THE CHESS ACADEMY is in collaboration with FC Bayern Munchen of Germany to participate in this exciting and meaningful Cross-border “Reds Against Racism” Online Tournament on March 25th.
Date: March 25th (Sat) Time: 19:00 Keynote Speakers: * Viswanathan Anand (former Chess World Champion) * Dana Reizniece-Ozola (Deputy Chair FIDE Management Board and Deputy President European Chess Union (ECU))
The event encompasses the following three main parts: • 19:00 to 20:00 HKT Pre-tournament programme organized as a video conference During the pre-tournament programme we will briefly introduce all participating teams. In addition to that, we will also highlight the main theme of the event, which is associated with the International Day against Racism. We are extremely pleased to welcome some very prominent members of the international chess community, who have also offered their support:
Dana Reizniece-Ozola (Deputy Chair FIDE Management Board and Deputy President European Chess Union (ECU)) will join our video conference as a keynote speaker and talk about the importance of the fight against racism. Viswanathan Anand (former Chess World Champion) will deliver a video message addressing the participants of our event and sharing his view on this topic.
Furthermore, representatives of the FC Bayern Munich will also join our event to introduce the various initiatives through which the club supports tolerance in our society and international understanding. For the video conference the Zoom platform will be used.
• 20:00 to 21:00 HKT Team tournament with teams from 4 continents The team tournament is intended to be the main sporting event and will be played as an “arena team battle” on the lichess.org platform.
• 21:15 to 22:15 HKT Individual tournament This tournament is open to all children from the clubs, schools and organizations, which participate in the team tournament. It is providing children who want to continue playing after the team event with an additional opportunity to play.
The TCA’s 13th ISF Academy Chess Open took place on Sunday March 5th in the spectacular facilities of ISF. With an attendance of well close to 230 enthusiastic participants, from 60+ schools, playing across 4 divisions. The day included with activities such as valuable live-experience interviews from our Top TCA coaches and exciting raffles to complement the energy-charged, well-attended tournament. We are happy to be back hosting one of the biggest interschool tournaments in Hong Kong, and we hope that everyone involved had a positive experience!
Based on the excellent results from our TCA students, we are extra pleased to note that our TCA program has really helped grow the chess community, as well as developed some strong chess players in Hong Kong.
(*) Schools/Students from our TCA programs
Age Winners
Age 5 winner– Pang, Helena (The ISF Academy)* Age 6 winner – Tsai, Aquinas (French International School)* Age 7 winner – Kong, Adrian (Chinese International School)* Age 8 winner – Wang, Kai Ming (Pui Ching Primary School) Age 9 winner – Yeo, Declan Ren Kai (Singapore International School)* Age 10 winner – Tsui, Long Hei Brayden (Diocesan Boys’ School)* Age 11 winner – Wong, Kainos (CAIS) Age 12 winner – Xia, Weijun (Kowloon Tong School PS) Age 13 winner – Zhu, Nathaniel Adrian Yi-xing (CIS)* Age 14 winner – Lo, Jason Jun-San (La Salle College) Age 15 winner – So, Adrian Tsz Yui (Canadian International School HK)* Age 16 winner – Hu, Roy (Hong Kong International School) Age 17 winner – Lam, Ying Hong Gabriel (Kellett School)
U6 Section
In the smallest section Under 6, for age and number of players, Ao King Chee came on top with 6pts. This section is always exciting to watch as most times, it is the students’ first in-person tournament, and nerves come into play! Moving several pieces in one go, using both hands, accumulating illegal moves, you will see them all in this section. More importantly, of course, it is the experience and learning opportunity gained.
Top 6 Individual Winners 1st place – Ao, King Chee (HK Ling Liang Church Kindergarten) 2nd place – Li, Nathaniel (The ISF Academy)* 3rd place – Chiu, Yat Fan Jacob (The ISF Academy)* 4th place – Tong, Zanye (Kennedy School) 5th place – Lau, Sze Ching (St. Catherine’s International Kindergarten)* 6th place – Lin, Micah (Chinese International School)*
Top 3 Female Winners 1st place – Lau, Sze Ching (St. Catherine’s International Kindergarten)* 2nd place – Pang, Helena (The ISF Academy)* 3rd place – Wong, Reina (The ISF Academy)*
Lower Primary
The Lower PrimarySection saw the only perfect score of the entire tournament performed by Jonathan Lundberg. It is an incredible achievement of concentration and endurance!
Top 6 Individual Winners 1st place – Lundberg, Jonathan (International College HK)* 2nd place – Tong, Zachary (Kennedy School) 3rd place – Chen, Ryan (Canadian International of School HK)* 4th place – Wong, Hoi Cheung (HHCKLA Buddhist Wisdom Primary School) 5th place – Luk, Marcus Jasper (Singapore International School) 6th place – Tan, Darius (Stamford American School)*
Top 3 Female Winners 1st place – Huang, Karis (Kellett School)* 2nd place – Sun, Vivian Youtian (Beacon Hill School)* 3rd place – Srivastava, Twisha (Beacon Hill School)*
Upper Primary
The Upper Primary section was closely contested with 85 players fighting for top honors. Even after 7 rounds, there was a four way tie for first place at 6 pts.
This section is particularly interesting as many of the players started their chess journey during the pandemic years online. It will be a delight to see them progress now in in-person tournaments.
Top 6 Individual Winners 1st place – Chiu David Zion (Chinese International School)* 2nd place – Chan Tsz Lik Nicholas (Chinese International School)* 3rd place – Fang Brandon Jun Qiao (The ISF Academy)* 4th place – Bhatewara Shaunak (PLK Lam Man Chan English Primary School)* 5th place – Poon Pak Yu (PO LEUNG KUK CAMOES TAN SIU LIN PRIMARY SCHOOL) 6th place – Wang Julian Samuel (Singapore International School)
Top 3 Female Winners 1st place – Lau, Chloe (Bradbury School)* 2nd place – Wang, Rosemarie (Singapore International School) 3rd place – Chen, Renee (Canadian International of School HK)*
Secondary
Also a very interesting section in terms of growth, it has come to our attention that The Secondary Section has been growing steadily, and that simply means our younger players are growing up and continuing to play chess! This is of course very rewarding to see. One of the toughest sections, Cheng Tsz In managed to upset number one seed Justin Cheng. Justin has been on top of the brackets of scholastic chess for years. Another important note, 12 players of the 43 players were internationally rated.
Top 6 Individual Winners 1st place – Cheng Tsz In (Wah Yan College, Hong Kong) 2nd place – Cheng Justin Hong-Chen (The ISF Academy)* 3rd place – Lam Ying Long Michael (Kellett School)* 4th place – Lu Jacob (Singapore International School) 5th place – Su Bo Ruei Marcus (Island School) 6th place – Lee Chu Yuan, Felix (Shatin College)
Top 3 Female Winners 1st place – Ah Chong Leonie (St. Paul’s co-educational college) 2nd place – Chan Sze Wing (St. Mary’s Canossian College) 3rd place – Lam Alyssa (Australian International School HK)*
While results were being calculated, the players were treated to a presentation by GM Gallego explaining his journey in chess, a true treat as it is very rare to have a chance to meet a person with that accolade. In the end, some lucky players went home with chess sets from raffles.
Overall Interschool Results
The results for the schools are calculated by cumulating the points from the top 4 players of each school. Not only do students from 1st to 6th places were able proudly bring their trophies back to their schools for display, but the top four 1st prize winners from each section also received a book voucher of $1,000. Hope that all the awards would help encourage the players to continue to strive for excellence.
Interschool Results
Age 6 & Under section 1st place – The ISF Academy* ( Li Nathaniel, Chiu Yat Fan Jacob, Li Otto and Pang Helena) 2nd place – HK LING LIANG CHURCH KINDERGARTEN (Ao King Chee) 3rd place – Kennedy School (Tong Zayne)
Lower Primary section 1st place – Chinese International School* (Sutton William, Chan Charles, Kong Adrian and Chen Glenn) 2nd place – Beacon Hill School* (Shi Edward, Fu Jotham, Sun Vivian Youtian and Srivastava Twisha) 3rd place – The ISF Academy* (Lau Clement, Chan Ying Shue, Chau Brandon and Sun Guang Alex)
Upper Primary section 1st place – Chinese International School* (Chiu David Zion, Chan Tsz Lik Nicholas, Chiu Silas Nathaniel and Han Leon) 2nd place – The ISF Academy* (Fang Brandon Jun Qiao, Tang Oliver, Yau Chase Xuanfu and Lai Jonas) 3rd place – Singapore International School (Wang Julian Samuel, Wang Rosemarie, Chan Miles and Ouyang Shuhang Toby)
Secondary section 1st place – The ISF Academy* (Cheng Justin Hong-Chen, Ip Hugo, Wong Kadyn and To Glenn) 2nd place – Yew Chung International School of HK (Lam Ho Ching Carston, Lai Ching Hong Wilton, Gupta Hardik, and Telders Daniel) 3rd place – Kellett School (Lam Ying Long Michael and Lam Ying Hong Gabriel)
Enjoy some High Quality Rated Rapids & Blitz with our Top TCA Coaches! Strong Level Games Guaranteed!
TCA TOP Coaches: IM Carlo Vittorino, WIM Melissa Castrillon, FM Felipe Escobar will participate! They will surrender the prizes if they get the top rankings; and the prizes will go to the next best players at the final standing!
TCA Road to Masters Circuit Rapid Tournaments (Rated) Date: Mar 12, Apr 23, May 14, Jun 18, 2023 (Sunday) Time: 9:30am – 6:00pm Formats: 7 Round Swiss (Rapid), 15 min + 5 sec Entry fee: – Players over 2000 FIDE Rapid Rating: FREE – Players between 1800-2000 FIDE Rapid Rating: HKD$200 per tournament – Members of TCA Road-to-Master program: HKD$200 per tournament – HKD$400 per Tournament or HKD$1,440 for 4 tournaments *(Fide ID required, players without Fide ID can apply one from the HKCF)
TCA Road to Masters Circuit Blitz Tournaments (Rated) Date: Mar 19, Apr 309, May 21, Jun 25, 2023 (Sunday) Time: 2:00 – 5:00pm Formats: 9 Round Swiss (Blitz), 3 min + 2 sec Entry fee: – Players over 2000 FIDE Blitz Rating: FREE – Players between 1800-2000 FIDE Blitz Rating: HKD$150 per tournament – Members of TCA Road to Master program: HKD$150 per tournament – HKD$300 per tournament or HKD$1,080 for 4 tournaments *(Fide ID required, players without Fide ID can apply one from the HKCF)
In our constant effort to bring the best programs to our students and especially in these difficult pandemic times, we are extremely proud to have recruited an additional TWO high-caliber Chess coaches from Columbia to join our TCA Team!
With the joining of WIM Coach Melissa and FM Coach Felipe, we have certainly built the strongest team of chess coaches in Hong Kong with Grand Masters leading the team.
Please find some information about our new coaches below.
We are also thrilled to be offering our students great opportunities to practice and to test out their chess skills at our upcoming exciting tournaments:
Come and join one of the BIGGEST Chess Events of the Year!!
The 13th Annual ISF Academy Chess Open 2023
Date: March 5, 2023 (Sunday) Time: 9:00am – 5:30pm Location: The ISF Academy, 1 Kong Sin Wan Road, Pokfulam, HK Registration fee: $330 before Feb 10, 2023; $380 after Feb 10, 2023; 50% discount for TCA Road-to-Masters Members
To register: Register Online or send us the Player Name, D.O.B., School, Grade and Contact no. to info@activekidshk.com
Space is Limited!
Also don’t miss out the TCA Spring Arena Open 2023 on Feb 12! Perfect opportunity to try new openings and gain a lot of experience as you will play at least 10 games! Cool warm up for the 13th Annual ISF Academy Chess Open!
For more details, please contact us at 3480-4199 or info@activekidshk.com
Come join this tournament and play as fast as you can! The excitement of the games will make your heart beat faster! First round is first come first serve. High speed rotational format. Perfect moment to try new openings and have a lot of experience as you will play at least 10 games! Cool warm up for our big tournament next month the 13th Annuel ISF Open! Players with Higher score in U18, U12, U10 and U8 will be awarded a prize (medals/ chess sets/ chess clocks).
Date: February 12, 2023 (Sunday) Time: 10:00am – 1:00pm Format: Masnou Style (Blitz) Time control: 5 minutes + 2 sec Venue: ActiveKids Learning Center – Unit A, 1/F, Nan Sang Building, 86 Belcher’s Street, Kennedy Town, HK Registration fee: $250 or 50% off for TCA Road to Masters Students.
The Chess Academy held The 14th Annual End of the Year Tournament at the Bloom KKCA Academy on Dec 4, 2022. The event was very well attended with over 100 keen young players from 45 different schools. Thanks to the Bloom KKCA Academy for allowing us to host this event at their beautiful campus!
This year, we have structured a special section in the tournament – the TCA Young Masters Invitational. We have invited 6 especially talented players in Hong Kong; these talents have represented HK in the Olympiad, East Asian Games and were winners of National Championships. We hope that by recognizing their achievements and treating them as role models at this event, we could further inspire and encourage other less experienced and young chess players to develop this passion.
After the 7 rounds of the exciting matches, our Grand Masters Coach Andres, International Master Coach Carlo and the TCA Young Masters did a fun simultaneous demo, which each of them were challenge by 3 players at the same time. For the simultaneous games, the masters would move from one board to another board; they would need to move quickly and have precise thinking on the moves with each opponent.
After the simultaneous games, we finally had our closing ceremony starts. Here is a summary by category, where fair play and enjoyment by the participants prevailed.
In The TCA Young Masters section, Theodore Lam was the champion, with 3.5 points, and only losing to Boris Chan. Second place went to Thanneermalai Kannappan, who accumulated 2.5 points, the same as Boris Chan, who was third.
Johnathan Lundberg won the U7 section convincingly, with 7 victories in 7 games. Second place went to Andrew Liu, with 5.5 points, the same as Colt Ellison, who finished in third position. They were followed by Clayton Lau, with 5 points, became the Age 7 winner. For his part, Charles Ke was the Age 6 winner, accumulating 4 points, and Arthur Chan was the Age 5 winner, with 3 points in the competition.
With the intention of encouraging the female chess playing and presence in the tournaments, unlike most events, we have created a special award category for the top 3 female players. In this event we award trophies to the three best ladies in their respective age groups. In the U7 section, first place went to Sonia Peng, second to Aida Huda Yung and third to Megan Lee. The three players added 3 and a half points, defining the locations with the tiebreakers of Buchholz and Sonneborn-Berger.
TheU9 section, we had Patrick Wong as the great winner, with a perfect score of seven victories. The second position for Darius Tan, with 6 points and who only lost to the third placed, Kingsley Chan, who had 5 points. Edward Shi was the Age 8 winner, while Faris Mohiuddin was the Age 9 winner. Among the women, the first was Twisha Srivastava (5 pts.), the second Hei Lam Wong (5) and the third Vivian Sun (4).
The champion of the U11 section was Yueh Hoi Fung, accumulating 6 points out of 7 possible and only losing to Victor Xing. The runner-up was Wen Xi Fan, with 6 points, leader throughout the tournament, but who lost in the last round to the champion. Third place went to Kainos Wong, with 5 points. Hoi Fung Yueh stands out for winning in this category at the age of 9, in addition to the girl Wen Xi Fan, for being second in the general table, which is why Victor Xing received the third prize. Shaunak Bhatewara was the Age 10 winner. Among the women, the best was the aforementioned Wen Xi Fan, second place for Anika Shenoy Sridhar and third for Chloe Lau.
In theU18 section, the champion was Michael Chan, with 6 victories with 6 points, followed by Pranav Ragavan Sanjay, with 4.5, and Gabriel Yeung, with 4. It is worth highlighting the participation of Leon Han in this range despite being 11 years old, accumulating 4 points, showing a good sporting level. Additionally, the presences of Nathaniel Zhu (winner in the 12 years), Samuel Pitkevich (13 years) and Adrian So (14) were exalted. Among the women the best was Lam Tsz Yin, second Curly Xing and third Margaux Marcet.
Here are the full results of the tournament.
Age 5 winner – Arthur Chan* Age 6 winner – Charles Ke* Age 7 winner – Clayton Lau* Age 8 winner – Edward Shi* Age 9 winner – Faris Mohiuddin* Age 10 winner – Shaunak Bhatewara Age 11 winner – Xia Weijun Age 12 winner – Nathaniel Zhu* Age 13 winner – Samuel Pitkevich Age 14 winner – Adrian So*
1st place winner – Patrick Wong* 2nd place winner – Darius Tan * 3rd place winner – Kingsley Chan* 1st place female – Twisha Srivastava 2nd place female – Wong Hei Lam* 3rd place female – Vivian Sun*
1st place winner – Yueh Hoi Fung 2nd place winner – Kainos Wong 3rd place winner – Victor Xing 1st place female – Wen Xi Fan 2nd place female – Anika Shenoy Sridhar 3rd place female – Chloe Lau *
1st place winner – Michael Chan 2nd place winner – Pranav Ragavan Sanjay 3rd place winner – Gabriel Yeung 1st place female – Lam Tsz Yin * 2nd place female – Curly Xing 3rd place female – Margaux Marcet
* Students who are under the coaching of The Chess Academy
We are delighted with the results of all our TCA students and the improvements that they have made. Our TCA Road-to-Masters Program will start again in January, don’t miss the chance to learn from the BEST TCA Team.
Also, don’t miss our Triple E Winter Camps 2022, students will learn a lot while having tons of laughs! Click here for the camp details.
Stay tuned with The Chess Academy for our upcoming chess events in 2023!
Wishing you all a Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year!
The Chess Academy hosted The 14th Annual TCA Novice Tournament 2022 – an event for our talented beginners in chess to experience what it means to participate in a sports competition. The tournament was reserved for players without previous participation in officially reported championships.
As a way of stimulating the presence of women in our different pedagogical processes, highlighting the triumphs of Chloe Lau (Under-18), Kayley Ho (Under-11), Elise Kelly (Under-9) and Megan Lee (Under-7). Chloe Lau, who turned 10 a few days ago, showed her talent against rivals who were older and experienced.
Hayden Kung led much of the Under-7 category, with 5 wins in the first 5 games, but lost the final one against Colt Ellison, in a vibrant game, which defined first place for Ellison. The champion only lost, in the second round, against Andrew Liu, the third in the final standings.
Kingsley Chan demonstrated his chess potential, winning the Under-9 category, ahead of Edward Shi and Max Pak, a student from our TCA class in the BHS group. Kinsley had to do his best to beat Karis Huang, one of the most outstanding women in the category, in the last round.
Victor Xing won the Under-11 category, with a perfect score after 6 victories in the same number of games. In Sub-18 the first position went to Alyssa Lam, with 4 points.
We hope to continue counting on her presence in our educational processes and events at The Chess Academy!
Here are all the winners in their respective categories:
Age 5 Winner: Arthur, Chan Age 6 Winner: Eichin Wang ze long Age 7 Winner: Daniel, Xiang Age 8 Winner: Wang Shu, Aaron Age 9 Winner: Jaesung, Yoo Age 10 winner: Hayden, So Age 11 winner: Joshua, Shek
Come finish off the year with a good Game of Chess!
One of the Biggest TCA Chess Event is back! The Chess Academy cordially invites you to join!
TCA End of Year Tournament 2022! Date: Dec 4, 2022 (Sunday) Time: 9:30am – 5:00pm Venue: Bloom KKCA Academy – 7 Pui Tak Street, Kowloon Sections: U7, U9, U11 and U18 (Rated Rapid) Entry fee: $350, 50% off discount for TCA Road-to-Masters Member
There will be lots of fun and Special events for players: – HK Young Masters Invitational – Simul challenge with Masters – Exciting Christmas Raffles for All Players
Come join The Chess Academy Novice Tournament 2022 and test your skills! This is an event for Less Experienced Players!
Date: Nov 6 & 13, 2022(Sunday) Time: 1:00 – 5:00pmSection: Nov 6 for U7 & U9; Nov 13 for U11 & U18 Location:ActiveKids Learning Center – Unit A, 1/F, Nan Sang Building, 86 Belcher’s Street, Kennedy Town, HK. Eligibility: Players who have never awarded in top three places at any open chess tournaments (Quad excluded) Registration fee: $300 or 50% off for students in the TCA Road-to-Masters Program
For more information please see the flyer below.
To register: Click here to register online or email the registration form to info@activekidshk.com, or fax the form to 8143-0070.
thechessacademyhk.com 