Bobby Fischer Documentary Film Editor, Karen Schmeer Killed in Police Chase (NYC)

New York City, Jan. 29th, 2010

Along with the excitement of the New York City Chess Championship comes the nerves and the last minute private chess classes in preparation for the big tournament.  On Friday night, such was the case for me who had just wrapped up a private chess lesson with a student.

As I headed home, I was caught up in a police chase in the vicinity of 86th and Columbus Avenue as I headed towards the East side.  It was an outrageous chase involving police cars and even a yellow cab.  As a precaution, I pulled over then called a friend to describe the unbelievable scene that unfolded in front of me.  She commented that perhaps I just happened across the filming of an action movie, a typical thing in NYC where once a friend from Pennsylvania was caught in a crowd running hysterically down the street, his first thought…terrorist attack….but, nothing that serious…just a Spider-Man movie filming on location.

It was not until now that I saw the news and put two and two together.  Sadly, the scene I happened across on Friday night was not a movie.

The talented film editor Karen Schmeer was hit by a getaway driver as he fled the scene of a robbery on the West side and what I witnessed was the police chase.  Certainly very sad and tragic news.  Our thoughts and condolences go out to her family.

Karen has been called “one of the greatest editors of her generation.” Her current project was a documentary about Bobby Fischer that’s supposed to air on HBO.  Many chess personalities had already been interviewed for the documentary.

Here are a few of the websites covering this tragedy:

• Gothamist.com
• New York Times
• New York Post

2010 U.S. Chess Championship Shifts Dates to May 13-25

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information contact:
Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis
Mike Wilmering, 314-578-7879
mwilmering@saintlouischessclub.org
www.saintlouischessclub.org

2010 U.S. CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP SHIFTS DATES TO MAY 13-25

ST. LOUIS, Jan. 6, 2010 — The dates for the 2010 U.S. Championship have shifted. The tournament is now scheduled from May 13-25 at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis. The U.S. Championship will have a larger prize fund than the 2009 tournament with more than $170,000 up for grabs.

The U.S. Championship was rescheduled to prevent overlapping with the World Championship match between Veselin Topalov and Viswanathan Anand in Bulgaria in order to ensure the highest quality of coverage.
The format in 2010 is also a bit different and promises a unique and exciting experience. The opening ceremony is scheduled for May 13, and rounds one through seven (Swiss paired) will take place May 14-20. The final three rounds, scheduled for May 22-24, will feature a round-robin quad format that is sure to lead to some thrilling games of fighting chess. A possible playoff may take place on May 25, along with a community day for the players and a closing ceremony, which will feature various awards and prizes.

The tournament will host 24 of the best players in the country. Nine of the 24 spots have already been filled, which leaves 15 invitations still to be determined.

The 24 invited players include:

• The defending U.S. Champion – GM Hikaru Nakamura
• The winner of the 2009 U.S. Senior Open Championship – GM Larry Christiansen
• The winner of the 2009 U.S. Junior Championship – GM Ray Robson
• The 2009 U.S. Women’s Champion – IM Anna Zatonskih
• The top five qualifiers from the 2009 U.S. Open Championship – GM-elect Alex Lenderman, GMs Sergey Kudrin, Alex Yermolinsky, Dmitry Gurevich, and Jesse Kraai
• The winner of the 2010 ICC State Champion of Champions – TBD
• The top 10 U.S. players by rating of the United States Chess Federation – TBD
• Four wildcard spots – TBD

The Chess Club and Scholastic Center also hosted the 2009 U.S. Championship in May and the 2009 U.S. Women’s Championship in October.

“It was our privilege to host the 2009 U.S. Championship, and we’re honored to be chosen again,” said Tony Rich, executive director of the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis.

The top 10 U.S. players will be determined by their ratings according to the February USCF rating supplement. The ICC State Champion of Champions will be determined through an online tournament that will pit state champions against one another. Stay tuned for updates, special event information and a complete prize-fund breakdown.

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The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis is a not-for-profit, 501(c)3 organization that opened in July 2008. It has more than 500 members. The club offers free classes, discounted tournament entry fees and discounted merchandise for club members. For more, please visit www.saintlouischessclub.org or call 314-361-CHESS.

World Team Chess Championship (Jan. 5-14 Bursa, Turkey)

Jan. 5-14 in Bursa, Turkey

The U.S Team is scheduled to play against Turkey at the World Team Chess Championship which starts today in Bursa, the old capitol of Turkey.

“The tournament system is 9-rounds all-play-all. Time control for the event is 90 min/40 moves +30 min/end, with 30 seconds additional time per move, starting from move one. This event was organized by the Government of Turkey and the Turkish Chess Federation (TCF) with the patronage of the Bursa Metropolitan Municipality.”

The top three teams from the 2008 Chess Olympiad are:

• Armenia
• Israel
• …and USA!

Federations qualified to participate in the Championship are Continental Champions:

• Russia
• Brazil
• India (replacing China who withdrew their team)
• …and Egypt

The two teams invited by the FIDE President’s approval are:

• Azerbaijan
• …and Greece.

And Turkey, who as the host country, automatically qualifies to participate.

Each team has one captain and six players (4 plus 2 reserves). The organizer of this event is providing all teams with full hospitality, which includes lodging, and transportation from the Istanbul airport.

The World Teams:

For the United States of America…

• Hikaru Nakamura 2715
• Alexander Onischuk 2672
• Yuri Shulman 2623
• Varuzhan Akobian 2624
• Robert L. Hess 2572
• Ray Robson 2567

Armenia:

• Levon Aronian 2786
• Vladimir Akopian 2700
• Gabriel Sargissian 2676
• Arman Pashikian 2656
• Tigran Petrosian 2615
• Tigran Kotanjian 2542

Israel:

• Boris Gelfand 2758
• Michael Roiz 2659
• Ilia Smirin 2662
• Emil Sutovsky 2666
• Evgeny Postny 2650
• Maxim Rodhstein 2650

Russia:

• Alexander Morozevich 2750
• Alexander Grischuk 2736
• Vladimir Malakhov 2706
• Dmitry Jakovenko 2736
• Evgeny Tomashevsky 2708
• Nikita Vityugov 2694

Brazil:

• Giovanni Vescovi 2648
• Rafael Leitao 2621
• Alexandr Fier 2653
• Gilberto Milos 2603
• Andre Diamant 2493
• Darcy Lima 2504

Egypt:

• Ahmed Adly 2583
• Bassem Amin 2553
• Mohamed Ezat 2472
• Khaled Abdel Razik 2469
• Imed Abdelnabbi 2447
• Walaa Sarwat 2405

Azerbaijan:

• Vugar Gashimov 2758
• Teimour Radjabov 2748
• Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 2719
• Rauf Mamedov 2634
• Gadir Guseinov 2625
• Nidjat Mamedov 2617

Greece:

• Vassilios Kotronias 2599
• Ioannis Papaioannou 2628
• Hristos Banikas 2615
• Stelios Halkias 2573
• Dimitrios Mastrovasilis 2569
• Athanasios Mastrovasilis 2513

Turkey:

• Kivanc Haznedaroglu 2497
• Mert Erdogdu 2489
• Mustafa Yilmaz 2468
• Emre Can 2449
• Baris Esen 2493
• Burak Firat 2392

India:

• Sasikiran Krishnan 2653
• Harikrishna P 2672
• Ganguly Surya Shekhar 2654
• Geetha Narayanan Gopal 2584
• Arun Prasad S 2567
• Adhiban B 2511

Stay tuned for more on this event!!

CLICK HERE for Official website