Lower Schoolers Enjoy Inaugural ChessFest
BB&N third graders Max Wiegand, William Nemirovsky, Tristan Young, Issay Matsumoto, and coach Larry Eldridge show off the third-place trophy for the K-3 section at the 2007 Hurvitz Cup state team championships last spring. In the K-6 section, BB&N placed second in the K-6 section thanks to the play of Nicholas Trieu ’14, Bunnard Phan ’14, Zachary Lovett ’14, and Darrith Phan ’15.
The inaugural Back-to-School ChessFest was a big success, with close to 30 Lower School students testing their skills against a national master, taking part in a problem-solving contest, learning about BB&N’s after-school programs and its perennially successful scholastic chess teams, and generally enjoying an afternoon of chess-related activities.
Life Master Lou Mercuri gave the simultaneous exhibition, defeating all comers except for third-grader Max Wiegand, who achieved a draw. Another master, BB&N parent Leonid Rasin, ran the popular problem-solving corner. And International Grandmaster Larry Christiansen made an appearance to sign autographs and to meet and chat with youngsters and parents.
Larry Eldridge and Maryanne Reilly, who teach the after-school program under the auspices of ASAP4kids, were also on hand to talk about this program as well as the opportunities for children so inclined to play for BB&N teams in scholastic competitions.
Prizes and medals were awarded to winners in the problem-solving event and to all participants in the simul. Books, equipment, t-shirts, etc., were also on sale, and fliers were distributed giving the schedule of upcoming chess events in the area.
Each year, Lower Schoolers have the opportunity to participate in local and regional tournaments, and this year BB&N also hopes to send teams to play in two national scholastic tournaments: the National K-12 Championships in Houston in early December, and the Bert Lerner Elementary Championships in Pittsburgh in May.
Calendar
2007-08 Heads Award Winner: Bev Malone
Congratulations to Bev Malone, Director of the Teacher Training Institute, who is the sole recipient of the Head’s Awards for the 2007-08 academic year. More
Photos
Life Master Lou Mercuri faced stiff competition from BB&N Lower Schoolers in the simultaneous exhibition that took place at ChessFest.
Max Wiegand ’17 is force to be reckoned within the chess community nationwide. Last May, Max placed 12th out of 195 children in the K-3 Championship section of the 2007 National Bert Lerner Elementary Championship held in Nashville, Tenn.