April 6, 2014

Official Press Release

The U.S. Chess Trust

Contact: info@uschesstrust.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2014 Scholar Chess Player Award Winners

This year, more than 35 eligible candidates applied for the award.  The winners of the 2014 Scholar Chess Player Awards were announced at the High School Nationals.

The 2014 Scholar-Chessplayer Award winners are (in alphabetical order):

• Jeevan Karamsetty (VA)
• Varun Krishnan (CA)
• Aleksandr Ostrovskiy (NY)
• Arthur Shen (NJ)
• Atulya Shetty (MI)

This year’s winners are all members of the All-America Chess Team, which 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.”, according to the USCF.

Jeevan Karamsetty has a USCF Rating of 2240 and FIDE Rating of 2039. In 2011, he became a member of the All-America Chess Team.

Varun Krishnan has a USCF Rating of 2378 and FIDE Rating of 2255. In 2013, he became a member of the All-America Chess Team.

Aleksandr Ostrovskiy has a USCF Rating of 2535 and a FIDE Rating of 2442. At the 2010 New York State Championship, Aleksandr, then a 14-year-old master, became the youngest ever New York State Champion. In 2013, he became a member of the All-America Chess Team.

Arthur Shen has a USCF Rating of 2458 and a FIDE Rating of 2353. In 2011, he tied for 1st Place at the 2011 U.S. Cadet Championship at took home the UMBC Scholarship to the University of Maryland at Baltimore County, a University that took 2nd Place at the 2014 Final Four of College Chess. Arthur also won 1st place in his section at the 2011 North American Youth Chess Championship, a tournament that is coming back to the New York area June 12th, 2014. In 2013, he became a member of the All-America Chess Team.

Atulya Shetty has a USCF Rating of 2414 and a FIDE Rating of 2313. In 2012, Atulya won the Denker Tournament of High School Champions and with it a UTD Scholarship! That year, he also became the US Amateur Team Champion. In 2013, he was the National K-12 Grade Champion. In 2014, he became a member of the 2014 All-America Chess Team.

The U.S. Chess Trust is a proud sponsor of this program and would like to congratulate the winners for their outstanding achievement!

Previous Winners

2013 Scholar-Chessplayer Award Recipients

• Miles Hinson, PA
• Anna Matlin, NJ
• Kevin Mo, PA
• Benjamin Tong, CA
• Thomas Ulrich, WI

2012 Scholar-Chessplayer Award Recipients

• Yang Dai, Virginia
• Joshua Mu, North Carolina
• Andrew Ng, New Jersey
• Jesse Orlowski, California
• Alexandra Wiener, Connecticut

2011 Scholar-Chessplayer Award Recipients

• Chaz Daly, FL
• Andrew Ng, NJ
• Eigen Wang, NY
• Kevin Zhang, AZ
• Andrew Shvartsman, NJ

2010 Scholar-Chessplayer Award Recipients

• Rohan Agarwal, CA
• Richard Herbst, CO
• Abby Marshall, VA
• Jake Miller, NY
• Victor Shen, NJ

About the Scholar-Chessplayer Awards Program

The Scholar-Chessplayer Awards program was established in the 1980s, and is administered by the US Chess Federation and the US Chess Trust.

These annual scholarships awarded by the U.S. Chess Trust, the National Scholastic Chess Foundation, and the USCF, are “intended to recognize and encourage high school junior or senior students who promote a positive image of chess.”

High School students who have shown outstanding merits in academics, sportsmanship and chess were eligible to apply for these scholarships. Five awards of $1,500.00 each (total of $7,500) in scholarship money are awarded. The funding for this program is provided by the US Chess Trust, a 501(c)(3) organization and the National Scholastic Chess Foundation.

This year’s students were selected from 15 applicants by a panel of judges appointed by the Scholastic Council of the USCF. In recognizing this year’s winners, Mr. Weeramantry observed the geographical diversity of the recipients and drew attention to the high calibre of all the applicants.

Thanks to the generosity of it’s long-time supporters, the U.S. Chess Trust continues to fund many wonderful programs including the Scholar-Chessplayer Awards.

A special thanks to the National Scholastic Chess Foundation for their contribution to this program.

About the U.S. Chess Trust

The U.S. Chess Trust is an independent 501(c)(3), non-profit organization.

Created in 1967, the Trust was organized to promote, stimulate and encourage the study and play of the game of chess as a means of intellectual development. The Trust uses its resources for charitable purposes, including social, educational, scientific, historical endeavors. The U.S. Chess Trust takes an active role in supporting chess education programs across the nation. Our Trustees act without compensation, and are dedicated to the U.S. Chess Trust’s mission. Donations to the U.S. Chess Trust are tax-deductible.

For more information about the U.S. Chess Trust please visit: www.uschesstrust.org.

About the United States Chess Federation

The United States Chess Federation (USCF), founded in 1939, serves as the governing body for chess in the United States and is now headquartered in Crossville, Tennessee. USCF is devoted to extending the role of chess in American society. It promotes the study and knowledge of the game of chess, for its own sake as an art and enjoyment, and as a means for the improvement of society. The USCF is a not-for-profit membership organization with over 80,000 members.

For additional information on the USCF see: http://www.uschess.org.

About the National Scholastic Chess Foundation

The National Scholastic Chess Foundation (NSCF) is a non-profit foundation organized for educational purposes under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The NSCF was created in 1991 as a merger between the Westchester Chess Foundation (founded in 1985) and the Fairfield County Chess Foundation. The Executive Director of the NSCF is FIDE Master Sunil Weeramantry.

For additional information on the NSCF see: www.nscfchess.org.