Over 1000 children competed in the Washington State Elementary Chess Championship in Spokane yesterday. The K-5 National Champions, Stevenson Elementary of Bellevue, won the overall K-6 team cup and won the 4-6 team championship. Evergreen Elementary of Shoreline won the 1-3 team championship.

Local newspaper coverage: Youngster's Focus on Chess Belies Their Age

Event website: Spokane Chess 2009

Thank you Erik!

The event was hosted by the Gary Younker Foundation, a not for profit created in 2002 to honor Gary's memory and passion through the promotion of chess. Jeremy, now a college graduate, is Gary's son, and he still plays in tournaments in Spokane.

The loss of Gary still hurts those of us in Spokane. During his last years, while undergoing chemo, he was still running and playing in high quality tournaments, and inspiring the chess ambitions of youth and adults alike. At the Collyer Memorial in 2001, I recall stepping into his TD office to chat. I told him that I thought I had hopes of getting a draw with a higher rated opponent; he replied that he brought folks in from out of town so we could beat them. I went on to win my next game: