World Youth Begins in Halkidiki, Greece

The annual World Youth Chess Championships kick off this weekend in Porto Karras, a coastal resort in the Halkidiki region of northern Greece.  Most Americans flew on Thursday, arriving on Friday in Thessaloniki via a stopover in western Europe.  Team USA consists of a record 129 participants, supported by a dedicated army of parents and coaches.  Overall, approximately 1600 players from more than 90 countries have registered, considerably more than South Africa in September 2014 and a modest increase over the same venue in October 2010, but less than United Arab Emirates in December 2013.

Girls and boys compete separately in six age divisions.  The largest sections are in the U10, U12 and U14 age groups, each numbering over 180 boys or 110 girls.  In a change from past years, there will be no double round.  Thus, the schedule calls for 11 rounds over 12 days, including a rest day.  Rounds begin at 3pm Greek time, 6am Pacific daylight time (5am after November 1).  Traditionally, the boards in each section will be broadcast live.

Cameron, Sam and Kayden were all smiles in 2012.

Despite stiff competition from Russia and India, the American delegation has achieved modest success in recent years.  For five straight years, Team USA has earned a gold medal!  The best team result of 4 medals came in 2012, when future GMs Troff and Sevian captured gold in U14 and U12, respectively.  In each of the past two years, the squad won a pair of medals, including one gold.


Best USA Results

• Jennifer Yu, GOLD for Girls U12 in 2014
• Awonder Liang, GOLD for U10 in 2013
• Kayden Troff, GOLD for U14 in 2012
• Sam Sevian, GOLD for U12 in 2012
• Cameron Wheeler, Silver for U12 in 2012 (tied for first)
• Awonder Liang, GOLD for U8 in 2011
• Steven Zierk, GOLD for U18 in 2010
• Sam Shankland, Bronze for U18 in 2008 (tied for first)
• Daniel Naroditsky, GOLD for U12 in 2007

Steven celebrated his 2010 gold
medal on the beach in Halkidiki.

How will Team USA fare in Halkidiki?  Players must recognize that the tournament is like a marathon, and one bad game does not mean disaster.  Indeed, 8.5 may be sufficient to win a medal!  Check out the following list of the top rated Americans in each section.  N.B.: Ratings mean little for the youngest divisions; indeed many participants do not even have an international rating yet.


Whom to Watch on Team USA

• #42 FM Chris Wu in U18
• #28 FM Cameron Wheeler in U16
• #2 FM Nicolas Checa and #25 FM Rayan Taghizadeh in U14
• #2 FM Awonder Liang, #8 David Peng and #17 Andrew Hong in U12
• #7 Arthur Guo, #9 Justin Wang and #10 Jason Wang in U10
• No rating favorites in U8 (too many FIDE unrateds)
• #32 Apurva Virkud in Girls U18
• #7 WIM Ashritha Eswaran and #17 WIM Agata Bykovtsev in Girls U16
• #11WIM Annie Wang in Girls U14
• #3 Carissa Yip in Girls U12
• No rating favorites in Girls U10 (too many FIDE unrateds)
• No rating favorites in Girls U8 (too many FIDE unrateds)

For the latest news, check out the official Twitter feed @fidewycc2015.  Dozens of photos daily at Chessdom Photo Gallery. 

Team USA at World Youth - Top Scores

Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani Hotel in Durban (Photo: Franc Guadalupe)

Team USA started off on a roll at the World Youth Champs in South Africa, scoring a collective 75% in the first round.  Four players won the first 3 games, and 13 scored the very respectable 2.5.  Moreover, 49 of the 70 American representatives (70%) claim a plus score at this early stage.  Special recognition goes to Aydin Turgut (B10), Awonder Liang (B12), Jennifer Yu (G12) and Vignesh Panchanatham (B14) for beginning with a perfect 3-0.  Of course, it is a long tournament (11 rounds) and the competition is fierce (ratings often mean nothing).

LIVE Games available at official website!

Team USA -- Average Score: 1.9 out of 3 (64%).

Boys-U8

• Jason Yu 2.5
• 9 tied with 2.0

Girls-U8

• Aksithi Eswaran 2.5 (CalChess)
• Rochelle Wu 2.0

Boys-U10

• Aydin Turgut 3.0
• Andrew Hong 2.5
• Wesley Wang 2.5
• Christopher Shen 2.5 
• Cole Frutos 2.5
• 2 tied with 2.0

Girls-U10

• Martha Samadashvili 2.5
• 6 tied with 2.0

Boys-U12

• Awonder Liang 3.0
• David Brodsky 2.5
• 6 tied with 2.0

Girls-U12

• Jennifer Yu 3.0
• Akshita Gorti 2.5
• Ramitha Ravishankar 2.0

Boys-U14

• Vignesh Panchanatham 3.0 (CalChess)
• Craig Hilby 2.0
• Angel Hernandez-Camen 2.0

Girls-U14

• Ashritha Eswaran 2.5 (CalChess)
• Priya Trakru 2.5

Boys-U16

• Kapil Chandran 2.0
• Christopher Wu 2.0

Girls-U16

• Agata Bykovtsev 2.5
• Apurva Virkud 2.5
• Shaileja Jain 2.0

Boys-U18

• Atulya Shetty 2.0 

Girls-U18

• Jessica Regam 2.0

Note: Due to my travel schedule, I will not be able to update this blog until midweek.

World Youth In Al Ain Draws To Close

David Peng (left) and Awonder Liang stand next to the FIDE President.
For hundreds of more photos, check out South Africa on Facebook

Happy New Year!  Before we continue with 2014, let me wrap up the final results of the 2014 World Youth Chess Championships in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates.  GM Ben Finegold reported on Chess Life Online and this post merely provides supplemental material.  Another report on ChessBase website includes photographs from the awards ceremony.

On the bright side, Team USA brought home two medals, both in the U10 division.  Kudos to FM Awonder Liang (10-1) of Wisconsin and CM David Peng (9-2) of Illinois for earning the gold and silver medals, respectively!   Total domination!!  Bay Area youngster Josiah Stearman (7-4) found himself in contention after 8 rounds, but ran out of energy down the final stretch.

Outside of the Playing Hall

On the other hand, the American delegation had hoped to win more hardware.  Six more children finished in the Top 10 for their age.  A pair of girls, Jennifer Yu (U12) of Virginia and Carissa Yip (U10) from Massachusetts, took home 4th place honors, only a tiny bit short of a medal.  In the U18 section, GM Daniel Naroditsky knew his tiebreaks were inferior and played aggressively in a valiant yet unsuccessful attempt to complicate the last game as black against a fellow Grandmaster.  C'est la vie!

Click here for the complete results of Team USA.

Danya

• U18 - Open
• GM Daniel Naroditsky 7.5 (CA-N)
• FM Atulya Shetty 6.5
• U18 - Girls
• WFM Jessica Regam 6.5
• Rochelle Ballantyne 5.5
• U16 - Open
• FM Michael Bodek 7.5
• NM Safal Bora 7.0
• NM Michael Brown 7.0
• NM Christopher Wu 7.0
• U16 - Girls
• WCM Ellen Xiang 6.5
• WCM Apurva Virkud 6.0
• Taylor Mccreary 6.0 (CA-N)
• Margaret Hua 6.0
• U14 - Open
• NM Edward Song 8.0 (7th)
• NM Colin Chow 7.0 (CA-N)
• U14 - Girls
• Agata Bykovtsev 7.5 (9th) 
• Ashritha Eswaran 7.5 (CA-N)
• U12 - Open
• NM Albert Lu 7.5
• NM Ruifeng Li 7.0
• U12 - Girls
• WFM Jennifer Yu 8.5 (4th)
• WFM Annie Wang 8.0 (8th)
• Priya Trakru 7.0
• U10 - Open



Awonder

• FM Awonder Liang 10.0 (1st)
• CM David Peng 9.0 (2nd)
• Josiah Stearman 7.0 (CA-N)
• Christopher Shen 7.0
• U10 - Girls
• Carissa Yip 8.5 (4th)
• WCM Vittal Sanjana 7.5 
• Shreya Mangalam 7.0
• Martha Samadashvili 7.0
• U8 - Open
• Maximillian Lu 8.5 (5th)
• Logan Wu 7.5
• Kevin Chor 7.5 
• Maurya Palusa 7.5 (CA-N) 
• Balaji Daggupati 7.0 (CA-N)
• Advait Budaraju 7.0 (CA-N)
• Rithik Polavarem 7.0
• U8 - Girls
• Maggie Ni 7.5
  
• Anh Nhu Nguyen 7.0
• Annapoorni Meiyappan 7.0 (CA-N)

Closely following the round-by-round results from the tournament, I observed some trends.  Frankly, I was shocked by the sizable role of momentum.  The American kids were remarkably streaky!  One young man won his first three games, then lost the next three!  An unfortunate lady won three straight, then lost the next four!  A boy in youngest division won the first four rounds, but somehow ended up under 50%.  On the other hand, a teenager lost twice to lower rated opponents in the first three rounds, yet finished with a respectable 7-4.

Aside from wavering confidence and difficult competition, the young players faced a variety of challenges off the board.  They slept in a foreign country, in a dorm room, and had to adjust to the 9 to 12 hour time difference.  Many faced unbearably long lines (60 minutes or more!) at the cafeteria.  Towards the end of the fortnight in the Arabian desert, exhaustion and homesickness took its toll on some.  No doubt a few children (and their parents) battled minor illnesses.  Hopefully, most will look back at this journey as an adventure.

Crunch Time at World Youth

1818 Kids Represent 121 Countries!

If Santa Claus arrived tardy at your house yesterday, then blame the 94 American juniors competing at the World Youth Chess Championships deep inside the desert of the United Arab Emirates.  No doubt, this lengthy detour cost Santa and his reindeer valuable time.

Burj Al Arab luxury hotel in Dubai. Photo: tripadvisor

After a day of rest and sightseeing to coincide with Christmas, the chess tournament resumes tomorrow (Thursday) with three rounds left to play.  Rounds 5 to 8 left a brutal toll on Team USA, with the players struggling to a 53% overall score (compared to 64% in the first 4 rounds).  A dozen kids have scored 6-2 or more, but only half appear strong enough to seriously compete for the medals.  Given the increased turnout this year, a score of 8.5 will probably not be sufficient for a medal in the U14 and lower sections.

The best American chances lie with the U10 age group.  Top rated FM Awonder Liang won all 8 rounds to open up a full point lead.  The biggest surprise to date is Bay Area expert Josiah Stearman, currently second on tiebreaks with 7-1.  He caught the eyes of ChessBase website, because he has no FIDE rating yet; locals know he improved rapidly this year, with a current USCF rating of 2090.  Two U10 girls, Carissa Yip of Massachusetts and Sanjana Vittal of New Jersey, have also made waves and find themselves within striking distance.  

The final contenders are GM Daniel Naroditsky (U18) and expert Agata Bykovtsev (U14).  The two Californians currently find themselves in 4th place, narrowly outside the medals.

Click here for the complete results of Team USA.  Result of Round 9 in GREEN.

• U18 - Open
• GM Daniel Naroditsky 6.0 (4th) WON
• FM Atulya Shetty 4.5
• U18 - Girls
• WFM Jessica Regam 4.5
• U16 - Open
• NM Michael Brown 5.5 Drew
• NM David Hua 5.0
• FM Michael Bodek 5.0 WON
• U16 - Girls
• Margaret Hua 5.0 Drew
• WCM Ellen Xiang 4.5 WON
• U14 - Open
• NM Edward Song 5.5 WON
• NM Vignesh Panchanatham 5.0 
• NM Siddharth Banik 4.5 WON
• NM Colin Chow 4.5 WON
• U14 - Girls
• Agata Bykovtsev 6.0 (4th) Drew
• WCM Maggie Feng 5.5 
• Ashritha Eswaran 5.5 WON
• U12 - Open
• NM Ruifeng Li 5.5
• Brandon Nydick 5.5
• NM Nicolas Checa 5.5
• Andrew Zheng 5.0
• U12 - Girls
• WFM Jennifer Yu 5.5 WON
• WFM Annie Wang 5.5 Drew
• Joanna Liu 5.0
• Trakru Priya 5.0 WON



Josiah is all smiles. Photo: McCarty

• U10 - Open
• FM Awonder Liang 8.0 (1st) WON
• Josiah Stearman 7.0 (2nd)
• CM David Peng 6.0 (9th) WON
• CM Christopher Shen 5.5 Drew
• U10 - Girls
• Carissa Yip 6.0 (7th) WON
• WCM Vittal Sanjana 6.0 (8th)
• Martha Samadashvili 5.0 Drew
• Shreya Mangalam 5.0 WON
• U8 - Open
• Logan Wu 6.0 Drew
• Kevin Chor 6.0 WON
• Balaji Daggupati 6.0 
• Atreya Vaidya 6.0 Drew
• Anthony He 5.5
  
• Maximillian Lu 5.5 WON
• Maurya Palusa 5.5 WON
• U8 - Girls
• Anh Nhu Nguyen 6.0 (9th)
• Aksithi Eswaran 5.0
• Maggie Ni (5.0) WON
• Annapoorni Meiyappan 5.0
• Subramaniyan Keertana 5.0 WON
• Nastassja Matus 5.0 Drew

Wishing best skill to all!!!

Team USA Heating Up In Al Ain

Main tournament playing hall

Saturday, the fourth day of the 2013 World Youth Chess Championships in Al Ain, featured the lone  grueling double-round of the tournament.  By the evening, only 17 competitors out of  1800+ could claim a perfect 5-0 score, most in the U10 and U8 age categories.  One week from today, a dozen new champions will be crowned.

Two rooks or a castle? Photo: McCarty

If the medal ceremony were held today, then Team USA would bring home 4 medals, one gold, two silver, and one bronze.  FM Awonder Liang of Wisconsin and CM David Peng of Illinois, two of the top three seeds in U10, remain perfect at the top of the leader board.  NM Edward Song of Michigan sits in second place of U14 and plays on board 1.  And in U18, the California star GM Daniel Naroditsky holds third place on tiebreaks despite yielding a pair of draws.

Another 7 American children rank in the Top 10, seemingly within striking distance of the medals.  Indeed, 20 kids have scored 4.0 out of 5 or higher.  Amazingly, 60% of Team USA sports a plus score (3.0 or more).  While these statistics point to an encouraging start, 6 rounds remain to be played.

Click here for the complete results of Team USA.

• U18 - Open
• GM Daniel Naroditsky 4.0 (3rd)
  



GM Daniel Naroditsky. Photo: CCSCSL

• FM Atulya Shetty 2.5
• U18 - Girls
• Rochelle Ballantyne 2.5
• WFM Jessica Regam 2.5
• U16 - Open
• NM Michael Brown 4.0 (7th)
• FM Michael Bodek 3.5
• NM Christopher Wu 3.5
• NM Safal Bora 3.5
• U16 - Girls
• Alice Dong 3.0
• WCM Apurva Virkud 3.0
• WCM Claudia Muñoz 3.0
• U14 - Open
• NM Edward Song 4.5 (2nd)
• NM Kesav Viswanadha 4.0 
• NM Daniel Mousseri 3.5
• U14 - Girls
• WCM Maggie Feng 4.0 (6th)
• Agata Bykovtsev 4.0 (7th)
• Ashritha Eswaran 3.5
• U12 - Open
• NM Nicolas Checa 4.5 (5th)
• NM Albert Lu 4.0 (9th)
• Brandon Nydick 3.5
• NM Ruifeng Li 3.5
• U12 - Girls
• WFM Annie Wang 4.0
• WFM Jennifer Yu 3.5



FM Awonder Liang

• Joanna Liu 3.5
• U10 - Open
• FM Awonder Liang 5.0 (1st)
  
• CM David Peng 5.0 (2nd)
• Josiah Stearman 4.0
• CM Christopher Shen 3.5
• U10 - Girls
• WCM Vittal Sanjana 4.0
• Shreya Mangalam 3.5
• U8 - Open
• Balaji Daggupati 4.5 (4th)
• Anthony He 4.0 (10th)
• Rishith Susarla 4.0
• CM Kevin Chor 4.0
• Ethan Pau 4.0
• CM Maximilliam Lu 4.0
• U8 - Girls
• Anh Nhu Nguyen 4.0