Monday, February 6

Bay Area Shines on All-America Team













(Photos of local talents by Richard Shorman and Mark Shelton at ChessDryad.)

January 31 Press Release from Jerry Nash:

The United States Chess Federation (USCF) is pleased to announce the 2012 All-America Team sponsored by Trophies Plus. Team members were announced at the 2011 National K-12 held this past November in Dallas, Texas. Each member of the 2012 All-America Team receives a team jacket and plaque.

The All-America Team was created in 1987 to honor the very best players ages 18 and under. The team, one of the highest national honors attainable by a young chess player, is selected on the basis of age, rating, and activities during that year, similar to the selection process of “all conference” sports teams. This year’s candidates were selected based on their age as of January 1, 2011, and their peak post-tournament rating from July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2011. Since this award is a “post-season” selection, the minimum rating limits in each age group are reviewed annually by the USCF staff and the USCF Scholastic Council.

...

2011 All Americans from California

Age 17 (minimum peak rating 2400):

  • Steven Zierk, CA-N

Age 15 (minimum peak rating 2300):

  • Daniel Naroditsky, CA-N
Age 13 (minimum peak rating 2250):

  • Yian Liou, CA-N
  • Varun Krishnan, CA-S
  • Michael William Brown, CA-S

Age 11 (minimum peak rating 2100):

  • Kesav Viswanadha, CA-N
Age 10 (minimum peak rating 2050):

  • Samuel Sevian, CA-N
  • Cameron Wheeler, CA-N

Age 9 (minimum peak rating 1900):

  • Albert Lu, CA-S
  • Michael Wang, CA-N

Age 8 & Under (minimum peak rating 1800):

  • Rayan Taghizadeh, CA-N

Commentary: This may be old news to many, but the official Press Release came out only a week ago. It can't hurt to congratulate these talented juniors again. The local names should be familiar to those who read this blog regularly. Note that they are all a full year older now. One sharp observer pointed out that there are 11 players from California (8 from the Bay Area), 9 from New York and 8 from Texas. No doubt, we have witnessed a westward shift over the past decade.

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