First SPICE Training of the new semester

Training session with GM Bykhovsky, GM Meier, GM Boros, SM Aleskerov

The 2011 Texas Tech Knight Raiders A Team

L to R: Dr. Hal Karlssson (Iceland), SM Faik Aleskerov (Azerbaijan), GM Anatoly Bykhovsky (Israel), Me, GM Georg Meier (Germany), IM Vitaly Neimer (Israel), GM Denes Boros (Hungary), GM Andre Diamant (Brazil)

New season for the Texas Tech Knight Raiders

After a successful 2010 season with the Texas Tech Knight Raiders capturing the Division I Collegiate Final Four, the team lost 2 valuable members. GM Davorin Kuljasevic graduated and IM Istvan Sipos is back to Hungary.



We added two new grandmasters and one international master to solidify the team. Below is the new roster for the Fall 2011.



Texas Tech Knight Raiders A team



GM Meier, Georg GER 2656 1987 *

GM Bykhovsky, Anatoly ISR 2521 1988

GM Diamant, Andre BRA 2505 1990

GM Boros, Denes HUN 2502 1988 *



IM Neimer, Vitaly ISR 2373 1988 *

SM Aleskerov, Faik AZE 2316 1985



* Incoming freshman

Jada Pinkett Smith: What inspires you?

Young chess phenom wins scholarship to Texas Tech at tournament



Dyhemia Young's journey to the Susan Polgar Girls' Invitational chess tournament was long and difficult, and though she didn't win the competition, she did receive a scholarship to Texas Tech.



By Maria L. La Ganga, Los Angeles Times

August 4, 2011



Reporting from East Palo Alto, Calif. -- Dyhemia Young left for Lubbock, Texas, with a black eye — compliments of a girl at her East Palo Alto group home — and returned the proud recipient of a chess scholarship worth $40,000.



Along the way, the 15-year-old from the wrong side of San Francisco, who could not have made it to a prestigious chess tournament without the kindness of strangers, became a nationally rated player.



Photos: Dyhemia Young wins chess scholarship



"My journey here, it was tough, because I had a lot of situations going on at home," she said tearfully after her first win, Game 3 of the six-game Susan Polgar Girls' Invitational.



The tournament takes place each year at Texas Tech University, drawing the top-rated girl from each state. Polgar, the first woman to earn the title of grandmaster, also issues two "wild card" invitations to gifted players who haven't traveled the pricey road of official competition.



Dyhemia, who has spent the last three years in and out of foster care, received one of the wild card bids. But when Adisa Banjoko, her chess mentor, called in June with the good news, Dyhemia had disappeared.



It took nearly a month and the help of a San Francisco police detective to locate Dyhemia; after a short stint in juvenile hall, she had ended up in the teen home.



Then there was the matter of money — nearly $3,000 was needed to send the high-school junior and a chaperone to the six-day event. After reading her story in The Times, generous donors sent thousands of dollars Dyhemia's way.



Problem solved? Not so fast.



The night before her flight to Texas, Dyhemia was sitting in the group home studying for her driver's license test with the help of a staff member. When the woman left the room, Dyhemia continued to drill herself. "Why don't you just shut up?" one of the other girls said before charging Dyhemia and punching her in the face.



"It all stemmed from jealousy," Sheila George, who heads the group home and accompanied Dyhemia to Texas, said in a phone interview from Lubbock. "Dyhemia came down here with all this in her soul and mind and heart. She had to get rid of all that junk."



When the rattled girl and her worried chaperone stepped off the plane in Texas, they were greeted by Polgar and a cheering group of chess players — Dyhemia's competitors and new found friends.



More here.

Former World Blitz Champion Dominguez Confirmed for SPICE Cup

The #1 Cuban Player and former World Blitz Champion, GM Leinier Dominguez (2719), has confirmed his participation in the 2011 SPICE Cup A Group.



Also confirmed so far are:



GM Le Quang Liem (Vietnam) 2715

GM Alexander Onischuk (USA) 2675

GM Georg Meier (GER) 2656



The 2011 SPICE Cup A group will take place on October 15-25, 2011. It will once again be held on the beautiful campus of Texas Tech University.

13 year old shined at 2011 SPGI

Chess champ captures honors

Posted: Tuesday, August 9, 2011 10:00 am

By CAMERON RASMUSSON Staff writer

Bonner County Daily Bee

SANDPOINT — Savanna Naccarato’s chess skills have been making waves in the Northwest, but now her reputation is spreading across the nation.

The 13-year-old Sandpoint resident placed ninth in the 2011 Susan Polgar Girls Invitational, a national chess tournament held at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, from July 24-29. Chess masters said Savanna performed remarkably for an eighth-grader at her first national tournament, defeating older, more experienced players and ending with four wins against two losses.

For Savanna’s father Chris, who got her started on chess a few years ago, the national tournament is simply another step toward her goal of becoming Idaho’s first female grandmaster.

“For her first national tournament, she’s done an incredible job,” he said. “I’m really proud of her.”

Savanna earned her invitation by tying for first place with two other players in the Idaho Scholastic Girls Championship in Boise.

Although she qualified for the national event, a few significant challenges stood between her and Texas.

First, the system most frequently used to calculate Savanna’s player rating differed from the tournament standard. In a competitive system where defeating a higher-rated player is more advantageous, point discrepancies can pose a serious problem. Fortunately, tournament organizers converted her established rating to a 1600, placing her squarely in the middle of a pack featuring ratings as high as 1967.

Travel expenses were a more significant problem. However, the community stepped up to the task. Businesses, friends, family and organizations like the Spokane Chess Club, the Idaho Chess Association, the Kiwanis Club and the Lions Club stepped up to finance the trip. The Naccaratos also staged a yard sale that generated $800 in both transactions and donations.

“Even though the trip was really expensive, it was also really worth it,” Naccarato said.

Indeed, the tournament provided an unparalleled learning experience. When she wasn’t in competition, Savanna spent her free time training with her fellow participants. She also attended workshops where chess masters detailed advanced strategies, positioning concepts and tactics.

“They brought up points of the game I didn’t even know existed,” Savanna said.

Luckily, her prior training with Washington chess master John Graves paid off when it counted. Savanna blasted through her first and second opponents during the competition.

More here.

Checkmating Hardship

SPICE Checkmates Hardship
August 4, 2011

The Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence Invitational was a life-changing event for two young women.

Written by Melanie Hess

At Texas Tech, chess represents more than a challenging game and checkered board.

For two young women who visited Texas Tech last week to participate in the Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence (SPICE) Invitational, it was a life-changing event. Meet Dyhemia Young and Vanita Young.

Dyhemia, age 15, has spent most of her life in the California foster care system. She was selected as a wild-card invitee by Susan Polgar. The SPICE invitational was Dyhemia’s first officially rated tournament. Vanita, a 17-year-old who lost both of her parents by her early teens, currently lives in Pennsylvania with her grandparents. Vanita beat out 600 other young women in her state to win a spot at the Polgar invitational.

But there was one problem. In the few weeks leading up to the invitational, neither girl was in a position to pay for travel expenses.

SPICE and many other generous donors, namely Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith and Pennsylvania U.S. Rep. Bob Brady, helped sponsor the two young ladies, and at the end of the competition, Dyhemia and Vanita were awarded out-of-state scholarships worth up to $40,000 to attend Texas Tech once they graduate high school.

Dyhemia and Vanita, who are not related, recently shared their experiences of their time at Texas Tech with Texas Tech Today.

Q & A:

How did you feel when you found out you had been invited?

Dyhemia: It’s been really exciting. I was just, wow. That’s all I could say. “Wow! For real? Really?”

Vanita: I was definitely more excited than nervous. Since I was top at state, I had a big head for a while. I thought I could beat anybody, but when weeks turned into days, I got nervous.

How did you feel about the support you received from so many people?

D: When they asked me that question before, I nearly started crying. When I started talking about Susan, I never, ever, ever thought I was going to meet her in person. And then I met her, and now I’m teary-eyed because I’ve been here all week, and now I’m fixing to leave. I have learned so much.

How was your time with Susan Polgar?

D: I’d always heard of her. People spoke very highly of her, and then when I met her when we got off the plane, we talked. She gave me a ride all the way to the dorm and showed me around. She gave me some gifts, and I got so emotional I nearly cried. Well, I did cry. I was so emotional today. I think I cried about four different times for just about ten minutes straight. I’ve really enjoyed my time being here.

Again, I’m speechless. Susan, I think you know I am very thankful and happy to have you in my life. Oh my gosh, I’m going to have tears again, but Susan has done a lot for me while I’ve been here, and I am most definitely going to keep in touch with her when I do leave. I think so highly of her.

V: You would not believe the first time I saw her. I was at middle school nationals in Fort Worth and I was in the elevator with her. I was running late, and I didn’t know who she was at the time. I was in eighth grade. Then later people were talking about her and I asked, “Who’s Susan Polgar?” and they said, “top female,” and they showed me her and I was like, “Wait, I was on the elevator with her!”

What kind of training did you receive last week?

D: My class was kind of like Vanita’s, but she’s a higher level. We mainly focused on puzzle solving and basically making sure you know the main key things when you open, making sure you know your openings and key pieces, making sure each move you do is either to attack, or you’re defending. Then we played against each other in class using the tactics and notations. I had to learn notations. I don’t use them well, but I do know how to notate now.

It was like a 180-degree turn around from when I got here. My first game, it was like I was playing blitz. For real, I got down to the end and had to resign because the girl didn’t want to draw, and I knew I was going to lose. Then my second game was way better. I was down a bishop. I could have won if I had a bishop, but it was a good game. I gave the girl a run for her money. The game I played after that, I won. And the one I just played, I lost. But I had the girl show me the moves that I made that I should have not done. Luckily, she was my friend, so she was able to show me.

V: We had a lot of training this week. They were three-hour classes each, four classes altogether. We did a lot of analyzing, deep analyzing, and imagining things in your head without looking at the board. It was fun.

What was your favorite experience about last week?

D: I finally won a game! Oh, and I have my face on my own chess board. It’s my face on the board, and it says Dyhemia Young Cinderella! It has a list of all the people that helped me get here.

V: Meeting female chess players and working with top chess players. Susan and her husband have been amazing this week. I’ve learned so much from them in thinking steps ahead in my game. You know, when he said the tactic of visualize the pawn? I’d never thought of looking at the board like that, so I definitely learned something new.

What are your plans after high school?

D: Oh yeah. I’m going to college, I am going to college!

At first I didn’t know anything about Texas Tech, so I couldn’t really give an answer of whether I wanted to come here or not, but now I’ve read the brochure and spent some time here. I will always keep Texas Tech in mind, especially since I know I’d be on the same campus as Susan. I know if I needed anything, I could just call her and be like, “Susan, can you please come to my dorm? I need help!”

V: I definitely plan on going to college. I wouldn’t mind going to Texas Tech because I want to be in computer science as a computer engineer, and I want to be part of Susan’s chess team.

Polgar on Dyhemia and Vanita

Polgar said both girls represent hope for many other young women in difficult situations.

Speaking specifically about Dyhemia’s story, Polgar said last week’s experience was not only life changing for Dyhemia, but for many others.

“I think Dyhemia is a very special girl. The way I look at it is that she’s just one of the many Cinderella potentials, and her story can inspire thousands of other girls in difficult situations that they are in. It can become hope and encouragement.”

Source: http://today.ttu.edu

Checkmating Hardship

SPICE Checkmates Hardship
August 4, 2011

The Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence Invitational was a life-changing event for two young women.

Written by Melanie Hess

At Texas Tech, chess represents more than a challenging game and checkered board.

For two young women who visited Texas Tech last week to participate in the Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence (SPICE) Invitational, it was a life-changing event. Meet Dyhemia Young and Vanita Young.

Dyhemia, age 15, has spent most of her life in the California foster care system. She was selected as a wild-card invitee by Susan Polgar. The SPICE invitational was Dyhemia’s first officially rated tournament. Vanita, a 17-year-old who lost both of her parents by her early teens, currently lives in Pennsylvania with her grandparents. Vanita beat out 600 other young women in her state to win a spot at the Polgar invitational.

But there was one problem. In the few weeks leading up to the invitational, neither girl was in a position to pay for travel expenses.

SPICE and many other generous donors, namely Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith and Pennsylvania U.S. Rep. Bob Brady, helped sponsor the two young ladies, and at the end of the competition, Dyhemia and Vanita were awarded out-of-state scholarships worth up to $40,000 to attend Texas Tech once they graduate high school.

Dyhemia and Vanita, who are not related, recently shared their experiences of their time at Texas Tech with Texas Tech Today.

Q & A:

How did you feel when you found out you had been invited?

Dyhemia: It’s been really exciting. I was just, wow. That’s all I could say. “Wow! For real? Really?”

Vanita: I was definitely more excited than nervous. Since I was top at state, I had a big head for a while. I thought I could beat anybody, but when weeks turned into days, I got nervous.

How did you feel about the support you received from so many people?

D: When they asked me that question before, I nearly started crying. When I started talking about Susan, I never, ever, ever thought I was going to meet her in person. And then I met her, and now I’m teary-eyed because I’ve been here all week, and now I’m fixing to leave. I have learned so much.

How was your time with Susan Polgar?

D: I’d always heard of her. People spoke very highly of her, and then when I met her when we got off the plane, we talked. She gave me a ride all the way to the dorm and showed me around. She gave me some gifts, and I got so emotional I nearly cried. Well, I did cry. I was so emotional today. I think I cried about four different times for just about ten minutes straight. I’ve really enjoyed my time being here.

Again, I’m speechless. Susan, I think you know I am very thankful and happy to have you in my life. Oh my gosh, I’m going to have tears again, but Susan has done a lot for me while I’ve been here, and I am most definitely going to keep in touch with her when I do leave. I think so highly of her.

V: You would not believe the first time I saw her. I was at middle school nationals in Fort Worth and I was in the elevator with her. I was running late, and I didn’t know who she was at the time. I was in eighth grade. Then later people were talking about her and I asked, “Who’s Susan Polgar?” and they said, “top female,” and they showed me her and I was like, “Wait, I was on the elevator with her!”

What kind of training did you receive last week?

D: My class was kind of like Vanita’s, but she’s a higher level. We mainly focused on puzzle solving and basically making sure you know the main key things when you open, making sure you know your openings and key pieces, making sure each move you do is either to attack, or you’re defending. Then we played against each other in class using the tactics and notations. I had to learn notations. I don’t use them well, but I do know how to notate now.

It was like a 180-degree turn around from when I got here. My first game, it was like I was playing blitz. For real, I got down to the end and had to resign because the girl didn’t want to draw, and I knew I was going to lose. Then my second game was way better. I was down a bishop. I could have won if I had a bishop, but it was a good game. I gave the girl a run for her money. The game I played after that, I won. And the one I just played, I lost. But I had the girl show me the moves that I made that I should have not done. Luckily, she was my friend, so she was able to show me.

V: We had a lot of training this week. They were three-hour classes each, four classes altogether. We did a lot of analyzing, deep analyzing, and imagining things in your head without looking at the board. It was fun.

What was your favorite experience about last week?

D: I finally won a game! Oh, and I have my face on my own chess board. It’s my face on the board, and it says Dyhemia Young Cinderella! It has a list of all the people that helped me get here.

V: Meeting female chess players and working with top chess players. Susan and her husband have been amazing this week. I’ve learned so much from them in thinking steps ahead in my game. You know, when he said the tactic of visualize the pawn? I’d never thought of looking at the board like that, so I definitely learned something new.

What are your plans after high school?

D: Oh yeah. I’m going to college, I am going to college!

At first I didn’t know anything about Texas Tech, so I couldn’t really give an answer of whether I wanted to come here or not, but now I’ve read the brochure and spent some time here. I will always keep Texas Tech in mind, especially since I know I’d be on the same campus as Susan. I know if I needed anything, I could just call her and be like, “Susan, can you please come to my dorm? I need help!”

V: I definitely plan on going to college. I wouldn’t mind going to Texas Tech because I want to be in computer science as a computer engineer, and I want to be part of Susan’s chess team.

Polgar on Dyhemia and Vanita

Polgar said both girls represent hope for many other young women in difficult situations.

Speaking specifically about Dyhemia’s story, Polgar said last week’s experience was not only life changing for Dyhemia, but for many others.

“I think Dyhemia is a very special girl. The way I look at it is that she’s just one of the many Cinderella potentials, and her story can inspire thousands of other girls in difficult situations that they are in. It can become hope and encouragement.”

Source: http://today.ttu.edu

Some Queens are born, others grow into the role

Some Queens are born, others grow into the role

By Lisa Suhay



NORFOLK, VA --The story of the Chess Cinderella of Palo Alto, Ca. started here in Norfolk during a phone call with Chess Grandmaster Susan Polgar of Lubbock, TX. We were discussing the off-beat free chess programs I run on this coast and how hard it is for many at-risk children to get a shot at a scholarship tournament.



She decided to put the fully-charged magic wand in my hands by offering to give a Wild Card invitation to a player of my recommendation for the Susan Polgar Foundation Girls’ Chess Invitational at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas July 24th-30th. Three of the 46 girls would win $40,000 scholarships to Texas Tech, plus having three days of instruction by Polgar herself.



Since my efforts here have centered more on attracting children to chess than running competitions, I knew the girl should be Dyhemia Young, 15, of Palo Alto, Ca. Dyhemia's chess mentor there had often told me about her local tournament wins and it had stuck with me. I submitted her name, never realizing what an epic saga was being set in motion.



As most people now know, Dyhemia would prove nearly impossible to locate. She was in foster care. Somewhere. Her mentor put the word out to her friends and teachers with zero results.



I found a missing child flyer in Google images that led me to San Francisco Police Missing Persons Detective Joseph Carroll. After spilling the story I prepared for the brush-off. Instead he said, “I am going to find this girl. She deserves her shot. Let’s make something happen.”



She was being held in juvenile hall for running away. Carroll hooked me up with Social Services and after hearing the story of our Chess Cinderella they agreed to help. Dyhemia was moved to a group home in Palo Alto.



Then the City Attorney got into the act, mandating Dyhemia not travel without a Social Services chaperone. A court order would have to be obtained, plus an additional order to allow her to speak to the media so we could try and raise the money for both plane tickets and double room and board.



The orders were obtained. Dyhemia, with just 72-hours until the start of the tournament, talked to the press and a story ran in The Los Angeles Times.



Federal Express was so moved they paid for the plane tickets.



Actress Jada Pinkett-Smith had her agent send payment for the rooms and all meals for Dyhemia and her chaperone, Sheila George.



I flew to Texas for the tournament. The moment I met her I knew this really was meant to be. Despite all her trials, Dyhemia is effervescent.



She arrived with a black eye from a jealous girl at the group home that nearly cost her the dream, but the attacker's arm was too short to box with God and Dyhemia made the flight in time.



But like the hundreds of children with whom I work, Dyhemia has not had a personal chess coach and the money to pay for tournament fees and membership in the US Chess Federation. She didn’t know how to use a clock, or take fast enough chess notation. So she was not a rated player and would have to learn the rules under fire.



Day one of competition, with two games to play and a FOX/CNN affiliate’s camera staring her in the face Cinderella wept on my shoulder. “What if I lose all my games and disappoint everybody who believed in me? What is gonna happen to me if I lose?”



I said, “It will rain frogs. The earth will open and swallow you and you will come back as a chubby white lady from Virginia.” She gave me her, “UH-HUH” look, grinned and said, “Well if that’s all then I better just get started. That ain’t nothin’.”



But she rushed her game like it was street blitz and lost. A chess dad/coach, Abdul Shakoor and his daughter Diamond, took her out of the building and reset her mental clock. While she still lost Game 2 it was tight. Dyhemia was on her game.



The next day Susan Polgar, Shakoor and I paced, agonizing over every move. You would have thought we all had money on that game.



With three moves to Mate and Dyhemia winning, the local TV cameraman cluelessly clunked his lens right onto the edge of the board nearly toppling her game.



Without thinking I grabbed him by the neck and dragged him backward, camera and all, hissing in his ear, “Do that again and I promise you I will give you your first jiu-jitsu lesson!” I pointed to his new spot and hissed, "STAY!" He did.



Moments later Dyhemia made her move and her opponent's King toppled. She did a silent little victory hop and shimmy out the door.



She would lose all her following games. Despite quantum leaps she could not close the disadvantage gap.



With only one victory, the award ceremony was a formality until Polgar pulled me aside. She said, “Dyhemia. She is going into the 11th grade yes?” Yes. So?



Apparently, the three Grand Prizes are not awarded to the top three overall, but the top 3 girls entering the 11th and 12th grades because they are $40,000 scholarships to Texas Tech carry a caveat and must be used within a certain time frame.



Between her win, her age and the fact that another girl, a senior, was already committed to another school, Dyhemia was one of the three new Queens.



As I waived good-bye and ran to catch my flight home I looked back at the room filled with happy endings and wondered where the next Chess Cinderella will hail from. I found myself mentally rewriting the opening line to the classic tale to read, "More than once upon a time..."



YouTube video of Dyhemia’s first win: http://youtu.be/tJjxWy1r4vM



• Lisa Suhay runs free urban chess programs and events on the East Coast and is a children’s book author. Contact her at Lsuhays2@cox.net. Learn more at www.lisasuhay.com



Photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/SPICEChess/SPGirlsInvitational2011



Final standings



Overall Champion: Apurva Virkud (Acer netbook computer)

2nd: Mandy Lu

3rd - 4th: Maggie Feng and Kristen Sarna



Under 13: Mandy Lu (Acer netbook computer)

Under 10: Chenyi Zhao (Acer netbook computer)



Scholarships to Texas Tech (approximately $40,000 each for out of state students):



Vanita Young

Cheryl Liu

Dyhemia Young



Parents / Friends:



1. David Chris Miller

2-4 Angelito Abella

2-4 Martha Underwood

2-4 Abdul Abdus-Shakoor



Puzzle Solving:



1. Maggie Feng 20/20

2. Katherine Davis 19/20

3. Rebecca Deland 19/20



Blitz:



1-2. Mandy Liu (Winner by playoff)

1-2. Evelyn Chen



Bughouse:



1-3. Kristen Sarna / Clarissa Abella (Winners on tiebreaks)

1-3. Apurva Virkud / Katherine Davis

1-3. Mandy Lu / Maggie Feng



Tournament Director: Frank Niro

Assistant Tournament Directors: Martha Underwood and Ken Wyzywany

Competition and lasting friendship

Young chess phenom wins scholarship to Texas Tech at tournament

Dyhemia Young's journey to the Susan Polgar Girls' Invitational chess tournament was long and difficult, and though she didn't win the competition, she did receive a scholarship to Texas Tech.

http://youtu.be/E71oE-zrwWk

By Maria L. La Ganga, Los Angeles Times
August 4, 2011

Reporting from East Palo Alto, Calif.—

Dyhemia Young left for Lubbock, Texas, with a black eye — compliments of a girl at her East Palo Alto group home — and returned the proud recipient of a chess scholarship worth $40,000.

Along the way, the 15-year-old from the wrong side of San Francisco, who could not have made it to a prestigious chess tournament without the kindness of strangers, became a nationally rated player.

"My journey here, it was tough, because I had a lot of situations going on at home," she said tearfully after her first win, Game 3 of the six-game Susan Polgar Girls' Invitational.

The tournament takes place each year at Texas Tech University, drawing the top-rated girl from each state. Polgar, the first woman to earn the title of grandmaster, also issues two "wild card" invitations to gifted players who haven't traveled the pricey road of official competition.

Dyhemia, who has spent the last three years in and out of foster care, received one of the wild card bids. But when Adisa Banjoko, her chess mentor, called in June with the good news, Dyhemia had disappeared.

It took nearly a month and the help of a San Francisco police detective to locate Dyhemia; after a short stint in juvenile hall, she had ended up in the teen home.

Then there was the matter of money — nearly $3,000 was needed to send the high-school junior and a chaperone to the six-day event. After reading her story in The Times, generous donors sent thousands of dollars Dyhemia's way.

Problem solved? Not so fast.

The night before her flight to Texas, Dyhemia was sitting in the group home studying for her driver's license test with the help of a staff member. When the woman left the room, Dyhemia continued to drill herself. "Why don't you just shut up?" one of the other girls said before charging Dyhemia and punching her in the face.

"It all stemmed from jealousy," Sheila George, who heads the group home and accompanied Dyhemia to Texas, said in a phone interview from Lubbock. "Dyhemia came down here with all this in her soul and mind and heart. She had to get rid of all that junk."

When the rattled girl and her worried chaperone stepped off the plane in Texas, they were greeted by Polgar and a cheering group of chess players — Dyhemia's competitors and newfound friends.

More here:

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0804-chess-girl-follow-20110804,0,14884.story

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-chess-girl-pictures,0,3756581.photogallery

Competition and lasting friendship

Young chess phenom wins scholarship to Texas Tech at tournament

Dyhemia Young's journey to the Susan Polgar Girls' Invitational chess tournament was long and difficult, and though she didn't win the competition, she did receive a scholarship to Texas Tech.

http://youtu.be/E71oE-zrwWk

By Maria L. La Ganga, Los Angeles Times
August 4, 2011

Reporting from East Palo Alto, Calif.—

Dyhemia Young left for Lubbock, Texas, with a black eye — compliments of a girl at her East Palo Alto group home — and returned the proud recipient of a chess scholarship worth $40,000.

Along the way, the 15-year-old from the wrong side of San Francisco, who could not have made it to a prestigious chess tournament without the kindness of strangers, became a nationally rated player.

"My journey here, it was tough, because I had a lot of situations going on at home," she said tearfully after her first win, Game 3 of the six-game Susan Polgar Girls' Invitational.

The tournament takes place each year at Texas Tech University, drawing the top-rated girl from each state. Polgar, the first woman to earn the title of grandmaster, also issues two "wild card" invitations to gifted players who haven't traveled the pricey road of official competition.

Dyhemia, who has spent the last three years in and out of foster care, received one of the wild card bids. But when Adisa Banjoko, her chess mentor, called in June with the good news, Dyhemia had disappeared.

It took nearly a month and the help of a San Francisco police detective to locate Dyhemia; after a short stint in juvenile hall, she had ended up in the teen home.

Then there was the matter of money — nearly $3,000 was needed to send the high-school junior and a chaperone to the six-day event. After reading her story in The Times, generous donors sent thousands of dollars Dyhemia's way.

Problem solved? Not so fast.

The night before her flight to Texas, Dyhemia was sitting in the group home studying for her driver's license test with the help of a staff member. When the woman left the room, Dyhemia continued to drill herself. "Why don't you just shut up?" one of the other girls said before charging Dyhemia and punching her in the face.

"It all stemmed from jealousy," Sheila George, who heads the group home and accompanied Dyhemia to Texas, said in a phone interview from Lubbock. "Dyhemia came down here with all this in her soul and mind and heart. She had to get rid of all that junk."

When the rattled girl and her worried chaperone stepped off the plane in Texas, they were greeted by Polgar and a cheering group of chess players — Dyhemia's competitors and newfound friends.

More here:

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0804-chess-girl-follow-20110804,0,14884.story

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-chess-girl-pictures,0,3756581.photogallery

How to shoe shop like a Grandmaster

How to shoe shop like a Grandmaster

SP Girls' Invitational: Behind the boards

SP Girls' Invitational: Behind the boards

SP Girls' Invitational from the TD's perspective

I was given the privilege of directing the 2011 Susan Polgar Girls' Invitational Chess Tournament in Lubbock, Texas, from July 24-29, 2011. I am pictured above with Susan Polgar, Heather Young of Vancouver, WA, and her parents, Ron & Peggy Young.

The winner was the highest rated player, Apurva Virkud, from Michigan with a perfect 6-0 score. Mandy Lu, also of Michigan, and Chenyi Zhao of California each were presented with netbook computers for winning the under age 13 and under age 10 prizes respectively. Mandy also won the blitz tournament in a playoff over Evelyn Chen of Georgia.

There were four scholarships given to players entering the 11th or 12th grade. They went to Vanita Young of Pennsylvania, Cheryl Liu of Illinois, Sneha Chikkila of Arkansas and Dyhemia Young of California. Each scholarship is valued at approximately $40,000 for out-of-state students who will utilize the award for their full four years in college.

As a current resident of the Great Northwest, I was very interested in the results of the girls from my area. Heather Young of Vancouver, WA, who is home schooled and will be entering 10th grade in September, finished 18th out of 46 players. Most of the entrants were champions or co-champions of their respective states.

The Idaho representative was Savanah Naccarato of Sandpoint, who plays mostly in the Spokane scholastic events. Savanah finished in 9th place with a 4-2 score. She will be entering 9th grade in the fall and has begun study in recent months with Seattle chess coach John Graves. Unfortunately there was no Oregon participant this year.

Susan provided three days of intensive training for all of the participants. I was allowed to sit in on the sessions and am very impressed with the quality of play of the girls as well as the depth of learning that is available to them as part of the event.

Many thanks to Jeff Roland of Idaho who reformatted the cross table for the 2011 SPGI event to make it easier to read. It is located here.

Here is the ICA link for the 2011 SPGI story about Savanah Naccarato.

Here is the link for the Bonner Bee article about Savanah Naccarato:

Thanks to the interest and energy of Rusty Miller there should be some coverage soon in Vancouver press concerning Heather Young.

An annual fund is in the process of being established, perhaps through Northwest Chess, to support travel expenses for each year's Northwest nominees (Washington, Oregon & Idaho). My suggestion is to call it the Dr. Ralph L. Hall memorial travel fund after one of the pioneers of scholastic chess excellence in the Northwest. Dr. Hall wrote position papers on the benefits of chess for children years before anyone else even thought about it.

More details of the event can be found on Susan’s blog:

I will be tournament director for the Open Section (FIDE Rated) of the Portland Chess Club Centennial Open in August. Please stop by and say “hello” if you play in or visit the event. The tournament flyer is located here.

Frank Niro

SP Girls' Invitational from the TD's perspective

I was given the privilege of directing the 2011 Susan Polgar Girls' Invitational Chess Tournament in Lubbock, Texas, from July 24-29, 2011. I am pictured above with Susan Polgar, Heather Young of Vancouver, WA, and her parents, Ron & Peggy Young.

The winner was the highest rated player, Apurva Virkud, from Michigan with a perfect 6-0 score. Mandy Lu, also of Michigan, and Chenyi Zhao of California each were presented with netbook computers for winning the under age 13 and under age 10 prizes respectively. Mandy also won the blitz tournament in a playoff over Evelyn Chen of Georgia.

There were four scholarships given to players entering the 11th or 12th grade. They went to Vanita Young of Pennsylvania, Cheryl Liu of Illinois, Sneha Chikkila of Arkansas and Dyhemia Young of California. Each scholarship is valued at approximately $40,000 for out-of-state students who will utilize the award for their full four years in college.

As a current resident of the Great Northwest, I was very interested in the results of the girls from my area. Heather Young of Vancouver, WA, who is home schooled and will be entering 10th grade in September, finished 18th out of 46 players. Most of the entrants were champions or co-champions of their respective states.

The Idaho representative was Savanah Naccarato of Sandpoint, who plays mostly in the Spokane scholastic events. Savanah finished in 9th place with a 4-2 score. She will be entering 9th grade in the fall and has begun study in recent months with Seattle chess coach John Graves. Unfortunately there was no Oregon participant this year.

Susan provided three days of intensive training for all of the participants. I was allowed to sit in on the sessions and am very impressed with the quality of play of the girls as well as the depth of learning that is available to them as part of the event.

Many thanks to Jeff Roland of Idaho who reformatted the cross table for the 2011 SPGI event to make it easier to read. It is located here.

Here is the ICA link for the 2011 SPGI story about Savanah Naccarato.

Here is the link for the Bonner Bee article about Savanah Naccarato:

Thanks to the interest and energy of Rusty Miller there should be some coverage soon in Vancouver press concerning Heather Young.

An annual fund is in the process of being established, perhaps through Northwest Chess, to support travel expenses for each year's Northwest nominees (Washington, Oregon & Idaho). My suggestion is to call it the Dr. Ralph L. Hall memorial travel fund after one of the pioneers of scholastic chess excellence in the Northwest. Dr. Hall wrote position papers on the benefits of chess for children years before anyone else even thought about it.

More details of the event can be found on Susan’s blog:

I will be tournament director for the Open Section (FIDE Rated) of the Portland Chess Club Centennial Open in August. Please stop by and say “hello” if you play in or visit the event. The tournament flyer is located here.

Frank Niro

Savanna Naccarato places 9th out of 46 at the 2011 Susan Polgar Girls Invitational

Savanna Naccarato (center) with her mother, Rachelle (left), and GM Susan Polgar (right). Photo courtesy of the Susan Polgar Foundation.

by Jeff Roland

Reports started coming in a few days ago from Frank Niro (an Idaho resident), Tournament Director of the 8th Annual Susan Polgar Girls Invitational held this year at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, July 24-29, 2011. Savanna Naccarato, an 8th grader from Sandpoint, Idaho was at one point, one of only four girls tied for first place after three rounds (with three rounds remaining) in this prestigious event. In round 4, and round 5, Savanna lost her games to higher ranked players, and won in the 6th round to end up with 4 points, and a 9th place (out of 46 players) finish. This is an outstanding result for an 8th grader in her first attempt.

Savanna qualified to play in this event by tying for first place in the 2011 Idaho Scholastic Girls Championship held in Boise, this past February.

Savanna and her family are very appreciative of all the support they have had for Savanna to represent Idaho at this event. The Bonner County Daily Bee helped promote a fundraiser yard sale, that actually brought in $800 toward expenses (some people dropped off money and didn't even buy anything at the yard sale -- they just wanted to support Savanna. And also community clubs and businesses and friends gave their support as well. The Spokane Chess Club also contributed as did the Idaho Chess Association.

Special thanks goes to Savanna's coach, National Master, John Graves, from Washington State, who has really worked hard and done a fabulous job preparing Savanna for this event. During the event he even called and texted between rounds.

Click here for May 11, 2011 article by Cameron Rasmusson, Staff for the Bonner County Daily Bee.

The event finished on July 29, 2011. Click Here for the crosstable.

http://www.idahochessassociation.org/index.asp

Savanna Naccarato places 9th out of 46 at the 2011 Susan Polgar Girls Invitational

Savanna Naccarato (center) with her mother, Rachelle (left), and GM Susan Polgar (right). Photo courtesy of the Susan Polgar Foundation.

by Jeff Roland

Reports started coming in a few days ago from Frank Niro (an Idaho resident), Tournament Director of the 8th Annual Susan Polgar Girls Invitational held this year at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, July 24-29, 2011. Savanna Naccarato, an 8th grader from Sandpoint, Idaho was at one point, one of only four girls tied for first place after three rounds (with three rounds remaining) in this prestigious event. In round 4, and round 5, Savanna lost her games to higher ranked players, and won in the 6th round to end up with 4 points, and a 9th place (out of 46 players) finish. This is an outstanding result for an 8th grader in her first attempt.

Savanna qualified to play in this event by tying for first place in the 2011 Idaho Scholastic Girls Championship held in Boise, this past February.

Savanna and her family are very appreciative of all the support they have had for Savanna to represent Idaho at this event. The Bonner County Daily Bee helped promote a fundraiser yard sale, that actually brought in $800 toward expenses (some people dropped off money and didn't even buy anything at the yard sale -- they just wanted to support Savanna. And also community clubs and businesses and friends gave their support as well. The Spokane Chess Club also contributed as did the Idaho Chess Association.

Special thanks goes to Savanna's coach, National Master, John Graves, from Washington State, who has really worked hard and done a fabulous job preparing Savanna for this event. During the event he even called and texted between rounds.

Click here for May 11, 2011 article by Cameron Rasmusson, Staff for the Bonner County Daily Bee.

The event finished on July 29, 2011. Click Here for the crosstable.

http://www.idahochessassociation.org/index.asp

If we can impact one girl, it’s worth it

Girls develop their chess-playing at Susan Polgar Invitational

Posted: July 29, 2011 - 11:39pm | Updated: July 30, 2011 - 12:13am

By CHANA ELGIN Copyright 2011 . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

THE AVALANCHE-JOURNAL

Slouched far into her chair, nametag fumbling in her hands, Aksitini Ramalingam seemed more interested in her lanyard than her father’s explanation of her love of chess.

“The girls started playing chess in January,” Eswaran Ramalingam said. “We have a private coach and are trying to help them with lots of focus.”

Ramalingam spoke in reference to his two daughters, Aksitini, 10, and Ashrita, 5. Both were competitors in this week’s Texas Tech Susan Polgar Invitational- an educational and competitive chess tournament.

Ashrita sat in her mother’s lap, shy and whispering to her parent, as her father continued to speak.

“We are very thankful to Susan and what she’s doing for girls’ chess,” he said. “She takes players’ game to the next level and we love to come every year.”

Originally from India, now residents of San Jose, Calif., Ramalingam explained his daughters’ chess levels in terms of points, Aksitini, coming off a 1300-point gain, putting her at the fourth level and 1572 points overall.

The soon-to-be sixth-grader spoke softly.

“I like playing chess.”

She quickly looked to her father. He smiled at his daughter, eyes gleaming.

Eight years since its conception, the chess invitational began this year with three days of chess class where more than 50 girls from across the nation and around the world learned chess strategies under direction of Grandmaster Polgar herself.

Polgar, with assistance from Paul Truong, coaches the Texas Tech Knight Raiders, 2011 President’s Cup national champions. According to Tech’s biography page on Polgar, she was the number one ranked chess player in the world.

“People don’t realize how lucky they are to have access to Susan in Lubbock,” Jill of Shreveport, La., said. “She is changing these girls’ and our lives.”

Wyzywany, a mother of four, said the family of six drove nine hours to have their two eldest daughters, Amelia and Annastasia, compete in the chess invitational.

Her husband Ken Wyzywany said his 12-and 13-year-old daughters respectively are the ones encouraging their family to pursue chess.

“They are the ones dragging us to the lessons,” the U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel said. “Commuting gets expensive and we can’t have ready access to Susan from Louisiana. Too bad there’s not an air force base here in town.”

Five-year-old Elle and her 10-year-old brother are the two younger siblings to Amelia and Annastasia. All are homeschooled, practicing musical instruments, learning another language and familiar with the game of chess.

Each yes and no question was followed with a confident, “yes, ma’am,” or, “no ma’am,” regardless of who asked.

“I prayed to God about what to put my children in,” Jill said. “When he told me it was chess, I told him he would have to make it happen to be so. A few days later a friend whose son played gave us a chess set, an instructional book and the offer of her son’s help.”

The two girls sat with their eyes forward as their mother shared their particular rankings.

“Anna has been the highest rated female in the state for two years,” Jill said with her unwavering smile, eyes wide. “She’s also the Louisiana state champion and she’s rated second highest overall.”

Amelia said she had won two of her three games during Thursday’s second round of play.

Later during Wednesday’s matches, Annastasia said she defeated Philadelphia player Vanita Young, featured Tuesday in The Avalanche-Journal. She, like Annastasia, said she won two of her three games Thursday.

A few corrections to Tuesday’s article: Vanita has never been involved with the foster care system, she lives with both grandparents and her chess invitational chaperone, Melanie Brennan, wears glasses - not Vanita.

After Thursday’s rounds, known shoe enthusiast, Polgar, treated Vanita to three pairs of shoes at DSW. Vanita made her selection carefully before deciding on two pairs of sandals and a pair of Nike running shoes.

“I have about 60 pairs of shoes,” Polgar said trying on a black suede, spiked heal shoe. “I just really like them.”

Paul Truong said Polgar’s generosity extends beyond Vanita’s evening in the shoe warehouse. He said the chess grandmaster also presented Dyhemia Young, featured in also Tuesday’s article.

“Susan got her a laptop because she wants her to continue her education,” Truong said. “If we can impact one girl, it’s worth it. We’ve definitely impacted more than one.”

Polgar also founded the Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence, an organization dedicated to academic excellence through chess with a focus in young women.

Jill Wyzywany and her daughter Annastasia were also present at Thursday evening’s break from chess.

Wyzywany was moved to tears as the group wrapped up their purchases.

“I am just blown away by Susan’s generosity,” Wyzywany said explaining to her daughter why she was crying. “She has done so much for these girls.”

Friday’s closing ceremonies of the chess tournament followed a pizza party paid in part for by friends and family of the players’ generosity, Peggy Flores said.

Flores, the unit coordinator for the event, handled media contacts and players’ day-to-days during the weeklong training and playing tournament.

“We are so grateful for everyone’s support,” Flores said. “We cannot thank everyone enough.”

Polgar stood before the crowd of about 75 people Friday afternoon for the closing ceremony and gave a few remarks before presenting the tournament’s awards.

“This is about a lot more than just a few chess games,” Polgar said, her Hungarian accent masked behind a smile. “This plays into society and as you all have seen chess can be a life changing experience.”

Awards commenced with words from Lubbock Mayor Tom Martin and Tech’s vice president of Institutional Diversity Juan Munoz, Ph.D.

The two gave their congratulations and an invitation to the University for Future Educational Endeavors.

Besides receiving pairs of shoes, Vanita’s Cinderella story continued as Polgar began the award ceremony. Vanita received a $1,000 scholarship and finished 12th overall with four wins and two loses according to the results posted on Polgar’s blog, www.susanpolgar.blogspot.com.

Dyhemia Young, a California team living in a group home in San Francisco at the invitational courtesy of Jada Pinkett-Smith, also received a $1,000 scholarship. She was emotional upon returning to her seat.

Both girls said they have plans to attend college in the future. Dyhemia said she was interested in pursuing sports at Howard or Georgia Tech among other historically African-American universities. Vanita said she was interested in attending Tech.

The overall winner of the tournament with a perfect 6-0 record for games played was Apurva Virkud of Michigan.

Polgar spoke directly to Virkud before presenting the silver handled tournament cup to be adorned with her name on an engraved black and gold plaque.

“I remember you 500, 600 points ago,” Polgar said. “I remember you 5-to-6 inches ago. You have made tremendous progress.”

Virkud was also presented with an Acer Netbook and congratulations from her opponents.

Truong spoke before the crowd Friday reminding those in attendance of Polgar’s struggle to overcome gender adversity. The four-time winner of the Women’s World Championship and five-time Olympic Gold medalist Polgar was the first woman to break the gender barrier in the game of chess.

“No woman ever played at this level before Susan. She was denied a chance to compete in the world championship cycle because she is a woman,” Truong said. “This wasn’t 100 years ago either.”

He paused as his emotions choked his throat and tears swelled in his eyes.

“I just wanted to remind you you’re making a difference by playing this game,” he said. “Remember that you are special and share your experience with us here with the world.”

The crowd clapped as the last of the awards was presented including a congenial award to Maraani Kamphorst of Brazil. Kamphorst said she was at the invitational by special invitation from Polgar and finished her games played with a perfect 4-0.

“Everything beautiful has to come to an end. Be proud of your success,” Polgar said. “Until next year.”

Source: Avalanche Journal