Roger Morin made it three straight at the Washington County Chess Federation's May Swiss played at the Unobski School in Calais on May 19, 2007. Behind Morin's perfect 4 points were Thomas Harvey, Roger Peterson and Gregg Ross all tied for second with 3-1. In a suprising upset, Ezra Briggs beat his big sister Lily, the 2007 Girls Scholastic Champion, on his way to taking second place in the scholastic section. Ezra's other big sister Mary took first, and Arno Wirta third. Robert Harvey received the Top Unrated trophy for his third round win over Jeff Wheeler.
Continue reading "WCCF May Swiss Tournament Report" »
The Orono Department of Parks and Recreation is offering a week-long chess day camp for students in grade 3 and up from August 13 - 17, 2007. The camp will meet from 9:00 a.m - 11:00 a.m. at the Keith Anderson Center, 8 Bennoch Road in Orono. Zening Chen, former Maine Individual High School Champion (2002-2003) and current Stanford University student will serve as the camp's lead instructor.
Ed Hatch has defined himself as the man to beat with his second undefeated, untied victory at the Friday Night G/35 tournament at The University of Maine, Orono, on Friday, June 1, 2007. Hatch reeled off six straight wins in his last two tournaments to go from USCF 1323 to USCF 1652. He has found both his winning stride and his winning time control. Congratulations Ed!
For the fourth consecutive year, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at the University of Southern Maine, Portland has offered Chess for Seniors during the spring semester, a class taught by retired principal, Frank Smith and retired psychiatrist, Jon Malev. The class is geared as an indroduction to the game for new players and as a refresher for those who have played and are now looking to get back over the board.
SOUTH BERWICK, Maine ’Äî Paul Mehlhorn, principal of Marshwood High School, recently announced the Top 10 and Honor Graduates for the Class of 2007. At the top of the list was Joseph R. Grace III, Valetictorian and member of both the Marshwood High School chess and math teams. Congratulations Joe!
With a last round victory over Sergey Kudrin, GM Alexander Shabalov has won the 2007 US Championship with 7/9. Second place went to Alexander Onischuk who scored 6.5/9. The 2007 US Championship was a nine-round Swiss that took place from May 15 ’Äì 23, 2007, in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Making plans for this summer? There's a new option to consider: USA Chess Camps, the nation's No. 1 organizer of summer scholastic chess camps, has decided to come to Maine for the first time. They will be holding a camp in Cape Elizabeth at the Cape Elizabeth 
The Washington County Chess Federation continues its monthly offering of tournaments with the WCCF May Swiss this Saturday, May 19, 2007 at the Unobski School in Calais. Also on the horizon in the near future is the back by popular demand Friday Night G/35 tournament on Friday, June 1, 2007 in the Bumps Room at the University of Maine, Orono, Memorial Union. Hope to see you at these events!
As promised and thanks to our crack reporter on the scene, Dan Fishbein, we bring you images from the 2007 National Elementary Championship recently concluded in Nashville, Tennessee. Win, lose or draw, it was a great experience for our young Maine players. Does chess have a positive impact on kids? Consider this: A few hundred parents were allowed into a viewing area in the playing hall after the first 30 minutes of each round. At one point, a Tournament Director made the following announcement: (one that may only be possible in the chess world) "The children are complaining 
