<br /><br />Although the distinction puts the chess club in the spotlight, it also comes with added pressure to keep its No. 1 status. To keep the positive momentum strong, Polgar plans to harness the power of her 14 chess players.<br /><br />That team includes two chess champions, <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/search/results?q=Wesley%20So">Wesley So</a> and their newest member, <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/search/results?q=Le%20Quang%20Liem">Le Quang Liem</a>. Liem joined the team this semester from Vietnam, Polgar said.<br /><br />“It’s always a big challenge as a coach to make sure individual stars work together as a team,” she said. “Adding new team members changes the chemistry.”<br /><br />If she can get that chemistry just right, Webster may have what it takes to keep that No. 1 status till the end.<br /><br />Polgar and her <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/search/results?q=Susan%20Polgar">Susan Polgar</a> Institute for Chess Excellence <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/news/2012/02/03/champion-us-college-chess-team-moves.html">relocated in June 2012 to Webster University.</a><br /><br />Source: <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/blog/2013/09/webster-chess-team-were-no-1.html">http://www.bizjournals.com</a></span></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-13641058641714788832013-09-07T18:50:00.000-05:002013-09-09T22:51:17.397-05:00Magnus Carlsen visits Webster University<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />World's #1 Magnus Carlsen is in St. Louis to compete in the Sinquefield Cup. But before the hot and heavy action on the chess board against Aronian, Nakamura, and Kamsky, he visited Webster University to play soccer and basketball with members of the nation's #1 ranked SPICE chess team. Here is the link to some of the photos (12 nations, 10 GMs, competing in sports):<br /><br /><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/116302832360230031699/MagnusCarlsenAtWebsterUniversity">https://picasaweb.google.com/116302832360230031699/MagnusCarlsenAtWebsterUniversity</a><br /><br />Magnus is a new type of chess player, on and off the chess board. He is known for torturing his opponents on the chess boards for 5-6-7 hours. He will play out positions where most grandmasters would be content to agree to a draw. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">He is the same on the soccer field and basketball court. He is extremely fit and athletic. He physically wears out his opponents. Magnus simply shatters the false old stigma that chess players are nerdy.</span></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-58335377907132890632013-09-06T22:49:00.000-05:002014-09-02T12:45:48.857-05:002013-2014 Webster University Chess Team<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCdMO8Y858kRpLStrFzJOyqQE92o4SsAvpx5bqm0z9kRTZTDkFNsUlPGdMAZu4yFO5ANOeDY7M2MW2IY3MzszAaFo0eDfkbitlV9ZaTZV9HQIsww5GGWVpmlsSiij9lLsjtHXH12Vpgg/s1600/Webster+SPICE+color.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCdMO8Y858kRpLStrFzJOyqQE92o4SsAvpx5bqm0z9kRTZTDkFNsUlPGdMAZu4yFO5ANOeDY7M2MW2IY3MzszAaFo0eDfkbitlV9ZaTZV9HQIsww5GGWVpmlsSiij9lLsjtHXH12Vpgg/s400/Webster+SPICE+color.jpg" height="212" width="400" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><a href="http://www.webster.edu/spice/">http://www.webster.edu/spice</a></b> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">A new year of College Chess has begun and Webster University is once again the #1 ranked Division I team in United States (both USCF and FIDE ratings). There are 9 grandmasters from 9 different countries on this year's roster. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>Here are top 10 rated players of Webster University:</b><br /><br />Title - Name - FIDE - USCF<b> </b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>GM Le Quang Liem - </b>Vietnam - 2702 / 2802 (World Blitz Champion - Olympian - Former #1 under 21 in the world)</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b> </b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>GM Wesley So - </b>Philippines - 2710 / 2747 (World University Champion - National Open Champion - Olympian - #2 under 21 in the world)<b> </b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>GM Georg Meier - Germany - </b>2630 / 2693 (Olympian - European Team Champion - 2 time Final Four Champion)<br /><b> </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>GM Ray Robson -</b> USA - 2623 / 2707 (Olympian - US Junior Champ - Final Four Champion)<br /> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez - </b>Cuba - 2640 (Olympian - Final Four Champion - Philadelphia Open Champion)<br /> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>GM Manuel Leon Hoyos - </b>Mexico - 2552 / 2614 (Olympian - US Open Triple Crown Champion & National Open Champion)<br /> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>GM Anatoly Bykhovsky - </b>Israel - 2521 / 2618 (3-time Final Four Champion)<br /> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>GM Denes Boros - </b>Hungary - 2502 / 2546 (Final Four Champion)<br /> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>GM Andre Diamant -</b> Brazil - 2465 / 2526 (Final Four Champion)<br /> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>IM Vitaly Neimer -</b> Isarel - 2384 / 2449(Final Four Champion)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">FM Jake Banawa</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">WIM Inna Agrest</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Mara Kamphorst</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Paul M. Truong </span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-66240649418246249742013-09-03T22:56:00.000-05:002014-06-10T18:45:50.997-05:00Susan Polgar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />Susan Polgar<br />by RYAN KOHLS on Aug 23, 2013 • 12:53 pm<br /><br /> “People truly believed it was impossible for women to play good chess or become a grandmaster. They really were convinced that because no other woman had done it before me it was impossible. But I learned chess quickly and it became part of my mission.”<br /><br />If you love a good tale about women who are socially constructed geniuses, smash gender barriers and humiliate sexist men in sports, I’ve got someone I want you to meet.<br /><br />Her name is Susan Polgar. She’s Hungarian. She’s a genius. And, she was the first woman to ever achieve grandmaster status and compete with men in chess world championships.<br /><br />By the age of 15, Susan Polgar was the best female player in the world. From there the barriers began tumbling down as she defeated men, won countless tournaments and became one of chess’ greatest players. During her career she also had the opportunity to play some of the greats: Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov and Boris Spassky, to name a few.Polgar’s gender-defying ride is now the stuff of legend. Her father, László Polgar, was a psychologist and chess enthusiast who believed strongly that “geniuses were made, not born.” The key was to focus a child’s energy on one thing from an early age. Susan, at the age of 4, showed interest in the chessboard. László noticed and began to hone her skills. Together, Susan and her father began playing and practicing chess for thousands and thousands of hours. It was an experiment he had always wanted to try, so he did…and it worked.<br /><br />Susan isn’t the only Polgar to excel at chess, however. She has two younger sisters, Judit and Sofia. Both followed in her footsteps, received the same treatment from their father and became chess champions. The Polgar Sisters are mainstays on the chess circuit and a popular trio of inspirational women in sports.<br /><br />The Polgar’s upbringing has been widely reported and even featured in an episode of National Geographic’s “<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wzs33wvr9E">My Brilliant Brain</a>” program.<br /><br />Following an extensive career at the top of the chess world, Susan Polgar retired from professional play in 2005. Since then, she’s focused her energy on coaching university chess teams, first for Texas Tech and now at Webster University in St. Louis. She’s also started her own foundation: The Susan Polgar Foundation. The goal of the foundation is to promote chess, and its educational benefits throughout the U.S., especially for girls.<br /><br />Polgar has also used her extensive experience to author numerous books on chess strategy and her rise to grandmaster status.<br /><br />There is much I WANNA KNOW from one of chess’ greatest players.<br /><br />I caught up with Susan Polgar over the phone from her home in St. Louis.<br /><br />From the strategies of chess, to her confrontations with Bobby Fischer, to breaking gender barriers and defeating male grandmasters, we cover it all. <br /><br />Ryan Kohls: Your story begins with you stumbling upon a chessboard in your home. Can you describe what made you fall in love with chess at such a young age? <br /><br />Susan Polgar: First of all, the shape of the pieces. I thought it was very cute. Later, my father introduced me to the essence of the game and I thought it was very fascinating, with the combinations and possibilities. I think also the fairness of the game. I liked the fact that it’s contained, 8 x 8, lot’s of symmetrical elements. Also, I was a small girl and it was something I could do. It didn’t matter what age, size or color you were. Unlike physical sports, where an adult will have a big advantage over a child in terms of knowledge of physical ability and build, in chess all of that disappears.<br /><br />RK: You mentioned your father. When you research your family’s story, there’s a very special connection with the experiment he conducted on you and your sisters. It’s obviously made you successful, but have you ever held any resentment that he focused your energy on one thing? <br /><br />SP: No, not really because although the focus was chess it was never the only thing. I was learning languages or involved with other sports as well. I travelled a lot . It was not just the chessboard, even though it was a main part of my life.<br /><br />RK: Your father seems like a very fascinating man. How would you describe his character? <br /><br />SP: I guess he’s a visionary. He’s very goal oriented. He sets high goals and he’s very ambitious. At the same time I think he’s a very fair person. He always takes into considering the interests of his community and the general good of society at the time.<br /><br />RK: You’re the eldest of three chess grandmasters. What role did you play in developing the talents of your sisters? <br /><br />SP: Well, obviously, by the pure fact that I was the oldest one, and a master level player when they started playing, I helped them a lot; hundreds and thousands of hours in practicing together. At first it was purely teaching and then it became practice partners. It was pretty important for their growth in chess.<br /><br />RK: How do you practice chess for thousands of hours? What kind of strategy is involved in that? <br /><br />SP: At an initial level you would practice different checkmate patterns on different setups and themes that may involve destroying the defence in front of a king. Then you try to solve examples from other people’s games or made up practice positions. That’s one aspect; to build the pattern recognition. That’s true for all levels, from beginner to grandmaster. That’s something you never stop because the sharpness in calculating and recognizing patters, efficiently and quickly, is really a big chunk of what chess is about. You find them for yourselves to gain an advantage and also to prevent your opponent from such ideas. It’s more difficult in a way because we all tend to look for ways to win and are less eager to prevent our opponent from winning. But in order to not fall for their traps it’s important to look for opportunities on both sides.<br /><br />We practice from different situations that were already played by former grandmasters or champions and learn from what they did in certain situations. Chess is like an ocean with endless possibilities, but at the same time ideas and patterns repeat themselves even though circumstances are different. It’s like life. You’re from Kenya and Canada, so you travel a lot. When you travel in airports it doesn’t matter which airport you’re at, you know you go to the check-in counter, you check your luggage, go through security, find your seat, and so on. For someone who hasn’t travelled in their life it’s scary. How am I going to find things? But once you have the experience it doesn’t matter if you’re in Nairobi or Toronto or New York. The gate may look different, but yet the patterns are the same. So in a chess game it’s the same way. According to some research it has been determined that an average Grandmaster is familiar with 20,000 different patterns.<br /><br />RK: How many patterns are there in chess? Is it infinite? <br /><br />SP: It’s probably not infinite. I don’t know the exact number. I guess it’s 20,000 that’s important. I wouldn’t say that there are that many more. People discover news one, but with 20,000 you’ll be one of the best players in the world, you’ll be in the top 1000 for sure.<br /><br />RK: Did you know 20,000 patterns?<br /><br />SP: I would think so, yeah. But you know, knowing them is one thing, another thing is to be able to apply them at all times and not make mistakes. When grandmasters lose games it’s not because they don’t know them but because of the time constraints. Even though you’re familiar you don’t have the time to calculate it all out or compare the different options and evaluate which is better.<br /><br />RK: You’re a bit of a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cx1BeqFPP2c">chess historian</a>. How did chess become, and remain, so popular in Eastern Europe? <br /><br />SP: Well, I certainly wouldn’t call myself an expert in chess history. But growing up in Eastern Europe and being in the Soviet Union numerous times, I can certainly say it has been part of the culture for a couple hundred years by now. It’s partly because of the weather, in Russia for example a lot of the year it’s cold and the activities you can do outdoors are restricted. It’s inexpensive, anyone can afford it. You can play chess in your own home, in a club, on the beach, on a car, a bus. You can play with your child, your grandparents. It doesn’t matter what your build is, or gender, or religion, it crosses through all boundaries. I think that is the secret behind it. If you want to play basketball, being 6 feet tall has an advantage over someone who is 5’4. And someone who is an adult has an advantage over an eight year old child. It’s probably the simplicity and availability to anyone, anywhere.<br /><br />RK: You talked about the lack of barriers in chess. But a huge part of your story is how you broke down the gender barrier in the 70s and 80s. Back in those early days, what was the meanest thing anyone ever said or did to you? <br /><br />SP: (laughs) Well, there were quite a few. The meanest thing was probably when I qualified to represent Hungary at the World Championship in 1986. I wasn’t allowed to compete in the Men’s World Championship. The title of the event included the word men. Therefore, I wasn’t allowed to play. I had many nasty comments about how women aren’t allowed to play chess and they made up all kinds of arguments why not, like women’s brains are smaller and can’t keep quiet for that amount of time. That has been a major part of my young years, that fighting and discrimination. I have to say, in many cases, people truly believed it was impossible for women to play good chess or become a grandmaster. They really were convinced as a fact of life because no other woman had done it before me it was impossible. But I learned it quickly and it became part of my mission.<br /><br />RK: When you started beating these male grandmasters, was it hard to keep the smile off your face?<br /><br />SP: Obviously it was very satisfying and felt good. I have to say that doesn’t happen over night. At first I was beating club players and experts. It was actually harder for those guys who lost to me in the initial years because even though they were only club players their egos were bruised. They were not used to it. It did not happen in any sport that women would beat men. They were teased a lot and reminded of it for a long time. However, when I started regularly beating masters, they slowly got used to it and it wore off the novelty element of it. It wasn’t such a sensation. Though, I am very proud that I paved the road. Now there are about two dozen women who achieved the grandmaster title, the highest ranking in chess.<br /><br />RK: I was arguing the other day that baseball is the most strategic sport in the world. Do you think chess is the most strategic?<br /><br />SP: Probably by definition it is. That said, I don’t underestimate the importance of strategy and psychology in other sports. People would think that because other sports are physical it’s all about what you do physically. I know in tennis or football, strategy is extremely important. But the ratio is perhaps different between the strategy and the physical effort extended in chess versus other sports. It does exist in both though the ratio may be different.<br /><br />RK: That’s a very diplomatic answer. <br /><br />SP: I think it’s very true. People underestimate the physical effort that people make in chess. People doubt or question whether it’s a sport at all. You can ask anybody who competes in chess and has to fight for 10 to 11 grueling hours and see how much it takes out of them physically and mentally.<br /><br />SP: (laughs) Sometimes, but it’s certainly not the norm. If it’s a match you’re playing for two months, like (Kasparov) did against Anatoly Karpov in the 80s. Or for 50-60 days in a row you’re under pressure and every single move you make has a great weight on your shoulder and things are not going your way on top of it. Moments like that, when you feel you’re putting in all the sleepless nights and the result is not there, it can be very painful. If he wants to use the word torturous that’s his choice of words, but it’s certainly very, very tough.RK: I read a quote from Garry Kasparov where he described chess as “mental torture.” Do you agree with that? <br /><br />RK: Back in the day, how hard was it to turn your mind off of the game? Were you constantly dreaming about chess? <br /><br />SP: I would say that in every world champion’s life there is a concentration of a few years, before they become world champion, where they prioritize chess as the most important thing in their lives. They pretty much underline everything towards that goal of becoming a world champion. That will include physical exercises to enhance endurance and energy during the competition. It may include a special diet , a special sleeping schedule that will accustom towards one at a big championship. They sacrifice entertainment and social aspects. So, I would say when you live those years, obviously you have times that you even sleep with some specific chess positions or patterns. In fact, I know numerous people who come up with great ideas in dreams. It happened to me as well. You’d be surprised, I heard it even from athletes in physical sports. They dream about tennis and then implement what they practiced in their dreams.<br /><br />RK: There’s a lot of mind games in chess. There’s this video on YouTube of<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjEmquJhSas">Kasparov playing Magnus Carlsen</a>. He walked up to the table, didn’t shake his hand, played and then walked away. What were some of your strategies for getting the upper hand mentally? <br /><br />SP: Well, I never used any of those tactics. Garry is famous for intimidating his opponents. I don’t like those type of tactics. In some cases, it’s part of the game. I was just on the other end. I got prophylactic by those things. The majority of the players don’t try anything special. They may try to ignore their colleagues before a big match or minimize communication. That’s understandable. I wouldn’t go an extra mile to intimidate them.<br /><br />RK: What do you remember about playing Bobby Fischer? <br /><br />SP: It was a great honor and it was something magical in a way. All chess players of my generation were fascinated by Bobby Fischer’s games. He was a hero to most of us. He defeated the world by himself. It was a very inspiring story. When I actually met him and became friends and he stayed at our house while he lived in Hungary for a number of years, it was a great pleasure to spend time with him and play chess. I’m quite happy with the scores I had against him. He was still a strong player at that time. But, he of course had a problem of keeping consistency. He was in his early fifties. He wasn’t competing much at that time.<br /><br />RK: There’s a fascinating story online about you confronting him about his anti-semitic views. You’re Jewish and you said you “tried to change his views but was unsuccessful.” What were those encounters like? <br /><br />SP: At first it was shocking to me that he really believes those things. When I confronted him about those things he was defensive. The bottom line is that in his younger years he had some very negative experiences with people who happened to be Jewish. Some people who influenced him the wrong way and took advantage of him. Instead of evaluating that those particular people did that to me so I hate them, he was generalizing that this group of people is this way. But when I confronted him he was giving me examples like, “Look what this guy did to me.” So, at the time when he was still in Hungary he was clearly less extreme than he became later in some of his interviews. We’re talking about 1993-1994, when I used to spent time with him.<br /><br />RK: You blogged about the new centre dedicated to him in Iceland. Do you think that overall his impact on chess remains more positive than negative? <br /><br />RK: Because it’s not really you anymore? SP: Absolutely. I honestly despise the fact that there’s so much focus on a negative side. He was a sick person and became mentally ill. He deteriorated over the later years of his life. Imagine today you and I all of the sudden grow a mental illness and become crazy. What does it matter what we say?<br /><br />SP: Exactly. It’s not in his control. He’s sick. Let’s say someone gets in an accident and loses his legs and can’t run. Even though he was an Olympic champion runner, why should that take away from what he did before? His common sense and his mental state wasn’t the same when he made those crazy statements about 9/11 and so on. In my mind, it doesn’t take a thing away from his amazing skills on the chessboard or how he revolutionized chess. I would say he single handedly created professional chess that thousands of people benefit from. And yes, it’s very sad the things he said and how crazy he became. It’s just unfortunate he didn’t have anyone near him to control the damage to his image from those crazy statements.<br /><br />RK: Do you remember where you were when you heard he died? <br /><br />SP: I believe I was in Texas at an event my foundation was doing.<br /><br />RK: Kasparov famously played IBM’s Deep Blue computer. I heard you were declined a chance to play. Do you think you could have defeated Deep Blue? <br /><br />SP: We’ll never know. I actually had an opportunity for a friendly encounter at the IBM headquarters. I played there against Deep Blue. It was a draw.<br /><br />RK: You’re still young enough to play professionally. What made you decide to step away from the game?<br /><br />SP: I pretty much achieved all the titles I could – world championships, Olympic medals. I think I can inspire the next generation and motivate a lot of people and help our game grow through my stature in the world of chess.<br /><br />RK: You have a chess foundation now and focus on bringing women into chess. Has focusing your energy on those endeavours been satisfying? <br /><br />SP: Yes, very much so. It’s nice to see the number of women’s participation growing and the level of self-confidence in women growing. Even the women who never become professionals, it gives them confidence in their lives and careers. So for thousands of girls who I affected through my foundation, I get so much feedback that it’s life changing for so many young people.<br /><br /> FOR MORE INFORMATION ON SUSAN POLGAR:<br /><br />1) Her official website: <a href="http://www.susanpolgar.com/">www.susanpolgar.com</a><br /><br />2) Follow her on Twitter: @SusanPolgar</span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-60175073402494121102013-07-16T07:33:00.001-05:002013-07-16T07:33:59.960-05:00Wesley So, World University Champion<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-23987915383465016262013-07-08T11:18:00.000-05:002013-07-08T15:16:27.243-05:00The Revolutionary Mind, an interview by Renata Holcmann<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Polgar: The Revolutionary Mind, an interview by Renata Holcmann</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I was interviewed by Renata Holcmann of Columbia University. With her permission, I would like to share what she wrote with you.<br /><br />The very first time I heard the name Polgar was when I was at a local chess tournament in my hometown of Papa, Hungary. Both me and my sister won first place in our categories and some people were murmuring that “they might be the next Polgar sisters.” This idea of sibling chess prodigies very much appealed to my mother and she encouraged us to keep playing and hoped that we -as sisters- would go far with chess. Unfortunately, this dream of hers evaporated in a sudden moment when my sister decided to quit chess when she lost a game to me. So from then on, it was only me, who followed the news about the Polgar sisters and dreamed of meeting them one day. But out of the three sisters I really wanted to meet Susan – the oldest one –, who was the fore-runner in the Polgar family and became a true icon, for many of her accomplishments, in the chess world. <br /><br />Susan (Zsuzsanna) Polgar was born in Budapest, on April 19th in 1969. Both her parents –Laszlo and Klara Polgar- were school teachers. When I asked Susan how she started to play chess, she quite surprised me with her answer: “Accidentally. I was searching for a new toy and found the chess set.” Then she went on explaining with quite an enthusiasm how she immediately fell in love with the shape of the pieces. She demanded her mother to play a game with her, but she told her that she has to wait until her father comes home and he would teach her then. Then the studying of this royal game began for Susan, just at the age of four! She very much enjoyed learning tactics and found the checkmate puzzles a lot of fun. Not long after her 4th birthday, she entered a chess tournament in Budapest. She competed in the 1st to 4th grade category (almost everyone was twice her age) and won all her ten games, becoming the Budapest Champion. After this event, her life changed forever. The media started following her every move and she was labeled as a “wunderkind.” Hungary’s reaction to her sudden success was divided: a small group of people responded positively to her great achievement, believing that she truly is a chess prodigy. While others started attacking her parents for not letting her play with dolls or at the playground, instead making her sit by the chessboard for hours. This was the bigger group, the pessimists and jealous crowd who also thought that her winning the Budapest Champion title was just an accident, a one-time lucky event and saw no future for her in chess. They could not be more wrong about her…<br /><br />When Susan turned six years old, her parents made a decision to home-school her since she already knew how to read and write, was years ahead in Math and also spoke Russian fluently. Susan claims, “My Russian became almost as good as my native tongue” due to being enrolled in a nursery school in the previous years where they only spoke Russian. Also, not being in school all day, gave her the chance to spend more time with chess. Predictably, because of this, her parents were constantly attacked in the media. Susan emphasized how much her parents sacrificed for her and her sisters to make it possible for them to succeed. There were many hurdles over the years, but they gave a tremendous support for them at all times. At the time in Hungary, it was acceptable for a high-school aged athlete to be home-schooled in order to practice more and travel to competitions, but nobody had ever heard of keeping a child home -from the very beginning, grade one- to improve her chess skills! Then again, the world still had to wait and see how Susan’s hard work and determination would pave the road to her successful future.<br /><br />Susan has two sisters, Sophia who is five and a half years younger and Judit, who is seven years younger than her. Being the oldest one, Susan often taught her sisters chess throughout the years, but she was also setting a good example for them about her work ethic. She worked extremely hard, some days practiced even six to eight hours! Usually, she played in ten to twelve tournaments per year. These were long competitions that lasted two or three weeks. Starting from age four, Susan studied from books and studied with different chess coaches. From our conversation I found out that her father was an excellent teacher, but she also had other influential coaches in her life. For instance, Eva Karakas gave Susan the love for the game, but she gained a tremendous amount of knowledge from Laszlo Hazai and Lev Psakhis as well. She studied chess in various ways: <br /><br />* Solved puzzles to improve her tactical and calculation skills<br />* Studied many grandmasters’ games to understand different strategies<br />* Memorized master games and played blindfold chess to improve her visualization skills<br />* Studied many endgames<br />* Played a lot of practice games with family members and friends<br />* Regularly played in club tournaments <br /><br />In 1979, at the age of ten, Susan became a National Woman Master after finishing in sixth place in the Hungarian Women’s Championship. In 1982, she earned her first FIDE Master norm after beating a much higher ranked player –Laszlo Liptay- with black pieces in the last round of the Balatonbereny, Hungary tournament. (FIDE is the World Chess Federation.) Soon after that she earned her other two norms and became a FIDE Master and automatically received her Hungarian National Master title as well, since the FIDE Master title is a higher. I asked Susan how she felt when she was just a child, competing against -very strong- adult players, all the time. She told me that she greatly enjoyed the challenge, and it made her feel big, she wanted to be looked at more than just a little girl, she wanted to be taken seriously.<br /><br />In 1981 she played abroad for the first time, in the World Under-16 Girls’ Championship in Westergate, England. It was a tough tournament, but after defeating two main rivals of the tourney -the English Teresa Needham and the Polish Jolanta Rojek- she only needed a draw in the last round against the American Baracca Shabbaz to win 1st place. So even though she was up a pawn, she could agree to a draw and with that she captured the World Under-16 Girl Chess Champion title. <br /><br />Susan, even though she was a top-class player- was left out of many chess tournaments due to being a female chess player. According to Susan, her the most painful experience was when she was denied the chance to compete in the Men’s World Chess Championship, -after qualifying for it from the overall Hungarian Championship- providing her an unreasonable explanation that it was only for men and she could not represent Hungary. The most shocking fact was that she was officially the #1 ranked female player on the July 1984 world rating list, but still FIDE would not allow her to play. I can only imagine the sadness she must have experienced at that time, but she turned her frustration to strength and from then on -because of this unfair treatment-, she tirelessly fought for equality in chess. In the 1986 FIDE Congress she finally achieved that they officially changed the name of this event, leaving the “Men’s” part out of it and making the title the World Chess Championship. So due to Susan’s incredible success in chess and her courage to stand up and fight for her beliefs, today girls and women can compete in chess tournaments among men. <br /><br />Susan‘s prowess in chess rightfully earned her a place to be in the highest circles of the chess world and this gave her the opportunity to not only meet, but play chess with many of the most elite chess players and world champions of our times. Among them were Botvinnik, Smyslov, Tal, Spassky, Fischer, Karpov, Kasparov and Anand. <br /><br />In 1984, after ten years of hard work and sacrifices, Susan became an International Master. In the summer of 1988, in Royan, France, Susan earned her very first GM (grandmaster) norm. A year later, she earned her second GM norm, in Leon, Spain. Also, in 1988, she was selected with her two sisters –Sophia and Judit- along with Ildiko Madl to represent Hungary in the Olympiad in Thesasaloniki, Greece. Susan played on the first board all the fourteen games -without a break- and scored 10.5 and did not lose a single game! Her sisters and Ildiko also performed well and the Hungarian teenage team won the Olympiads, beating the “unbeatable” Soviet team. <br /><br />In 1990, the Hungarian team –with the same players- won the gold medal again in Novi Sad. But besides the team’s gold medal, the Polgar sisters also won individual gold medals on board one, two and three. (Ildiko Madl only played two games at this time.) This time, Susan scored 11 points, winning eight games and drawing six. This again, was truly an unbelievable achievement at such a high-class competition. <br /><br />In January of 1991, Susan earned her final GM norm in Pamplona, Spain and with that she became the first woman ever to earn the highest chess title of International Grandmaster. When I asked her what it meant to her to achieve this great height in chess, she told me that: “It was very special to me. Even when I was a teenager, many professional players doubted me. They simply didn’t believe that it was possible for a woman to meet all the requirements to earn the Men’s Grandmaster title. I was very eager to get there and was working very hard for many years. So when I finally earned the title, it was justification as well as fulfillment of my long-awaited dream.” <br /><br />In 1992, the Hungarian Chess Federation organized the Blitz (5 min.) and Rapid (30 min.) Women’s World Championship in Budapest. Susan scored 22.5 points out of 25 games and won 1st place. In the fifteen-round rapid tournament, she collected 12 points without losing a single game and again finished ahead of her sisters, at 1st place. Susan repeated these phenomenal performances in later years and in 1996 she won her fourth Women’s World Chess Championships. To add to that, she is the only World Champion, male or female, who ever won the triple crown (blitz, rapid and classical world championships). She is also a five-time Olympic Chess Champion who collected ten overall medals (five gold, four silver, and one bronze). When I asked her about her favorite game, she told me that it was from the 2004 Olympiad, in Calvia, against Maia Chiburdanidze, the former Women's World Champion. I looked at the game. It was truly brilliant, full of tactical ideas and strategic maneuvering. In the endgame, Susan had two passed pawns -supported by her rook- that were unstoppable, so after the 39th move Chiburdanidze resigned. <br /><br />Susan holds a record for 56 consecutive Olympiad game unbeaten streak and all on board one. In fact, she has never lost a single game. In 2005, Susan played 326 simultaneous games (won 309, drew 14 and lost only 3), and by doing so, she broke four previous world records. In 2006, she became the Woman’s Chess Cup Champion. She won the US Open Blitz Chess Championship three times, in 2003, in 2005 and in 2006, ahead of all the other male participants.<br /><br />When I asked her how she could become such a strong chess player -in other words, what was her recipe for success- she told me “The love of the game was number one, then discipline, but also, perseverance and motivation were essential too.” <br /><br />In describing herself as a chess player, I learned that first, she wants to achieve a solid base, so she plays the opening carefully. She always plans ahead, looks at the whole picture and reacts to the needs of the situation at all times. So in order to succeed, one must be a flexible, universal player. <br /><br />In 2002, Susan founded the Susan Polgar Foundation, a non-profit organization to promote chess as an educational tool –especially among girls-, as well as a social and a competitive activity. She is also the director of SPICE, the Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence where she has been coaching the Knight Raiders Chess Team. She expressed to me that she greatly enjoys sharing her knowledge with her students and loves to see them improve and perform well in tournaments. <br /><br />Her chess team recently had a huge success at the Pan-American Intercollegiate Team Chess Championship, beating teams like Yale and Stanford. The TTU Knight Raiders made the Final Four in its first try in Division I. They won the Final Four which is the National Division I Championship in the second try, in spite of being the lowest seed. Again, she made history. <br /><br />In an article called, “Knight Raiders Win National Championship” Paul Truong said that: “Susan became the first female to coach a men’s Division I team to the National Championship. You cannot even imagine, let’s say, a female coaching a men’s basketball team or men’s football team to the national title, but in chess, she showed that it can happen.” <br /><br />She dominated the coaching scene by coaching 3 different teams with 2 different universities, TTU and Webster University, to win three straight Final Four Championships.<br /><br />Susan also sponsors and organizes several prominent annual events, such as the Susan Polgar World Open and National Open for Boys and Girls, the Susan Polgar National Invitational for Girls Championship and the prestigious SPICE Cup at TTU and Webster University.<br /><br />Over the years, Susan won many impressive awards for her work. Here are some examples:<br /><br />* “Coach of the Year” (2013) <br />* “US Scholastic Chess Ambassador” (2006, again, she was the first recipient ever)<br />* “Chess Educator of the Year” (2003, she was the first recipient ever)<br />* Three-time Winner of the Chess Journalists of America Award for Best Magazine Column and Best Endgame Analysis<br /><br />I asked Susan what her message is to today’s young chess players. This is what she responded: “I believe chess is a great opportunity. Whether you just play for fun or play competitively, you improve your thinking skills and learn many life skills. Also, you can use chess to open doors to a better future. In the United States there are more than thirty colleges that offer chess scholarships. In addition, chess can also help you get job interviews and potentially help you get hired. It truly has countless benefits.” I could not agree with her more.<br /><br /> Susan Polgar truly made a difference in the world. By breaking the gender barrier, she proved that woman can play chess just as well as men or even better. Due to her efforts to achieve equality in chess, today, girls and women do not have to go through any hurdles –that she experienced- but can freely play chess anywhere in the world. In my view, sports must have freedom, so that any athlete/player can reach their full potentials without facing unnecessary obstacles along the way. Susan is one of the purest examples of motivation and perseverance; she showed the world that everything is possible if you set your mind to it and work hard. She is my inspiration and I am certain that there are many others out there who feel the same way. </span></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-43795848333351469972013-06-15T17:06:00.000-05:002013-06-19T16:51:24.209-05:00About Webster University Chess Team<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>Webster University Final Four roster: </b><br /><br /> - Grandmaster Wesley So (board 1 for the Filipino Olympiad team), freshman, who is the No. 1-ranked overall player in the Philippines and No. 2 under 21 player in the world. He also recently reached the "Super" Grandmaster rating, one of only about 50 current players in the entire chess world of more than 700 million players to break that mark. <br /><br />- Grandmaster Ray Robson (member of the US Olympiad team), freshman, who is the youngest American ever to achieve the Grandmaster title, currently ranked No.6 overall in the U.S. and No. 9 under 21 player in the world. <br /><br />- Grandmaster Georg Meier (board 2 for the German national team), sophomore, ranked No. 2 overall in Germany. He is a member of the last 2 Final Four Championship teams. <br /><br />- Grandmaster Fidel Corrales Jimenez (board 3 for Cuban Olympiad team), freshman, the overall No. 3-ranked player in Cuba. <br /><br />- Grandmaster Manuel Leon Hoyos (board 1 for Mexican Olympiad team), freshman, ranked No. 1 overall in Mexico and reigning U.S. Open Champion. (Alternate) <br /><br />- Grandmaster Anatoly Bykhovsky, junior, ranked No. 20 overall in Israel. He was a member of the Final Four Championship teams for the past 3 straight years. (Alternate) <br /><br /><b>Chess Team Accomplishments </b><br /><br />The Webster University chess team has been ranked #1 in Division I College Chess since its inception in August 2012. It has never relinquished the top ranking. <br /><b><br />National Championships (9) </b><br /><br />August 2012 <br /><br />- 2012 U.S. Open Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos) <br />- 2012 U.S. Open Rapid (g/15) Championship: 1st place (GM Andre Diamant and IM Vitaly Neimer) <br />- 2012 U.S. Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Andre Diamant), 2nd place (GM Anatoly Bykhovsky) <br /><br />December 2012 <br /><br />- 2012 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Both A and B team tied for 1st place <br />- 2012 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top reserve player (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos) <br /><br />April 2013 <br /><br />- 2013 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Georg Meier, Wesley So, Ray Robson, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, Manuel Leon Hoyos, and Anatoly Bykhovsky) <br /><br />June 2013<br /><br />- 2013 National Open: 1st place (GMs Wesley So and Manuel Leon Hoyos)<br />- 2013 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)<br /><br />- 2013 National G/10 Championship at National Open: 1st place (GM Wesley So)<br /><br /><b>State Championships (3) </b><br /><br />September 2012 <br /><br />- 2012 Missouri State Championship: 1st place (GM Denes Boros and GM Anatoly Bykhovsky) <br />- 2012 Missouri State Rapid Championship: 1st place (GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez) <br />- 2012 Missouri State Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez) <br /><br /><b>Major International Events </b><br /><br />August 2012 <br /><br />- 2012 World Chess Olympiad (Istanbul, Turkey): Team Silver in Group A (GM Ray Robson - USA) <br />- 2012 World Chess Olympiad (Istanbul, Turkey): Team Bronze in Group B (GM Wesley So - Philippines) <br /><br />January 2013 <br /><br />- 2013 World Cup Qualifier: GM Wesley So qualified for the 2013 World Cup which will take place in Tromsø, Norway in August 2013 <br /><br />February 2013 <br /><br />- 2013 Reykjavik Open: Co-champion (GM Wesley So) <br />- 2013 Grenke Baden Baden Chess Classis: Webster GM Georg Meier drew the reigning World Champion Anand both games in their 2-game encounter <br /><br />May 2013<br /><br />- 2013 Calgary International: 1st place (GM Wesley So) <br /><br /><b>Major U.S. Events (7)</b><br /><br />October 2012 <br /><br />- 2012 SPICE Cup Open: 1st place (GM Ray Robson), 2nd place (GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez), 3rd place (IM Vitaly Neimer) <br /><br />November 2012 <br /><br />- 2012 Thanksgiving Open in St. Louis: 1st place (GMs Georg Meier, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, Denes Boros) <br />- 2012 SLCC GM Invitational: 1st place (IM Vitaly Neimer) <br /><br />January 2013 <br /><br />- 2013 Cardinal Open: 1st place (GM Andre Diamant) <br /><br />March 2013 <br /><br />- 2013 Philadelphia Open: 1st place (GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez) <br /><br />April 2013 <br /><br /> - 2013 St. Louis Open Championship: 1st place (GMs Wesley So, Georg Meier, and Manuel Leon Hoyos) <br /><br /> - 2013 Chicago Open: 1st place (Ray Robson) <br /><b><br />Additional collegiate chess records </b><br /><br />• 1st team in history (Webster University) to be ranked #1 in the nation in the first year of forming a team (August 2012 - now) <br />• 1st team in history (Webster University) to qualify for the Final Four in the first year of forming a team (December 2012) <br />• 1st team in history (Webster University) to be seeded #1 in the Final Four in the first year of forming a team (April 2013) <br />• 1st female (Susan Polgar) to coach a men's team to the National Championship (2011) <br />• 1st female (Susan Polgar) to coach a men’s team to back to back National Championships (2011-2012) <br />• 1st female (Susan Polgar) to coach a men’s team to 3 straight National Championships (2011-2013) <br />• 1st coach, male or female, to win National Championships with 2 different schools (TTU 2011-2012, and Webster U 2013) <br />• 1st college team with 4 GMs (Fall 2011) <br />• 1st college team with 5 GMs (Spring 2012) <br />• 1st college team with 8 GMs (Fall 2012) <br />• Most points scored in the Final Four (April 2013 - Webster University finished with 9.5 points) <br />• Largest margin of victory in the Final Four (April 2013 - Webster University finished 2.5 points ahead of 2nd place UTD) <br />• 1st person (Susan Polgar) to be named College Chess Coach of the Year (April 2013) </span></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-52136243571190717582013-04-29T17:44:00.002-05:002013-04-29T17:44:19.461-05:00Finally hoisting the Final Four Championship Cup!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The Webster University Final Four Championship team finally has a chance to hoist the President's Cup today, April 29, instead of April 7 at the Closing Ceremony.</span></span><br />
<br />Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-73151091181261420382013-04-17T17:29:00.002-05:002013-04-17T17:35:56.725-05:00Webster Journal Guest Commentary<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtDAaPy6T9c0SZNW8D0X7GRhAN5Dv2toRTX1Syd-J5r4cGRW2_3YIlv1ZEsLQ-wKc6CAQZ5e6yyT5soRh5GploHiUkFWAuy7DiFC3OE_QJ2jaiqme8Q0sQ3EgZXO41iHDv558C7KysoJ8/s1600/WJ+Guest+Commentary.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtDAaPy6T9c0SZNW8D0X7GRhAN5Dv2toRTX1Syd-J5r4cGRW2_3YIlv1ZEsLQ-wKc6CAQZ5e6yyT5soRh5GploHiUkFWAuy7DiFC3OE_QJ2jaiqme8Q0sQ3EgZXO41iHDv558C7KysoJ8/s400/WJ+Guest+Commentary.jpg" width="400" /></a> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Guest commentary </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster Journal </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="http://websterjournal.com/2013/04/16/to-grow-and-excel-or-to-switch-to-survival-mode-and-hope-for-the-best/">http://websterjournal.com</a> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">By Paul Truong </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">11-time national champion </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Director of Marketing for SPICE </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
In this very difficult economy, this is a critical strategical question that all businesses must ask themselves. It’s a challenging chess move which business owners, chief executive officers, as well as university presidents and provosts must make. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Let’s say you own a restaurant with great food and service. But business is slow. Do you spend money to advertise, or do nothing and hope for the best? The right business decisions propel companies to the top, while the wrong ones put companies out of business. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The same goes with higher learning institutions. There are countless good universities, and they’re going after a similar pool of students. In order to have an advantage, universities have to promote to be known locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. This is expensive. And even if they do, there’s no guarantee that the right audience will see it. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Some universities choose to spend millions to advertise. Some choose to do it through athletics (football, basketball, baseball, etc.). There’s no one-size-fits-all formula. Every university is different. Each has different needs. Even after these universities succeed in getting their names out, they still have to make a compelling case for the students and their parents to choose them. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">These are difficult chess moves which presidents, provosts and marketing departments must navigate through. Standing pat and doing nothing will surely lead to failure. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>Why chess? </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">And why was this a brilliant move by President Elizabeth Stroble and Provost Julian Schuster? </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">A top-ranked chess program costs a fraction of a nationally ranked football or basketball program. But the benefits can be much greater in many ways. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>Here is why: </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Outside of soccer (FIFA has more than 200 member nations), chess is the second most popular sport in the world (FIDE, the world chess federation, has more than 175 member nations). According to the latest statistic, there are more than 700 million players worldwide, and 45 million in the United States alone. About half of this number is K-12 children and adolescents. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Chess is a global game and Webster University is a global university. When the chess team succeeds on the biggest stage, it will not only promote and boost the image of the Webster Groves campus, but all of the campuses across the United States and around the world.
Chess has been scientifically proven to help young people do better in school. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This is why chess is a part of the school curriculum in more than 40 countries. And statistically speaking, students who play chess collectively have higher grade-point averages. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Many universities offer chess scholarships and create chess programs. They want to dip into this big pool of top-notch students.
FYI: The average GPA of the Webster Final Four Championship team is around 3.6, and they’re all full-time students.
A recent national scholastic event in Nashville, Tenn., drew 5,335 K-12 players, plus around 15,000 parents, coaches and siblings. Countless scouts and university recruiters were there for the same reason. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Chess is the best kept secret for universities. It’s inexpensive and brings great results.
Some other universities provide a lot more chess scholarships than Webster. But they didn’t have the same success. Many professional football, basketball and baseball teams spend big money but don’t win championships. The New York Yankees, New York Knicks and Dallas Cowboys are just a few glaring examples. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Lindenwood University created their chess program at the same time as Webster. They offer a lot more scholarships. But they didn’t make the Final Four. They also didn’t get the same national and international coverage. The chess scholarship budget of the University of Texas at Dallas (UT Dallas) and some other universities are bigger than Webster University. But that didn’t yield the same success. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Therefore, it’s very clear that Webster didn’t buy a championship. They simply did a better job in scouting for the right personnel. President Elizabeth Stroble and Provost Julian Schuster made a better decision than other universities to bring this world-class chess program to St. Louis. This is what it takes to checkmate the competition, not money. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Even with four freshmen, Webster is ranked as the No. 1 Division I team in the nation since its inception in August 2012, and won the Final Four eight months later, ahead of Yale University, Princeton University, Harvard University, Cornell University, Stanford University, University of Chicago, Washington University, Pennsylvania State University (Penn State), New York University, Texas Tech University, UT Dallas, University of Maryland in Baltimore, etc. This is unheard of in the history of sports. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This chess program last year generated national and international coverage of more than 500 newspapers, blogs, TV and radio stations to tens of millions of people. The list includes ESPN, Sports Illustrated, National Public Radio, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, the New York Daily News, The Washington Post, etc. Webster University was featured this past week on the cover of The Washington Post and other media. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">It’s the kind of publicity money can’t buy, and even if you could, it would cost millions each year. This will result in long-term benefits for Webster in reputation, enrollment, as well as potential donations and sponsorships. It’s a brilliant chess move by our administrators, which will surely benefit the university as a whole. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The competition is fierce. Every university is actively trying to get a bigger share of the best student pool. President Stroble and Provost Schuster have the long-term strategical vision to take Webster University to the next level. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In chess, great players will look at the entire board, from both sides, to make the correct assessment and come up with the right strategical plan. To judge a position without seeing the entire picture will lead to definite failure. It takes grandmaster moves to be ahead of the game. I believe that President Stroble and Provost Schuster have clearly made the winning moves. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>Quick facts: </b>In eight months, the Webster chess team has won six national, three state, 11 major titles and broken numerous records. It’s the strongest team in college chess history. To know more about this program, please visit <span style="color: blue;"><b><a href="http://websterchess.blogspot.com/">websterchess.blogspot.com</a></b></span>. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Here is another excellent opinion piece: </span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><a href="http://websterjournal.com/2013/04/17/guest-commentary-celebrate-the-success-of-your-peers/">http://websterjournal.com/2013/04/17/guest-commentary-celebrate-the-success-of-your-peers/</a></b></span> </span></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-76089456851990310122013-04-15T16:47:00.000-05:002013-04-16T16:50:56.325-05:00Another College Chess Record<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJe9y7aUkJSXcdM2a-Mrb0j0rM5vuBcXCSPbQ1D97lxZO2i6yB1zVkFXAitjHOe5NfnAbqPL4U8gy-jAfhXEKDxkduJLFub_7bsW4mM8Nt9CcAWaXkB3CNS7zu3PG1RAQHnJpYdb8dJQ/s1600/Webster+SPICE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJe9y7aUkJSXcdM2a-Mrb0j0rM5vuBcXCSPbQ1D97lxZO2i6yB1zVkFXAitjHOe5NfnAbqPL4U8gy-jAfhXEKDxkduJLFub_7bsW4mM8Nt9CcAWaXkB3CNS7zu3PG1RAQHnJpYdb8dJQ/s320/Webster+SPICE.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">After this past weekend at the St. Louis Open, 3 members of the Webster University Final Four Championship team are now above 2700 (USCF) at the same time. This is the first for any American collegiate chess team.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />GM Wesley So is now at 2728 USCF. His LIVE FIDE rating is 2705, which makes him the 41st ranked player in the world. He is also the #2 junior in the world, and #1 in the Philippines.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM3Zzl2WAf2YBGrC5RMMiqOq1OqS7jj2iFEoihdOKQNXAZH7GsOjXGb8nvrXnNQBzQpbBdKUFIWtxULq2DH2qq6-N614sN9nCfN05NNnS5OdjFjROafgDlJ2EIkI3LfUX6g5NMynlePQ/s1600/So,+Wesley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM3Zzl2WAf2YBGrC5RMMiqOq1OqS7jj2iFEoihdOKQNXAZH7GsOjXGb8nvrXnNQBzQpbBdKUFIWtxULq2DH2qq6-N614sN9nCfN05NNnS5OdjFjROafgDlJ2EIkI3LfUX6g5NMynlePQ/s400/So,+Wesley.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />GM Georg Meier is now at 2702 USCF and ranked among the top 100 in the world. He is the top German born player and a key member of the German European Championship team last year.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht0u9_x5KzDYxJiJP1TtPt9jvIiWV3VkclDtvqPYF1NGMMjYYeclUq4tc5p8i2tEh2WQ2R4aDCHrBE9TBTKtkLk6qJ7dW7uZvfOc6ZjAxCfQe74_YVxfi0LhXOs3BJHLRQefCEgRkJiA/s1600/Meier,+Georg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht0u9_x5KzDYxJiJP1TtPt9jvIiWV3VkclDtvqPYF1NGMMjYYeclUq4tc5p8i2tEh2WQ2R4aDCHrBE9TBTKtkLk6qJ7dW7uZvfOc6ZjAxCfQe74_YVxfi0LhXOs3BJHLRQefCEgRkJiA/s400/Meier,+Georg.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />GM Ray Robson's latest rating is 2700 after the Final Four. He is currently the #1 American born (representing the US) player on both the USCF and FIDE list. He is also the #9 junior in the world.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjiqFlxt4F_cI9cOiQAlOR4ihOY7BdAvYQb5opTjxt-x0VXg6ppxuOrUJ5mPbMKxPhtc26ss2CQ8z9SdCaf3f8_zkEzHddf6zZ-3T05jPcA1K7B6yTL3q4cZdob5BwBi6XoCyjyLwsHg/s1600/Robson,+Ray.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjiqFlxt4F_cI9cOiQAlOR4ihOY7BdAvYQb5opTjxt-x0VXg6ppxuOrUJ5mPbMKxPhtc26ss2CQ8z9SdCaf3f8_zkEzHddf6zZ-3T05jPcA1K7B6yTL3q4cZdob5BwBi6XoCyjyLwsHg/s400/Robson,+Ray.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />All three are members of their national team at the Olympiad.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Incoming Webster U freshman GM Le Quang Liem of Vietnam is rated 2802 USCF and 2717 FIDE. He will be the first American collegiate player to be above 2800 in USCF rating. Liem is also the former #1 junior in the world and the #1 rated player from Vietnam.</span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTpEj3fLZtowE0WUL6a-MJyNUkgjMzKEKZhbaDHLtz_hdDKWV_iqU_Msk8bC339eUR_2lECc7MfyUpdHWIg5kvCQ3FsJu3eZjEWH7yLeOpQmjlwHtdNFpLgOUIHnti893rEqsbOVcdKA/s1600/Le+Quang+Liem,+Webster+University.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTpEj3fLZtowE0WUL6a-MJyNUkgjMzKEKZhbaDHLtz_hdDKWV_iqU_Msk8bC339eUR_2lECc7MfyUpdHWIg5kvCQ3FsJu3eZjEWH7yLeOpQmjlwHtdNFpLgOUIHnti893rEqsbOVcdKA/s400/Le+Quang+Liem,+Webster+University.jpg" width="400" /></a><b> </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>There are 3 requirements for any SPICE members:</b></span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />1. They must focus in their school work to maintain good grades. My standard is much higher than the standard required by the College Chess Committee. The grade point average of the team is around 3.6 / 4.0 and all students are taking full loads.</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />2. They must be willing to work hard on their chess to improve. So far, players from SPICE have all reached their peak ratings during their tenure with the program.</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />3. They must conduct themselves in a professional manner to represent themselves, Webster University, SPICE, their families, and their countries well. </span></span>
Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-14926368299967576822013-04-10T15:00:00.000-05:002013-04-12T14:12:53.839-05:00All The Right Moves <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBEJTTy8BQjhoKidDzqy5JO1kQeIKL1kvYZ47UZBqGD7kZ8keXl2iJoEeQIefVjaEaEjYXyhw3rJfH_n4p-GvU2qiWeGr-6SwWYUAEx3mXC8cLma663jArTxEqt4XA3ICtxLXk-G7G53o/s1600/Wesbter+University+Final+Four+Champ+-+Webster+Kirkwood+Times.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBEJTTy8BQjhoKidDzqy5JO1kQeIKL1kvYZ47UZBqGD7kZ8keXl2iJoEeQIefVjaEaEjYXyhw3rJfH_n4p-GvU2qiWeGr-6SwWYUAEx3mXC8cLma663jArTxEqt4XA3ICtxLXk-G7G53o/s400/Wesbter+University+Final+Four+Champ+-+Webster+Kirkwood+Times.jpg" width="400" /></a> </div>
<b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">All The Right Moves </span></span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Area boasts a pair of national chess team champions: Vianney High & Webster University </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">by Jaime Mowers </span></span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="editorialdate">April 12, 2013</span></span></span></div>
<div>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">A pair of local chess teams are basking in the glow of recent national championship wins.<br /><br />Webster University's Gorlocks and St. John Vianney High School's Golden Griffins are celebrating their national titles. Webster University won the Final Four of college chess in Rockville, Md., last weekend, while Vianney garnered top honors in its division in the U.S. Chess Federation's SuperNationals V K-12 tournament in Nashville.<br /><br />Webster University's collegiate chess team is tops in the nation, having won the competition. Also known as The President's Cup, Webster entered the Final Four tournament as the top seed. The team has four starters and two alternates, all of whom are ranked as chess grandmasters by the World Chess Federation. In fact, the entire Webster chess team includes eight grandmasters -- unheard of in the world of collegiate chess.<br /><br />The tournament ended just past noon on Sunday, April 7, with Webster University victorious in its match against the University of Texas-Dallas. A celebration welcoming the national champions back from the competition was held on Monday, April 8, in Marletto's Cafeteria on Webster University's main campus.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />Webster's six Final Four team members include grandmasters Wesley So, Ray Robson, Georg Meier, Fidel Corrales, Manuel Leon Hoyos and Anatoly Bykhovsky.<br /><br />Webster has been ranked number one in the nation since August 2012, when the team was officially formed. Susan Polgar, Webster's chess head coach, said this is the first time in history that a first-year collegiate chess team has gone to the Final Four, much less claim a national title.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Polgar said she hopes the team will have many more national championship titles in its future.<br /><br />"It's a great honor and I'm very proud of bringing the first collegiate chess title to Webster University and St. Louis - I hope it's the first of many more," she said. "I'm very proud of the team. They've worked extremely hard over the past several months not only on their chess movements, but on their physical fitness to be ready for the competition."<br /><br />Polgar said many people don't realize how demanding chess can be. The team played for 10 hours during the first day of competition and four hours on the second day.<br /><br />"It's actually very grueling because of the length of the competitions," she said. "Even sitting and focusing your fullest attention for four or five hours at a time can be difficult."<br /><br />Polgar would like to thank everyone who has supported the chess team including the Webster University administration, St. Louis and many community members.<br /><br />The Final Four is the most prestigious team tournament in collegiate chess; the winner is known as the national champion of college chess. In addition to Webster University, the other three teems in the final four were the University of Maryland-Baltimore County, University of Texas-Dallas and University of Illinois.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">More <a href="http://www.websterkirkwoodtimes.com/Articles-Features-i-2013-04-12-186045.114137-All-The-Right-Moves.html">here</a>.</span></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-89212009455920101992013-04-08T19:00:00.000-05:002013-04-11T16:12:57.347-05:00Webster Celebrates College Chess Title<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6dZ1851K93Elld_1RmHN_z4J-N4HREke-_CbiTDHKDrRYrKuiIVNGGaXzWt2SFtpW-wgoc6fcq2zuEXYaONeUIT64dm7Pl5Ti9IGTHbk1UkCgrVPjm37YcAShksaEAZsaPeP0mwmJd9U/s1600/FOX+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6dZ1851K93Elld_1RmHN_z4J-N4HREke-_CbiTDHKDrRYrKuiIVNGGaXzWt2SFtpW-wgoc6fcq2zuEXYaONeUIT64dm7Pl5Ti9IGTHbk1UkCgrVPjm37YcAShksaEAZsaPeP0mwmJd9U/s400/FOX+1.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></span><br />
<b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster Celebrates College Chess Title, As New Hire Pays Off </span></span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">by Alan Greenblatt </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">April 08, 2013 3:39 PM </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">NPR </span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="storytext storylocation linkLocation" id="storytext">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If there's no such thing as bad publicity, how much is good publicity worth?
Webster University wants to find out.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Last year, the university didn't have a chess team. On Sunday, its team took
home the national college championship, the President's Cup, after winning what
is often called the "Final Four" of chess.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster, which is located just outside of St. Louis, picked up its team
nearly intact last year from Texas Tech. The university hired coach <a href="http://www.wired.com/playbook/2013/02/ff-grand-master-susan-polgar-chess/all/">Susan
Polgar</a>, who had won two straight championships in Texas, and the <a href="http://www.npr.org/2012/04/10/150372274/entire-chess-team-follows-queen-to-new-school">whole
team came along with her</a>.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster's chess team includes eight grandmasters. It's become instantly so
dominant that two of its squads qualified for the chess Final Four, although
only one was allowed to play.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">When it comes to winning championships, Polgar and her players "have been
there, individually and collectively," Webster provost Julian Schuster said
Monday at a campus rally celebrating the team's victory.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Let us thank them for what they've done for us," Schuster said. "For the
first time in the almost 100-year history of our university, we are the national
champion."</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster, which is now private and non-denominational, was founded as a
Catholic women's college and has become known over the years for its performing
arts programs and its business school. Its main campus is in the St. Louis
suburb of Webster Groves, but Webster boasts almost 100 satellite campuses
around the world.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Schuster said in an interview that chess was part of his upbringing in
Yugoslavia and that his primary goal in bringing Polgar to Webster was
incorporating the game into the intellectual life of the university.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Still, he added, "there's no doubt" that their victory is good news for the
university.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">At the celebration, members of Webster's media relations team counted
reporters in attendance, noting that the weekend tournament had garnered the
university national attention (including from <a href="http://www.npr.org/2013/04/05/176368227/the-other-final-four-trades-in-courts-for-chess-boards">NPR</a>).</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"The <em>Washington Post</em> was the big one," said Patrick Giblin,
Webster's director of public relations, referring to a <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/at-college-chesss-final-four-once-dominant-umbc-is-now-the-underdog/2013/04/05/f0c5857e-9d46-11e2-a941-a19bce7af755_story_2.html">front-page
story</a> that ran Saturday.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Chess has become big business in the St. Louis area. The <a href="http://worldchesshof.org/about/about-the-hall-of-fame/">World Chess Hall
of Fame</a> moved to the city two years ago, while St. John Vianney High School
in nearby Kirkwood <a href="http://www.vianney.com/04-08-13-national-chess-champions.html">won</a> its
second national championship this weekend.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster's own champions looked a little shy and sheepish as they entered the
campus lounge with their big trophy in tow, joining school administrators and
someone wearing the costume of the campus mascot, the cheetah-buffalo-St.
Bernard blend <a href="http://www2.webster.edu/about/gorlok.shtml">Gorlok</a>.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">There were no pom-pom girls, tipped cars or burning mattresses, but there
were cookies in the shapes of chess pieces.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"I wasn't even aware there was a team," said Brieanna Lee, a psychology major
sitting in the lounge, eating french fries and ranch dressing.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">But Lee admitted their victory in the chess Final Four was "an
accomplishment." Other students who happened to be in the lounge said they
"lived in the music basement" or were otherwise "too busy" to follow the chess
team, but generally agreed its triumph would help their school nonetheless.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Success builds upon success. Most of Webster's grandmasters hail from other
countries, but one of the players from Vianney's winning chess team has
expressed an interest in joining them from neighboring Kirkwood.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"What we hope is that the success of our chess team will be perceived as the
success of the university in general," Schuster says. "It will permeate through
everything we do and will speak to how we do things in the future."</span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Source: <a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/04/08/176585468/webster-celebrates-college-chess-title-as-new-hire-pays-off">http://www.npr.org</a></span></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-67701561457187199972013-04-08T18:30:00.000-05:002013-04-11T16:22:15.502-05:00Bringing National Championships to St. Louis<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhNgprR3eSenhNm8STq2rS6Q_-rHvakDpceKRBoqLSfXMnzm4X-ZHUcEtA8_7EpQWnscsVKouX0-7u9hx96ad2Uga2m8RAagcRh9A16U7mtDxwmKOUEVmwmjytzRUmIMVvTf49I2S-zAk/s1600/WebsterUFinalFourTeam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhNgprR3eSenhNm8STq2rS6Q_-rHvakDpceKRBoqLSfXMnzm4X-ZHUcEtA8_7EpQWnscsVKouX0-7u9hx96ad2Uga2m8RAagcRh9A16U7mtDxwmKOUEVmwmjytzRUmIMVvTf49I2S-zAk/s400/WebsterUFinalFourTeam.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>St. Louis quietly celebrates two national chess titles</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">April 09, 2013 12:05 am • By Jesse Bogan </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">St. Louis Post Dispatch </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>WEBSTER GROVES</b> • As thousands gathered Monday for the
Cardinals home opener, two other local teams -- the Gorloks and Golden Griffins
-- were already celebrating national championships, but in a much lesser
followed event: chess.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster University won the Final Four of college chess in Rockville, Md.,
over the weekend, while St. John Vianney High School took top honors in its
division in the U.S. Chess Federation's Supernationals V K-12 tournament in
Nashville.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The wins are the latest nod to St. Louis, home of the World Chess Hall of
Fame, as it tries to establish itself as the chess mecca. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">As quietly as the game is played, so are its championship celebrations quiet
compared with mainstream collegiate football and basketball competitions. About
100 people gathered Monday in a Webster University cafeteria to welcome their
winning team home.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Some hooted and hollered. Other students watched curiously from a distance as
they ate lunch in silence.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Julian Schuster, provost at Webster and chess enthusiast, told the crowd that
the win came from "hard work" and "vision."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"This a great day for all of us," he said.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Not only is it the school's first national chess championship, it's the first
year it fielded a team, school officials said. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster's bid to become a chess powerhouse happened just nine months after
luring grandmaster and coach Susan Polgar away from Texas Tech University in
Lubbock.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Traditionally thought of as a man's game, Polgar has not only broken the
mold, but dominated. Originally from Hungary, this is her third national
collegiate chess championship in a row as head coach.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Two of the six players on Webster's winning team followed her from Lubbock.
The four others recently came to Webster to play chess for Polgar and the
Gorloks, named for the private school's mascot.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">All six of the championship players -- including two alternates -- are
grandmasters, or top players in chess.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"We hope its the first of many national titles," said Polgar, 44, who wore
blue high heels, black slacks and coat with a white T-shirt -- "2013 National
Champions."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The players come from all over the world. They are Georg "German Precision"
Meier, Wesley "Asian Tiger" So, of the Philippines, Ray "Fearless Attacker"
Robson, of Florida, Fidel "Casanova" Corrales Jimenez, of Cuba, Anatoly "Speedy
Rocket" Bykhovsky, of Israel, and Manuel "Yucatan Conquistador" Leon Hoyos, of
Mexico.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Bykhovsky, who followed Polgar from Texas Tech, won the last match of the
tournament. The game lasted four hours. The junior is studying finance. He said
he started playing chess young and became a grandmaster by 21.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"I am going to eat with my girlfriend, it's a nice day," he said of how he
was going to celebrate.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Leon, 24, a freshman studying economics, won the U.S. Open and is a 4-time
Mexican Open champion. He said that many things set his coach apart.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"I feel like I learn just speaking, knowing what her opinion is about many
things," he said. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">But Leon couldn't visit long. He had an Italian exam to run to after the
celebration in the cafeteria. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span>
<br />
<div class="asset-body clearfix">
<div class="asset-main">
<div class="entry-content">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Meanwhile, Webster University won its tournament with 9.5 points, beating
University of Texas-Dallas, which had 7 points, University of Maryland Baltimore
County, 5, and the University of Illinois, 2.5.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster dethroned UMBC, the former powerhouse in Maryland. What's more, Alan
Sherman, UMBC’s chess director, had predicted Webster would win.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“I think Webster just decided they wanted to win and if they invested more
money, they could just outdo the others,” Sherman recently told the Washington
Post. “They have the strongest team in the history of college chess. Unlike the
UMBC model, where we ramped up over a period of five years, they bought their
team in a year.”</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Polgar left Texas Tech less than a year ago. Schuster, the Webster University
provost, helped lure her here. Both he and school president Beth Stroble
traveled to Maryland over the weekend to root for their team.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Our goal is for these young people to be ambassadors of the university,
which they are, and to graduate and go on to great lives," Stroble said in an
interview.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">A few minutes later, she told the celebratory crowd: "I am proud of an
accomplishment that is as strategic and intellectual and academic as it is
competitive in any other way."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">As a player, Polgar said, she was the first woman to win the grandmaster
title and the first woman to qualify for the men's world championship. Now, she
said, she mainly just plays chess by computer.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">As a coach, she said, she sets herself apart by training players not to
attack early, but also by focusing on life away from the chess board. She said
the team celebrates birthdays, plays soccer to try to have fun and be in a
supportive environment.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"It's a combination of things," she said of her success in coaching. "High
expectations. Working hard for it and focusing on team chemistry."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Physical fitness is part of it, too. It's not uncommon for a day's
competition to last 10 hours.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"People usually don't realize how important endurance is in a chess
competition," she said. "It's very grueling."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">She said she left Texas Tech because of a lack of a budget that was promised.
She said there was also a lack of understanding and respect for chess
there. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"You know how Texas is everything is about football, football, football, and
then maybe some basketball and baseball, chess certainly is not on the
list."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">She said she liked the chess culture in St. Louis, which hosts the U.S.
championship and other competitions.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"We are very comfortable with how chess is being respected as an activity,
practically like football would be respected at Texas Tech," she said.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Regarding the small turnout compared with the Cardinals home opener, she
said: "I understand it's not like baseball yet, but we are working on you
guys."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Full article here: <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/st-louis-quietly-celebrates-two-national-chess-titles/article_accfe8c1-e48c-5c81-9d7e-9ad23be65efe.html">http://www.stltoday.com</a></span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-89044159062049851532013-04-08T04:00:00.000-05:002013-04-11T16:09:35.127-05:00Webster wins Final Four<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtpuOh0XIxpedbqWye063-djaV77Hg_0SH99u9xf5iQoflUPXzuU6rKUDMMPiX09GD4xb6YiKYAxW8J3UOJz3BDPyQDj1gM3MYRNdtVAnorxLAzkhH5h5K7xIIDpiifhyphenhypheneAypyd31uDos/s1600/Webster+Final+Four+Champs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtpuOh0XIxpedbqWye063-djaV77Hg_0SH99u9xf5iQoflUPXzuU6rKUDMMPiX09GD4xb6YiKYAxW8J3UOJz3BDPyQDj1gM3MYRNdtVAnorxLAzkhH5h5K7xIIDpiifhyphenhypheneAypyd31uDos/s400/Webster+Final+Four+Champs.jpg" width="400" /></a><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster wins Final Four of chess, with UMBC finishing third </span></span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">By Michael S. Rosenwald,</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">April 07, 2013</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Washington Post</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster University won the Final Four of college chess in Rockville on
Sunday, dominating the University of Texas-Dallas and the University of Maryland
Baltimore County, the hometown favorite and former powerhouse.</span></span><br />
<div class="mod-washingtonpostarticletext mod-tribunearticletextimpl mod-articletext" id="mod-a-body-first-para">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">UMBC finished third, behind UT-Dallas.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The victory was Webster’s first <a data-xslt="_http" href="http://www.vachess.org/Final4/Home12-13.html">Final Four
championship</a>, but not the first title for its coach, Susan Polgar, who left
her job directing the Texas Tech program last year after two consecutive Final
Four victories.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Polgar’s team of grandmasters followed her to St. Louis — an unprecedented
event in collegiate chess that made national headlines.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“I think Webster is now clearly the dominant force in chess,” said longtime
UMBC chess director Alan Sherman. “There’s no doubt about that.”</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a data-xslt="_http" href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/at-college-chesss-final-four-once-dominant-umbc-is-now-the-underdog/2013/04/05/f0c5857e-9d46-11e2-a941-a19bce7af755_story.html">UMBC perfected the modern collegiate chess model</a>, offering
scholarships to grandmasters from around the world, racking up championships and
generating positive PR. But UMBC is increasingly the underdog now. The school
has won just two Final Four titles since 2007 after winning four straight in the
mid-2000s. Sherman predicted Webster’s win last week.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster finished with 9.5 points in the round robin tournament with four
players competing for each team. UT-Dallas had 7 points, while UMBC had 5 and
the University of Illinois scored just 2.5.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">UMBC was out of the running for the title after the first two rounds on
Saturday, when it scored just 2.5 points. The school lost its head-to-head match
against Webster, 2.5-1.5, and fell to UT-Dallas, 3-1.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster and UT-Dallas squared off Sunday morning for the title, with each
school playing four grandmasters. (UMBC came into the tournament with two
grandmasters.) Webster won the round, 3-1.</span></span></div>
<div class="float" style="clear: both; height: 1px; line-height: 1px;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><img alt="" height="1" src="/images/pixel.gif" width="1" /></span></span></div>
<div class="mod-washingtonpostarticletext mod-tribunearticletextimpl mod-articletext" id="mod-a-body-after-first-para">
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“I’m very happy for the team and proud of the way we prepared,” said Polgar,
whose bosses, the president and provost of Webster, traveled to Rockville for
the tournament.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Polgar will not, however, bring home the tournament’s coveted President’s Cup
trophy.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Before the tournament started, Polgar <a data-xslt="_http" href="https://twitter.com/SusanPolgar/statuses/320344806310158338">tweeted</a> that her former employer, Texas Tech, “forgot to
send back the President’s Cup. Now the winning team will not have the cup to
bring back. 1st time cup was not returned.”</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Source: <a href="http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-04-07/local/38354144_1_college-chess-ut-dallas-grandmasters">http://articles.washingtonpost.com</a></span></span></div>
Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-29437285026607277942013-04-08T03:30:00.000-05:002013-04-11T15:24:26.207-05:00History making feat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioeAzW8vW0_ZGcq0E2uLrb4zPOZorQaKoHq_Ea8n38I-jD2o1ulOAShhgiTOsv0OzHNB3jJ7VX5Gk4eB9oEvfCMwV62NiewDx1gb-k-Necg1Mj5sE_Q3eRYmfTAw1ZWSG-_71DIwlHgA0/s1600/Final+Four+Champs.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioeAzW8vW0_ZGcq0E2uLrb4zPOZorQaKoHq_Ea8n38I-jD2o1ulOAShhgiTOsv0OzHNB3jJ7VX5Gk4eB9oEvfCMwV62NiewDx1gb-k-Necg1Mj5sE_Q3eRYmfTAw1ZWSG-_71DIwlHgA0/s400/Final+Four+Champs.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster University made history when it became the first St. Louis team ever
to <a href="http://www.webster.edu/news/2013/news/04072013_webster_chess_champions.html" rel="nofollow">win a Final Four collegiate chess championship</a>. Webster’s
top-ranked chess team emerged victorious in the President’s Cup – also known as
the <a href="http://usa.chessdom.com/college-chess-final-four-final-rosters/">Final
Four of Collegiate Chess</a> – a two-day throw-down that determines the national
champion of college chess teams. The tournament was held Saturday and today in
Rockville, Md.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This is the first time in history a team made it to the Final Four of
Collegiate Chess in its first year at a school and also the first time that a
first-year team has been ranked as the No. 1 seed in the Final Four. Webster’s
chess team has ranked No. 1 since August 2012, when the team was officially
formed.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster will welcome the national champions back to campus during a
lunch-time ceremony on its Webster Groves campus Monday.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“Congratulations to all the members of our team and all who support them, as
I know that they have worked hard to prepare for this moment,” said President
Beth Stroble, who was in the Washington, D.C. area this weekend to watch the
Final Four. “Their competitors were smart, tough, and skilled and there were
many tense moments this weekend, which makes this championship particularly
significant for Webster University. I couldn’t be prouder.”</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“Today was a great day for chess, for Webster and for Webster’s chess team,
and for all of our students who worked hard to win this tournament,” said
Provost Julian Schuster, who also accompanied the team to the Final Four
competition. “We are all winners because this accomplishment came about through
the hard work and dedication from the people who love chess, who love Webster,
and from all our supporters in the community. We are proud of all of our
students and are proud of the chess program, and we look forward to many more
years of championships.”</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The Final Four is the most prestigious team tournament in collegiate chess;
the winner is known as the national champion of college chess. To get to the
Final Four, teams must first compete in the <a href="http://www.chessdom.com/2012-pan-american-intercollegiate-chess-championship/">Pan
American Intercollegiate Team Chess Championship</a>, held each year during the
last week of December. Only the top four teams in this event qualify for the
Final Four. This year, in addition to Webster, other schools competing in the
Final Four were the University of Maryland-Baltimore County, <a href="http://www.chessdom.com/ut-dallas-chess-team-prepares-to-compete-in-final-four-of-chess/">University
of Texas-Dallas</a> and University of Illinois.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In the round robin-format Final Four, each of the four school teams played in
three rounds of competition, playing one full match against each of the other
schools. Each game won was one point to the school, and each draw was one-half
point. Game points determine the overall winner.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">While Webster entered the competition in the top spot, the win was not easy.
Webster swept Illinois in the first round, earning four points, and in the
second round against Maryland the team drew three games and won the fourth. By
the end of the day, Webster only led University of Texas by one-half point at
6.5 to 6.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In the final round on Sunday, Webster faced the Texas team. Two of the games
were a draw, and Webster won the final two matches, earning 9.5 points to Texas’
7.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“It was a nail-biter down to the final moments,” said <a href="http://www.chessdom.com/watch-susan-polgar-swiftly-check-hosts-on-fox-friends/">Susan
Polgar</a>, the chess team coach. “We had a win and draw when the first two
games ended in the third round, but with two more games going, there was still a
chance that Texas could still defeat us. When we clinched the championship with
a draw and a win on the last two boards, everyone in the room jumped to their
feet in excitement.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“We are very appreciative of all the people at Webster who cheered us on,
especially all the Webster alumni and employees in the D.C. area who were able
to come to the championship to show us support,” she added.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">During Sunday’s awards ceremony at the competition, Polgar was named the
“College Chess coach of the year.” This is the third team in a row that Polgar
has coached to a President’s Cup victory. Before joining Webster, Polgar was the
coach for Texas Tech’s chess team, which won in 2011 and 2012.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">With eight grand masters on its team, Webster sent six of them to the Final
Four, including four freshmen who had never previously competed in the Final
Four: <a href="http://www.chessdom.com/gm-georg-meier-winner-in-buenos-aires/">Georg
Meier</a>, an international business major and a sophomore, <a href="http://www.chessdom.com/interview-with-wesley-so/">Wesley So</a>, a
freshman finance major, <a href="http://www.chessdom.com/ray-robson-wins-the-spice-cup-open-2012/">Ray
Robson</a>, a freshman who is still exploring majors, <a href="http://www.chessdom.com/philadelphia-open-gm-fidel-corrales-first-on-tie-break/">Fidel
Corrales Jimenez</a>, a freshman computer science major, Anatoly Bykhovsky, a
finance major and junior, and <a href="http://www.chessdom.com/gm-manuel-leon-hoyos-unam-gran-fiesta-in-mexico-will-be-an-incredible-tournament/">Manuel
Leon Hoyos</a>, an economics major and freshman.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Webster will host a ceremony for the winning team at 11:30 a.m. Monday, April
8 in Marletto’s, the student cafeteria located on the ground floor of Loretto
Hall on the Webster Gr<span style="font-size: small;">ove campus. The event is open to the campus community.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">With its home campus in St. Louis, Webster University (<a href="http://www.webster.edu/">www.webster.edu</a>) is
the only Tier 1, private, non-profit U.S.-based university providing a network
of international residential campuses. Founded in 1915, Webster University’s
campus network today includes metropolitan, military and corporate locations
around the world, as well as traditional residential campuses in Asia, Europe
and North America. The university is committed to delivering high-quality
learning experiences that transform students for global citizenship and
individual excellence.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">For more information on Webster’s chess team, visit <a href="http://webster.edu/spice/" rel="nofollow">http://webster.edu/spice/</a>.</span></span>Chess Daily Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08623733406361333715noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4614557875172082896.post-31567617113474630572013-04-07T11:45:00.000-05:002013-04-11T15:25:11.683-05:00Webster chess team's accomplishments<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPP8DGXzx-68rpQc444dQkzCZM7tayY9FzsHNPP2YH58MQTNyxQTeOpaZDhltOwhd7higmUTh2ZBBsnsgP-Cbuk_CDR5l5ODUyvY6Oehy5pR6ONiEusiiClgkaIPuHXAG4TgoJdsDKvw0/s1600/Webster+SPICE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPP8DGXzx-68rpQc444dQkzCZM7tayY9FzsHNPP2YH58MQTNyxQTeOpaZDhltOwhd7higmUTh2ZBBsnsgP-Cbuk_CDR5l5ODUyvY6Oehy5pR6ONiEusiiClgkaIPuHXAG4TgoJdsDKvw0/s400/Webster+SPICE.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>Chess Team Accomplishments</b><span style="color: black;"></span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The Webster University chess team has been ranked #1 in Division
I College Chess since its inception in August 2012. It has never relinquished
the top ranking.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><i>National Championships (6)</i></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b> August 2012</b></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
U.S. Open Championship: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
U.S. Open Rapid (g/15) Championship: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GM Andre
Diamant and IM Vitaly Neimer) </span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
U.S. Open Blitz Championship: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GM Andre Diamant), 2nd
place (GM Anatoly Bykhovsky) </span></span></li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>December 2012</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Both A and B team tied for 1<sup>st</sup>
place</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top reserve player (GM Manuel Leon
Hoyos) </span></span></li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>April 2013</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2013
College Chess Final Four: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GMs Georg Meier, Wesley
So, Ray Robson, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, Manuel Leon Hoyos, and Anatoly
Bykhovsky)</span></span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><i>State Championships (3)</i></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>September 2012</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
Missouri State Championship: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GM Denes Boros and GM
Anatoly Bykhovsky)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
Missouri State Rapid Championship: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GM Fidel Corrales
Jimenez)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
Missouri State Blitz Championship: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GM Fidel Corrales
Jimenez)</span></span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><i>Major International Events</i></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>August 2012</b></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
World Chess Olympiad (Istanbul, Turkey): Team Silver in Group A (GM Ray
Robson - USA) </span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
World Chess Olympiad (Istanbul, Turkey): Team Bronze in Group B (GM Wesley
So - Philippines) </span></span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>January 2013</b></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2013 World Cup Qualifier: GM Wesley So
qualified for the 2013 World Cup which will take place in Troms<i><span style="color: #444444; font-weight: normal;">ø</span></i>, Norway in August 2013</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>February 2013</b></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2013 Reykjavik Open: Co-champion (GM Wesley So)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2013 Grenke Baden Baden Chess Classis: Webster
GM Georg Meier drew the reigning World Champion Anand both games in their
2-game encounter</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><i>Major
U.S. Events</i></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>October 2012</b></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
SPICE Cup Open: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GM Ray Robson), 2<sup>nd</sup> place
(GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez), 3<sup>rd</sup> place (IM Vitaly Neimer)
</span></span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>January 2013</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2013 Cardinal Open: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GM
Andre Diamant)</span></span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>November 2012</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
Thanksgiving Open in St. Louis: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GMs Georg Meier,
Fidel Corrales Jimenez, Denes Boros)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2012
SLCC GM Invitational: 1<sup>st</sup> place (IM Vitaly Neimer) </span></span></li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>March
2013</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2013
Philadelphia Open: 1<sup>st</sup> place (GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez)</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>Additional
records</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1<sup>st</sup>
team in history (Webster University) to be ranked #1 in the nation in the
first year of forming a team (August 2012 - now)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1<sup>st</sup>
team in history (Webster University) to qualify for the Final Four in the
first year of forming a team (December 2012)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1<sup>st</sup>
team in history (Webster University) to be seeded #1 in the Final Four in
the first year of forming a team (April 2013)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1<sup>st</sup>
female (Susan Polgar) to coach a men's team to the National Championship
(2011)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1<sup>st</sup>
female (Susan Polgar) to coach a men’s team to back to back National
Championships (2011-2012)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1<sup>st</sup>
female (Susan Polgar) to coach a men’s team to 3 straight National
Championships (2011-2013)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1<sup>st</sup>
coach, male or female, to win National Championships with 2 different
schools (TTU 2011-2012, and Webster U 2013)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Most
points scored in the Final Four (April 2013 - Webster University finished
with 9.5 points)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Largest
margin of victory in the Final Four (April 2013 - Webster University
finished 2.5 points ahead of 2<sup>nd</sup> place UTD)</span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1<sup>st</sup>
person (Susan Polgar) to be named College Coach of the Year (April
2013) </span></span></span></li>
</ul>
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