News
Downstate Coach and Organizer Murrel Rhodes Earns US Chess Lifetime Achievement Award and ICA's Gratitude
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- Written by Patrick Cohen, et al. Patrick Cohen, et al.
- Created: 09 August 2017 09 August 2017
US Chess awarded a select handful of deserving individuals lifetime achievement awards at the annual meetings in Virginia just concluded.
Patrick Cohen, Carl Dolson, Mike Leali and Wayne Zimmerle combined efforts to submit the following:
It is simply hard to imagine what chess in Peoria would look like without Murrel.
Daniel Garrett Wins 2017 Peoria City Championship
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- Written by Murrel Rhodes Murrel Rhodes
- Created: 07 August 2017 07 August 2017
Drama was the name of the game in the 2017 version of the Peoria City Championship.
Twelve players qualify for the invitational by various means and are split into two evenly-divided groups divided by rating. The winner of each group then meet for a short match to determine the champion.
Although Daniel Garrett won all his games in Group A, it was not as easy as it might seem. Daniel met the ratings favorite, Mike Leali, in the last round.
IL-based National Master Warren Kreckler Fighting Cancer
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
- Created: 03 August 2017 03 August 2017
National Master Warren Kreckler last played tournament chess in 1996, finishing 4.0/5 in the US Amateur Team Midwest. That 290-player event was directed by Alan Losoff and Walter Brown, Jr. who have both gone on to do amazing things in chess.
Kreckler writes into the ICA that he was active in chess in the 1960's through the 1990's, but that's he's currently facing an even more challenging battle at the moment: Stage Four cancer.
His companion of over two decades, Sophia Gates, writes about Kreckler's chess prowess: "He excelled at precise work and loved to solve problems – characteristics that echoed his expertise at chess. We used to sit up and argue about chess positions."
Kalghatgi Twins Profiled in Chicago News Service DNA Info
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
- Created: 18 July 2017 18 July 2017
DNA Info, a Chicago-area news wire, has profiled the three-time National Bughouse Champions, Akhil and Nikhil Kalghatgi from Whitney Young.
Reporter Isra Rahman posted the delightful story July 17.
If you or your child is profiled in other media, please advise the ICA through This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. -- we love Illinois chess news!
Blitzers Opening Southside Chicago Chess Club July 1
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- Written by Eva Harrison Eva Harrison
- Created: 30 June 2017 30 June 2017
If you follow the Chicago chess scene on Facebook, chances are that you have heard about the Chicago Chess Blitzers. Thanks to enthusiastic promotion by Nathan Kelly on YouTube and social media, word is spreading fast about this strong chess club on Chicago's southside.
While blitz players on Chicago's southside have been meeting at McDonald's at 95th and Halsted for a long time, ten Chicago Chess Blitzers recently pitched in to secure the lease on a storefront at 8622 S. Pulaski in Chicago.
The doors of the Chicago Chess Club will open on July 1, 2017 and will remain open from noon to midnight daily.