Here's another article on the money Webster U. is pouring into its chess program. Good thing or bad thing?
http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/spotlight-st-louis-chess-falls-websters-investment-sport
Article in the Washington Post about Susan Polgar and College Chess
Sort:
I think it's pretty incredible what Polgar has done at Webster. They have world #23 Wesley So and #36 Le Quang Liem on their team (based on May 2014 FIDE rankings). Their roster resembles that of an olympiad team, and could compete with the US national team if they played each other. That's pretty stacked for a college chess team!
Nowadays, with players reaching GM level at a younger age, perhaps we will see a world top 10 player being recruited to a college chess team in the near future. Imagine someone the caliber of Nakamura or Karjakin playing collegiate chess! That will be pretty amazing and intimidating for opposing college teams that don't actively recruit. I think this is the beginning of an arms race in collegiate chess.
Accomplishments of Webster's Chess Team from June 2013 - May 2014
World Championships (2)
June 2013
- 2013 World Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Le Quang Liem)
July 2013
- 2013 World University Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)
National Championships (14)
June 2013
- 2013 National Open: 1st place (GMs Wesley So and Manuel Leon Hoyos)
- 2013 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)
- 2013 National G/10 Championship at National Open: 1st place (GM Wesley So)
August 2013
- 2013 US Open G/15 Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)
- 2013 US Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)
October 2013
- 2013 US National G/30 Championship: 1st place (GM Georg Meier)
- 2013 US National G/60 Championship: 1st place (GM Georg Meier)
December 2013
- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: 1st place (A team won with a perfect 6-0 score)
- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 1 (GMs Le Quang Liem, Fidel Corrales Jimenez)
- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 2 (GM Anatoly Bykhovsky)
- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 3 (GM Wesley So)
- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 4 (GM Ray Robson)
- 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top overall performance (GM Wesley So)
April 2014
- 2014 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Le Quang Liem, Wesley So, Georg Meier, Ray Robson, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, and Anatoly Bykhovsky)
The Webster University chess team started the year as the #1 ranked division I chess team in the United States. The team will end the year #1 with an unprecedented perfect season (6-0 in the PanAm InterCollegiate Chess Championship and 3-0 in the College Chess Final Four).
The above accomplishments do not include many more major tournament titles from members of the team throughout the year. They are only national or world titles.
Source: http://susanpolgar.blogspot.com/2014/05/an-unprecedented-year.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/is-webster-university-spending-1-million-to-dominate-college-chess-and-crush-umbc/2014/04/28/15b9f7dc-cf0c-11e3-a6b1-45c4dffb85a6_story.html
What do you guys think about some colleges spending money to build a powerhouse chess program?