Member Article

ChessFest returns to Liverpool ONE for a day of chess fun

• ChessFest is back after the roaring success of the inaugural 2021 event

• ChessFest is part of a national programme of events which aims to bring chess to a wider audience and showcase its inclusivity and educational benefits

• Free activities for all the family at Chavasse Park include chess lessons from professional teachers, blindfold chess, simultaneous displays by a grandmaster, and a match against the ChessFest crowd in London’s Trafalgar Square

11 July 2022: ChessFest – a day of chess fun designed to encourage kids and adults to get ‘on board’ with the world’s oldest game returns to Chavasse Park at Liverpool ONE on Sunday 17 July. Chess in Schools and Communities (CSC), a charity that uses chess to enhance children’s educational and social development, is behind the one-day takeover event in Liverpool and London.

As part of the free event, members of the public will be able to challenge grandmaster Stephen Gordon, the highest rated player in the North West. Free tuition from professionals will also be available to both adults and children.

A giant screen will broadcast live chess matches played online between children from London and Liverpool, as well as a ‘Battle of the Prodigies’ between the USA and England. ChessFest is being staged in association with Liverpool Chess Club, established in 1837 it is one of the oldest active clubs in the UK, and was one of the main centres of world chess in the 19th century.

ChessFest aims to build on the surge in popularity of chess after the success of Netflix show ‘Queen’s Gambit’ and showcase its universal appeal as we approach International Chess Day on 20th July.

Things to look out for during ChessFest in Chavasse Park at Liverpool ONE:
Free chess lessons for children and adults from professional chess teachers and top UK players

• A giant chess set for people to play on
• Chess tables for children and chess fans to play each other
• Challenge a Grandmaster at speed chess
• Blindfold Chess exhibition
• Giant screens broadcasting online games between players in London, Liverpool, and New York

The event will also celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ‘World Champion Chess Match’ between Bobby Fischer (USA) and Boris Spassky (USSR), a seminal event where the mercurial American ended 25 years of Soviet chess dominance in a match set against the backdrop of the cold war that gripped the world.

Donna Howitt, Place Strategy Director at Liverpool ONE, said: “We’re really excited to welcome ChessFest back to Liverpool ONE. Last year’s first event was a huge success and it was great to see people of all ages coming together to compete against each other and also with those in different cities!

“This year’s event is part of a packed summer calendar with Chavasse Park at its heart, which will see Liverpool ONE play host to huge range of activities for the whole family to enjoy throughout the school holidays and beyond.”

ChessFest also coincides with the 25th anniversary of Gary Kasparov vs IBM’s Deep Blue, which was the first defeat of a reigning world chess champion by a computer under tournament conditions.

ChessFest hopes to leave a legacy for Liverpool as CSC works with Liverpool City Council to install giant chess sets and concrete chess tables in more Liverpool parks to enable chess to be played all year round as in New York, Paris, Amsterdam, and other cities. The first chess tables in Liverpool were installed in Sefton Park earlier this month.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by John Robson .