Please see excerpts from an article originally published by ChessBase.

Meeting a childhood hero

By GM Bartlomiej Macieja, UTRGV Chess Coach

Garry Kasparov is an undisputed legend of chess. Who has not heard of his intense world championship duels vs Anatoly Karpov in the 80s, or spectacular games and tournament achievements in the 90s? No wonder, chess enthusiasts all over the world dream about meeting, shaking hands, training and having a conversation with the legendary world champion.

Every year, the winning team of the top two sections of the Kasparov Chess Foundation University Cup receives an invitation for a training session with the legendary world champion. This is what makes the online team tournament of university students so attractive.

In the fourth edition of the Kasparov Chess Foundation University Cup, 494 students representing 117 universities of 25 countries from 6 continents fought hard to make their dream come true. No wonder that the Kasparov Chess Foundation University Cup is often viewed as an unofficial world university championship.

The tournament was held on the lichess.org platform. The Chief Arbiter was IA/IO Grant Oen, and the Technical Director was Chacha Nugroho.

This year, IM Kostya Kavutskiy was in charge of live commentaries. On the second day, he was joined by GM Alexander Lenderman. It is worth mentioning that none other than Garry Kasparov joined the commentary studio for half an hour. Therefore, it was a unique opportunity for university students to have their games analysed by the legend!

Garry Kasparov, a chess legend revered worldwide, continues to inspire new generations through the Kasparov Chess Foundation University Cup. This unique online tournament offers university teams the chance to earn a coveted reward: a training session with Kasparov himself. In its fourth edition, 494 students from 117 universities across six continents competed fiercely online. The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley triumphed, securing their dream session with the former world champion.

To read the full article, visit ChessBase.

1/6/2025 – The Kasparov Chess Foundation is thrilled to announce the lineup for the KCF Academy Premium Package Lecture Series in January 2025! This month’s program features an extraordinary roster of world-class chess legends who will share their insights, strategies, and personal experiences to help elevate your game to new heights.

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The new version 18 offers completely new possibilities for chess training and analysis: playing style analysis, search for strategic themes, access to 6 billion Lichess games, player preparation by matching Lichess games, download Chess.com games with built-in API, built-in cloud engine and much more.

This isn’t just another chess tutorial—it’s your all-access pass to the strategies, insights, and techniques that define modern grandmaster play.

Mark your calendars for these exclusive online lectures:

January 12, 2024 – Fabiano Caruana

Dive into the mind of a modern chess powerhouse! Fabiano Caruana, one of the strongest players in the world and a former World Championship contender, will reveal his secrets to precision play and decision-making under pressure.

January 19, 2024 – Levon Aronian

Renowned for his creative and dynamic style, Levon Aronian will share his insights with KCF Academy subscribers.

January 26, 2024 – Garry Kasparov

The series culminates with none other than Garry Kasparov, the 13th World Chess Champion and a living legend. Kasparov will discuss his approach to mastering key phases of the game and provide invaluable advice on maintaining peak performance.

Watch Garry Kasparov’s special video invitation to mark the launch of the second season of the KCF Academy. This season promises an even more dynamic learning experience, guided by expert mentors and driven by Kasparov’s vision for chess education. Don’t miss the chance to be part of this transformative journey!

How to Attend

These lectures are exclusively available to Premium Package members of KCF Academy.

Don’t miss out on this chance to learn directly from some of the greatest minds in chess. Reserve your spot and get ready to take your chess skills to the next level! For more information, visit our website at https://kcfacademy.org.

Why Choose KCF Academy?

• Interactive Sessions: Engage with instructors and fellow participants in real-time, ensuring a dynamic and interactive learning experience
• Insights from renowned chess masters and experts, live lectures from Garry Kasparov, Levon Aronian, Fabiano Caruana and many others!
• Comprehensive program divided into 48 In-Depth Lessons
• Access to lectures recordings via the website desktop app
• Plenty of homework, quizzes, and digital materials to foster independent learning

An exclusive training session, part of the joint global program by the Kasparov Chess Foundation (KCF) and the St. Louis Chess Club, known as Young Stars, was held on December 13-15 in New York City.

The semi-annual session was organized for some of the most talented young chess players in the United States, including GMs Abhimanyu Mishra and Andy Woodward, GM-elect Brewington Hardaway, IMs Alice Lee and Ryo Chen, as well as FM Tani Adewumi.

The training, led by the legendary World Champion Garry Kasparov and assisted by KCF President and FIDE Senior Trainer Michael Khodarkovsky, took place at KCF’s headquarters in Midtown Manhattan.

During the session, the participants solved numerous complex studies, presented and analyzed their recent games, and answered questions posed by the World Champion himself.

For more information, check out KCF on Facebook and X.

The KCF University Cup Will Take Place on February 1 – 2, 2025, on lichess.org platform.

New York, NY, Dec. 3, 2024 — The Kasparov Chess Foundation announces the fifth annual KCF University Cup, which will take place, February 1 – 2, 2025. The KCF University Cup is an international online tournament, which is open to teams from a post-secondary school (university, college, community college, etc.). All participating students must be enrolled in at least one class in the January 2025 semester. 

KCF’s University Cup features a nine-round team, Swiss system format over the two days, with a rapid time control, and will be played on the free and non-commercial chess platform, lichess.org. 

Each team consists of four players, plus up to two alternates. There is a team rating cap of 2400 – no team may have an average rating exceeding 2400. There is no entry fee for teams to participate in the online tournament.

The first place winning team will receive the coveted KCF University Cup and an exclusive online team training session with legendary World Champion Garry Kasparov. The top team in the U2200 category will also receive an online team training session with Garry Kasparov.  Plaques will be awarded to the top three teams in the final overall standings as well as to the top team in the U2200, U2000, U1800 and U1600 rating categories.  Plaques will also be awarded to the top team per FIDE Continent (Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe). One additional plaque will be awarded to the top “Mixed Doubles” team – 2 males and 2 females must represent the team on each day. The mixed doubles prize can be earned in addition to the prizes above. 

Kasparov Chess Foundation established a multinational team of officials and organizers to ensure a fair and friendly competition. Organizers include:

• GM Alex Onischuk, Chairman of KCF University Cup
• Grant Oen, Chief Arbiter
• Chacha Nugroho, Tech Director
• GM Zlatko Klaric, KCF Adriatic Director
• Graham Jurgensen, KCF Africa Director
• Ignatius Leong, International Arbiter, KCF Asia-Pacific Director
• GM Darcy Lima, KCF Lusophone Director
• Hiquingari Carranza, KCF Ibero-America Director

For complete registration and rules details, please visit https://kcf.chessstream.com or email: kcfuniversitycup@chessstream.com with any questions.

About Kasparov Chess Foundation 

Founded by World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov, KCF’s mission is to bring the many educational benefits of chess to children worldwide by providing a complete chess curriculum and enrichment programs. The Foundation promotes the study of chess as a cognitive learning tool in curricular classes and after-school programs for elementary, middle and high schools, both in the public and private school sectors. The not-for-profit educational organization also organizes tournaments and competitions on a local and national basis. For more information, please visit http://www.kasparovchessfoundation.org.

Congratulations to our student Brewington Hardaway on achieving the Grandmaster title and to his coach, GM Greg Kaidanov! We’ll be congratulating our student in person during our upcoming session of the Young Stars program with Garry Kasparov in one month.

For more information about KCF Young Stars and Brewington Hardaway’s Grandmaster achievement, please visit our Facebook or Instagram pages.

11/4/2024 – The Kasparov Chess Foundation Academy has successfully kicked off on October 19, 2024, with its Preseason Trainings. The first session on What We Can Learn from the Chess Olympiad 2024 Top Games, was a success. Participants explored thrilling dynamic games and learned valuable lessons from instructive mistakes made by even the greatest players. Remember, we grow by learning from our own mistakes and those of the best!

To read more about our exciting launch and promotion, check out the recent ChessBase article, or click on www.kcfacademy.org to visit the academy directly.

Congratulations to our student Alice Lee for earning bronze in the U.S. Women’s Chess Championship, and to our alumna Carissa Yip for winning the U.S. Women’s Chess Championship title for the third time!

Photos by Lennart Ootes and Anastasiya Karlovich, St Louis Chess Club. For more information, visit our Facebook Page.

Sept. 23, 2024 — Congratulations to the U.S. Men’s Team for bringing home the silver medal, and the U.S. Women’s Team on its bronze medal at the 45th Olympiad! Students from KCF’s Young Stars program did not disappoint, with Alice Lee taking home the silver on board 4, and Young Stars alum, Carissa Yip, winning the gold on board 2! KCF was one of the official sponsors of the U.S. teams.

For more information, check out our Instagram and Facebook posts.

The 2nd Gabor Kallai Memorial took place in Budapest ahead of the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad, with the Kasparov Chess Foundation as one of the event’s main sponsors. Gabor Kallai was one of the coaches for the KCF’s ‘Young Stars’ program.

Ten participants from five countries, including nine Grandmasters and one WIM, competed in the tournament. GMs Jonas Buhl Bjerre (Denmark) and Andrew Hong (USA) are alumni of the KCF’s Young Stars program, while GM Alexander Motylev is one of our current coaches. GM Alexander Motylev emerged as the winner of the 2nd Gabor Kallai Memorial, scoring 7 points out of 9 rounds.

For more information, check out our Facebook Page.