News
400-plus Players Bring the In-Person Illinois K-8 Championships Back to Life
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- Created: 04 April 2022 04 April 2022
March 11-13 saw the return of the Illinois K-8 Chess Championships, this time in Schaumburg. Organized by Chess Weekend, Inc. working in partnership with the Illinois Chess Association, the tournament had 433 players compete over-the-board for 7 rounds of dual-rated chess on this event’s traditional “spring forward” weekend. Side events included blitz, bughouse and a puzzle-solving contest.
Due to pandemic uncertainties, attendance was lower than years past, and players were excited when they compared the number of trophies on-stage with the smaller field this year. Originally ordered for the 2020 Illinois K-8 State Championship, those trophies waited two years to go home with their happy winners.
Individual state champions were: Lillian Han (K-1), Matthew Tikhomirov (2-3), Andy Dong (4-5), and Anshul Shetty (6-8).
State champion teams were: Tripp School, Buffalo Grove (K-1), Latin School of Chicago (2-3), Grove Elementary School, Normal (4-5), Evans Junior High School, Bloomington (6-8).
Full results are here. The rating report is here.
Betty Zacate (Jan. 13, 1944 – Feb. 3, 2022)
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- Written by Mike and Betsy Zacate Mike and Betsy Zacate
- Created: 15 February 2022 15 February 2022
Betty Ellen Burns (78) was born and raised in Rockford, IL. After graduating from Rockford West H.S. (’62), she attended Northern Illinois University on a full academic scholarship. There she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in 1966 and met her husband of 57 years Michael Zacate (Rockford West H.S. ’58).
After marrying June 6, 1965, the couple settled in Chicago, IL. Betty completed student teaching in the fall of 1965 then became a substitute teacher in Chicago Public Schools, Evergreen Park H.S. and Oak Lawn H.S. before getting a full-time position at Oak Lawn High School. The couple moved to Mokena, IL in 1968 and started a family a year later. Betty stopped teaching to be a stay-at-home wife and mother to first-born Matthew who was followed 4½ years later by Betsy.
RIP Albert Chow (1964 - 2021)
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- Written by ICA Board ICA Board
- Created: 02 November 2021 02 November 2021
The Chicago chess community mourns the loss of FM Albert Chow, who passed away on October 30, 2021.
The visitation will be held on November 11, 2021, 4-9 p.m., at:
Christian Funeral Home, 3100 W. Irving Park Rd., 773-478-3240
This obituary was published on November 8 in the Chicago Sun-Times:
In addition, please see this beautifully written tribute by Daaim Shabazz of The Chess Drum:
https://www.thechessdrum.net/blog/2021/10/31/chicago-chess-legend-fm-albert-chow-dies/
Chicago Chess
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- Written by Vadim Vadim
- Created: 04 October 2021 04 October 2021
Chicago Chess was founded on Aug 21, 2006 and has continuously grown through the years. As of Oct 1, 2021, the group has over 2600 members.
The mission of Chicago Chess is to provide a community for all chess lovers and to popularize chess.
The group is composed of chess enthusiasts who have this common mission and those who just enjoy playing chess together. It welcomes everyone from seasoned chess players to those who would like to get started and are looking for other people to play with. The group provides a great opportunity to meet like-minded people, improve your chess skills, and have a great time playing and socializing.
Justus Williams wins 2021 Illinois Open - Jack Heller and Kevin Velazquez named state co-champions
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- Written by Bill Buklis Bill Buklis
- Created: 02 October 2021 02 October 2021
Article written by James Hodina and edited by Bill Buklis
Justus Williams dominates at Illinois Open. Jack Heller and Kevin Velazquez named Illinois State Co-Champions.
Justus Williams went a perfect 7-0 at the Illinois Open during Labor Weekend of September 3-6 taking home the $1,500 first-place prize. As Justus is from Missouri, the runner up players from Illinois became the Illinois State Co-Champions. Jack Heller and Kevin Velazques both tied for second place with scores 5.5 points. Aitegin Akmatbekov also dominated the Reserve section with a perfect 7-0 score.