St. John’s Episcopal School students fourth grader Chase Frutos and his second grade brother, Cole, received honors in prestigious chess competitions this fall.
The Frutos family had a busy month of chess-related travel in November. First, the family traveled to Maribor, Slovenia, where Cole competed in the 2012 World Youth Chess Championships. Cole was selected as a member of the United States delegation based upon his chess rating and national ranking by the United States Chess Federation (USCF). He and his team members, comprising the best young chess players in the country, received individual coaching from chess grandmasters and competed in an 11-round, 12-day chess tournament with about 1,500 participants from around the world. The U.S. team won four medals and placed third overall behind Russia and India.
The family spent a total of three weeks in Europe, including a ski trip in Innsbrook, Austria. The boys' father, Alex, says, “The trip and tournament were a lifetime experience for all of us. We are truly proud of Cole’s initiative, hard work and efforts in qualifying and preparing for the world championships.”
Cole, now seven, started playing chess when he was five years old in the St. John’s After School Program’s chess class and quickly demonstrated strong tactical abilities. Cole enjoys working on improving his chess rating (a USCF rating system that tracks player performance at chess tournaments). In August, Cole’s rating hit 1648, reflecting a ranking of fourth nationally in the seven- and-under age group.
Later in November, the family headed to Orlando, Florida, where both boys competed in the 2012 USCF National K-12 Chess Championships. Nine-year-old Chase produced his best performance ever, competing against 163 fourth graders. In the tournament, he went undefeated and became one of the fourth grade national co-champions, adding to his titles of 2012 Texas Region III third grade champion and 2012 Texas State third grade co-champion. Says Chase’s father, “What we admire most is that Chase has done this all with elements of maturity, style, kind-heartedness and modesty toward his competitors both on and off of the chess board.”
Cole placed 11th out of 155 competitors from around the country in the second grade section in the 2012 USCF National K-12 Chess Championships.
Chess builds logical thinking skills, creativity and concentration and improves problem-solving capabilities. According to four-time world champion Susan Polgar, students regularly engaged in chess classes had a 17.3% increase in test scores.
Both Frutos boys receive mentoring from chess grandmaster Babakuli Annakov and international master Keaton Kiewra, working on their tactical and strategic thinking. Chase and Cole are attracted to chess because it is a battle of minds, and they enjoy the competitive environment of chess tournaments.