The United States Chess Federation - US Squad Bags Bevy of Medals & Norms in Toronto

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US Squad Bags Bevy of Medals & Norms in Toronto

August 30, 2013

Akshat accepting his first place award

The prestigious North American Youth Chess Championships(NAYCC), was held in Toronto, Canada from August 14-18. With FIDE titles and norms on the line, the tournament attracted the top rated junior players from Mexico, the United States, Haiti, Canada and Costa Rica. Although most were seasoned tournament veterans, this was the first international tournament for many players.

Despite some initial round confusion over offers of a draw in Spanish or French, the international language of chess prevailed and the tournament went smoothly. The “Chess ‘N Math Association” of Canada did a wonderful job of organizing the tournament. The event was held in the heart of a downtown Toronto, and the consensus among parents was that the food options were the best of any recent national/international tournament.

While the atmosphere was one of friendly competition, players quickly got down to business. Many of the US players had previously qualified to represent the US at the World Youth Chess Championships in Al-ain, UAE in December, and were using their performance under international tournament conditions at this event as a key factor in deciding whether to make the trip.

Maximillian Lu

After nine long rounds over five days, the US team took home seven gold medal first place finishes. Canada took four and Mexico one. The long duration of the tournament allowed many new friendships to be made and a sense of camaraderie was formed among US players. Many look forward to seeing each other again as teammates while taking on the world in Al-ain. As usual, many kids celebrated the end of the tournament, by..... playing blitz.

Top US finishers: (with FIDE titles earned)

U18:
FM Akshat Chandra (IM) (keep up with Akshat on his blog, "Quest to GM")
Silver: Justus Williams (IM Norm)
Bronze: Awonder Liang
U18G:
Gold: WFM Megan Lee (WIM)
Bronze: Akshita Gorti

Top Under 18 Girls finishers

Under 16:
Gold: Alexander Velikanov (IM norm)
Silver: Grant Xu
Bronze: Edward Song

Top Under 16 finishers

Under 16 Girls:
Silver: Apurva Virkud
Bronze: Ellen Xiang
U14:
Gold: Alex Bian (FM)
Bronze: Kadhir Pillai
U14G:
Gold: Kimberly Ding (WFM)
Bronze: Evan Xiang
U12G:
Gold: Jennifer Yu (WFM)
Bronze: Samritha Palakollu
U10G:
Gold: Martha Samadashvili (WCM)
Silver: Sanjana Vittal
U8:
Gold: Maximillian Lu (CM)
Silver: Chinguun Bayaraa (CM)
Under 8 Girls:
Silver: Nastassja A Matus

Find full results on the chess and math website.

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