08.07.2026 Two-time Maine Senior Chess Champion, longtime member of the Maine Chess Association, and president of the International Indigenous Fund for Development and Solidarity "Batani," Dr. Pavel Sulyandziga submitted this report describing his visit to the St. Louis Chess Club and Scholastic Center and his work on creating a documentary on former World Champion Boris Spassky.

Thanks to Dr. Pavel Sulyandziga for contributing to this report.

 

I had long dreamed of visiting St. Louis, the unofficial chess capital of the USA. The photos and information available online about the St. Louis Chess Club, the chess museum, and--of course--the world's largest chess piece (listed in the Guinness Book of World Records) have always captivated chess enthusiasts, not just in the US but around the globe. I was eager to see this "chess haven" created by the philanthropist Rex Sinquefield.

And then, the opportunity arose. In fact, the trip exceeded all my expectations.

So, let me tell you the story from the beginning.

I am currently working with a filmmaker friend on a documentary about Boris Vasilyevich Spassky, whom I have had the good fortune to meet and befriend. I invited a good acquaintance of mine, Arkady Yankovsky--a former vice-president of the Russian Chess Federation with extensive connections in the chess world--to join the project. He suggested an idea: let's go to the US Senior Championship. Grandmasters who know Boris Spassky well would be competing there and could share their memories of the 10th World Champion. It is worth noting that four US championships were taking place in St. Louis simultaneously: for juniors (boys and girls) and seniors (men and women).

While discussing this plan, we discovered that members of the "Democratic Russia" Team--an alternative squad comprising grandmasters and chess enthusiasts who oppose the Putin regime--were competing in the US championship. I am a member of this team myself.

Naturally, I realized this was a fantastic opportunity to meet them in person, rather than just interacting online. I should also mention that this year I received an invitation from team captain Denis Bilunov to participate in the FIDE World Team Championship held in Hong Kong and to play on the amateur board. Of course, it would have been a great honor for me to play for the Democratic Russia team alongside renowned grandmasters (the squad included the legendary Alexei Shirov, four-time US champion Alexander Shabalov, and others) against teams featuring Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, Wesley So, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, Ding Liren, Hans Niemann, and many others. Unfortunately, however, due to circumstances beyond my control, I was unable to take part in the tournament.

My meeting in St. Louis with team members and grandmasters Alexander Goldin and Alexander Shabalov was very warm. These distinguished grandmasters were incredibly welcoming; they joked a lot and shared many interesting stories. I am especially grateful to Alexander Goldin, who kindly introduced us to the grandmaster chess family, including the legendary Yasser Seirawan and US Senior Champion Vladimir Akopian, and introduced us to Rex Sinquefield.

It was a pleasure to witness the following during the closing evening:
- grandmasters who had just finished a grueling chess marathon--the US Championship--spontaneously engaging in a blitz game right at the dinner table;
- young participants of the US Girls' Championship singing on stage;
- and US chess prodigies Andy Woodward and Abhimanyu Mishra--alongside their very young peers (who were already grandmasters themselves)--having fun playing "bullet" chess.

Before that, we had the good fortune to watch a four-game tie-break match (rapid and blitz) between Vladimir Akopian and Alexander Onischuk, a dramatic contest won by Vladimir Akopian.

During this trip, we interviewed U.S. Senior Champion Vladimir Akopian, who knew Boris Vasilyevich Spassky very well. Vladimir had visited Spassky in France and also saw him in Moscow after he had returned to Russia.

We also had the pleasure of interviewing Andy Woodward, the U.S. Junior Champion; he told us how much he had read about Boris Spassky and his matches against the chess genius Bobby Fischer. For our part, we wished Andy--who, for the record, became a Grandmaster at age 13--great success in reaching the pinnacle of chess and becoming World Champion.

I would like to announce right away that the champions are Grandmaster Vladimir Akopian (Senior Men), Grandmaster Anjelina Belakovskaia (Senior Women), Grandmaster Andy Woodward (Junior Boys), and Grandmaster Zoey Tang (Junior Girls).

Naturally, this trip to the chess capital of the United States was truly impressive. We not only explored the chess-related sights of St. Louis and gathered fascinating material for our film about the great Boris Spassky, but also immersed ourselves in the human side of the chess world, where renowned players joke, laugh, and socialize.

I would like to express my immense gratitude to Arkady Yankovsky, who helped organize this trip, and to my son Pavel, who took on the roles of driver and cameraman.

I wanted to share a few photos from this wonderful trip with the chess enthusiasts of Maine.

Dr. Pavel Sulyandziga,
Member of the Maine Chess Association,
two-time Maine Senior champion (2024, 2025)

Legendary Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan and philanthropist Rex Sinquefield present the prize to U.S. Senior Champion Vladimir Akopian.

With U.S. Junior Champion Grandmaster Andy Woodward.

With Grandmaster Alexander Goldin

U.S. Senior Champion Anjelina Belakovskaia with legendary Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan and philanthropist Rex Sinquefield.

With my son Pavel at the Chess Museum and the world's tallest chess piece (listed in the Guinness Book of Records).

With the legendary American grandmaster Yasser Seirawan. Yasser boasts victories over chess legends such as Mikhail Tal, Anatoly Karpov, and Garry Kasparov.

Seirawan and Grandmaster Alexander Fishbein are playing a friendly blitz game over dinner.

The stage is set for the 2026 U.S. Senior and Junior Chess Championships at the St. Louis Chess Club and Scholastic Center.

The storied St. Louis Chess Club

Players have fun on the big board outside the World Chess Hall of Fame.

Admiring some of the exhibits at the Chess Hall of Fame.

At the Chess Museum with Arkady Yankovsky, former vice-president of the Russian Chess Federation and one of the managers of the current Democratic Russia team.

The Sinquefield Cup

With four-time U.S. champion Grandmaster Alexander Shabalov, a member of the Democratic Russia national team, and my son Pavel.

You can learn more about Dr. Sulyandziga's work here:

President,
International Indigenous Fund
for development and solidarity "Batani"
(Batani Foundation)
>> Batani.org <<