The Hall of Fame is a new project (as of 2020) to celebrate the successes of our competitors (and supporters) both past and present.
Koby Kalavannan v Jonah Willow (2019 U18 Final Match)
Yichen Han v Rajjat Makkar, 2019 U12 Final
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1998 | Adam Hunt |
| 1999 | Thomas Rendle |
| 2000 | Lorin D'Costa |
| 2001 | Lorin D'Costa |
| 2002 | Lorin D'Costa |
| 2003 | Lorin D'Costa |
| 2004 | Ben Purton |
| 2005 | Stephen Gordon |
| 2006 | James Hanley |
| 2007 | Peter Poobalasingam |
| 2008 | Peter Poobalasingam |
| 2009 | Felix Ynojosa |
| 2010 | Felix Ynojosa |
| 2011 | Yang-Fan Zhou |
| 2012 | Brandon Clarke |
| 2013 | Marcus Harvey |
| 2014 | Marcus Harvey |
| 2015 | Matthew Wadsworth |
| 2016 | Joseph McPhillips |
| 2017 | Harry Grieve |
| 2018 | Koby Kalavannan |
| 2019 | Koby Kalavannan |
| 2020 | Max Turner |
Emily Maton
UKCC U18 Girls Blitz Champion, 2018 & 2020 Terafinalist
Age Group: U13
ECF grade (Jan 20): 130
School: Beaumont School
Favourite Opening: English
Favourite Player: Judit Polgar
Hobbies: Rugby, reading
Other chess achievements: Top girl Northern U12, Top girl LJCC U12, Hertfordshire champion. Played in the 2019 Rapid and Blitz World Cadets in Belarus
Lion Lebdev
Age Group: U8
ECF grade (Jan 20): 86
School: Highgate
Favourite Opening: For black, French defense because I started to play chess in France 🙂
Favourite Player: Zhigalko Sergei
Hobbies: Tennis, Netball, Football
Other Comments: Chess helps me never give up!
Billy Fellowes
Age Group: U8
ECF grade (Jan 20): 119
School: Warwick School
Favourite Opening: Caro-Kann
Favourite Player: Bobby Fischer
Hobbies: Reading books, playing any sport and playing the drums.
Soham Kumar
UKCC 1st U12 Blitz, 2019 Terafinal - 2nd U8
Age Group: U9
ECF grade (Jan 20): 139
School: Maidenhead Junior
Favourite Opening: Ruy Lopez, Najdorf and Benko Gambit
Favourite Player: Bobby Fischer, Mikhail Tal and Magnus Carlsen
Hobbies: Playing Tennis, Maths, Reading books, History and Geography
Aryan Munshi
Age Group: U12
ECF grade (Jan 20): 71
School: Phones Chess Club
Favourite Opening: Queen’s Gambit declined
Favourite Player: Hikaru Nakamura
Hobbies: Football, trekking, reading books
Other Comments: I like chess
Connor Clarke
Age Group: U15
ECF grade (Jan 20): 170
School: Breckenbrough
Favourite Opening: Alekhine Defence
Favourite Player: Magnus Carlsen
Hobbies: Climbing, Badminton and Golf
Other Comments: I enjoy chess because there is an endless capacity for a player to improve.
Avyana Singh
Age Group: U8
ECF grade (Jan 20): 51
School: Sussex Junior Chess
Favourite Opening: Scotch Game
Favourite Player: Magnus Carlsen
Hobbies: Reading & Piano
Other Comments: I like chess because there are so many possibilities that can happen. I also like it because of all the strategies that can occur in a single game. This makes chess seem amazing to me. I also love how there are different ways to play it.
Manmay Chopra
Age Group: U13
ECF grade (Jan 20): 153
School: Harrow Chess Club
Favourite Opening: Sicillian, Chekhover variation
Favourite Player: Mikhail Tal
Hobbies: Reading, Football
Elis Denele Dicen
Age Group: U9
ECF grade (Jan 20): 133
Club: Coventry Chess Academy
Favourite Opening: London System
Favourite Player: Paul Morphy, Judith Polgar
Hobbies: Reading, Singing, Drawing, Playing Piano and Ukelele
Other chess achievements: England delegate in 2019 European youth rapid and blitz in Tallinn, Estonia Double girl’s champion in 2019 British chess championships in Torquay (U9 and U10, 3rd place overall in the U10), Double girl’s champion in 2018 British chess championships in Hull (U8 and U9)
Krrish Patel
Age Group: U12
ECF grade (Jan 20): 86
School: Harrow chess Club
Favourite Opening: London System
Favourite Player: Magnus Carslen
Hobbies: Cricket and Maths
Other chess achievements: I have played in the UKCC for 4 years now and my top 3 moments are Winning the Megafinal 2 years in a row U10 and U11. Then the Variants Championship this year coming 2nd. Finally the best moment is when I beat a 168 to qualify in Terafinal this year with a score of 6/7 and coming 3rd on tiebreaks.
Alex Leslie
Age Group: U14
ECF grade (Jan 20): 182
School: Habs Boys
Favourite Opening: Nakhmanson gambit
Favourite Player: Peter Leko
Other Comments: All the possibilities in any given position would take hours to analyse fully!
Oleg Verbytski
Age Group: U7
ECF grade (Jan 20): 67
School: St Johns Catholic Primary School
Favourite Opening: Various
Favourite Player: Vasyl Ivanchuk, Magnus Carlsen, Garry Kasparov
Hobbies: Football, Tennis, Swimming, Maths
Other Comments: I love playing chess and enjoy it so much.
Edward Jackson
Age Group: U14
ECF grade (Jan 20): 147
School: 3Cs
Favourite Opening: Caro-Kann
Favourite Player: Magnus Carslen
Hobbies: Hiking, table-tennis and reading
Other Comments: My favourite thing about chess is the stimulation it provides. There is always an incentive to improve and as every chess player knows, the elation after winning a well-played game is simply a one of the best feelings you will ever have
Harry Bryant
Age Group: U8
ECF grade (Jan 20): 60
School: Devonshire House School
Favourite Opening: Variations
Favourite Player: Jonathan Hawkins, Hikaru Nakamura, Eric Rosen
Hobbies: Swimming, watching comedy movies and martial arts
Other Comments: I play chess for fun and really enjoy playing and competing
Kenneth Hobson
UKCC 2020 Variant Championship 1st U12, Terafinal 2nd U12
Age Group: U11
ECF grade (Jan 20): 150
School: Windmill Primary School
Favourite Opening: The Jerome gambit
Favourite Player: Mikhaïl Tal
Hobbies: Football, cricket, French horn
Other Comments: I love playing variant chess and also playing for Ojays in the fortnightly team battles online.
Rishi Vijayakumar
UKCC 1st U8 Variant Championship, 2020 Terafinal - 2nd U8
Age Group: U8
ECF grade (Jan 20): 89
School: Castlehill Chess Club Dundee Scotland
Favourite Opening: Reti Variations
Favourite Player: GM Andrew Tang, GM Magnus Carlsen, Declan Shafi
Hobbies: Football
Other Comments: I like chess because it is fun and it makes you think. I have represented Scotland U12 international squad for Glorney cup and played against European nations.
Beni Sisupalan
Age Group: U8
ECF grade (Jan 20): 61
School: Bounds Green
Favourite Opening: Italian game
Favourite Player: Mike Klein, Tihon Chernayev
Hobbies: Football, Clash Royale, reading.
Dimitrios Levon Zakarian
Age Group: U9
School: Christ Church Cathedral School
Favourite Opening: All the winning ones
Favourite Player: Vasily Smyslov and Levon Aronian
Hobbies: Football and Yu-Gi-Oh!
Samiksha Yerabati
UKCC 2020 Terafinal - Top U8 Girl
Age Group: U8
ECF grade (Jan 20): 64
School: Leeds Junior Chess Club
Favourite Opening: Jobava London System
Favourite Player: Vishwanath Anand, Mikhail Tal
Hobbies: Dance , Music and Martial Arts
Other Comments: My favourite piece is the pawn, because once the pawn gets to the final square it can become anything.
2019 : Northern challengers winner, LJCC Runner up, Delancey Suprema, Giga Runner-up, English Girls Championship U8, Leeds Junior Congress runner up Yorkshire Junior Grand Prix Winner, York chess day winner.
2020 : Wakefield girls chess day runner up.
Savas Stoica
UKCC 2020 Terafinal - 2nd U18
Age Group: U15
ECF grade (Jan 20): 169
School: The Latymer School
Favourite Opening: Sicilian Defense
Favourite Player: Eric Hansen
Hobbies: Martial Arts
Other Comments: Somehow in division 4 of the J4NCL.
Ethan Li
UKCC 2020 Terafinal - 1st U10
Age Group: U10
ECF grade (Jan 20): 139
School: Westminster Under School
Favourite Opening: Scotch, London, Sveshnikov, Taimanov, King’s Indian
Favourite Player: Fischer, Tal
Hobbies: Fencing, Football, Piano
Other Comments: Terafinal 2020 U10 1st place, British Championship 2018 U9 2nd place
Rajat Makkar
UKCC 2020 Terafinal - 1st U14
Age Group: U14
ECF grade (Jan 20): 208
School: Hampton
Favourite Opening: Catalan
Favourite Player: Maxime Vachier-Lagrave(MVL)
Hobbies: Cricket and Football
Other Comments: 2020- U14 UKCC Terafinal champion
2019- U12 UKCC Terafinal runner-up
2018- U12 UKCC Terafinal runner-up
2018- U12 French Rapid chess champion
2017- London Junior U16 champion
2017- London Junior U14 champion
2015- U8 European Union chess champion
2014- U7 European Schools chess champion
2014- U8 French chess champion (at age 6)
Hiya Ray
UKCC 2020 Terafinal - U14 Top Girl
Age Group: U14
ECF grade (Jan 20): 154
School: St John’s College, Cardiff
Favourite Opening: Catalan
Favourite Player: Viswanathan Anand
Hobbies: Piano and Violin
Aron Saunders
UKCC 2020 Terafinal - 6th U14, U18 960 Final 2nd place
Age Group: U14
ECF grade (Jan 20): 153
School: Downend Fishponds CC
Favourite Opening: Caro-Kann
Favourite Player: Magnus Carlsen, Mikhail Tal
Hobbies: Chess, variant chess, ultrabullet chess, yet more chess, golf
Other Comments: Tournament Successes: 2nd in U18 Chess960, 3rd in Variants Championship, 6th in U14 Terafinal 2020, U14 Terafinalist in 2019, 2.5/5 with a 180 performance in the 88th Bristol Congress Open
Maya Owladi
U8's 960 Final 1st U8 Girl
Age Group: U7
ECF grade (Jan 20): 19
School: Early Knights
Favourite Opening: Four Knights
Favourite Player: Magnus Carlsen
Hobbies: Reading, football, dreaming
Other Comments: My favourite variant is anti-chess. I don’t know why. It just is. I’ve had a great success in the variants and 960.
Livio Cancedda-Dupuis
Age Group: U10
ECF grade (Jan 20): 61
School: Brandlehow Primary
Favourite Opening: French Defence
Favourite Player: Alexander Grischuk
Hobbies: Trumpet, football, tennis, table tennis and volleyball.
Other Comments: Chess is fun and beautiful!
Eugenia Karas
UKCC 2020 Terafinal - Top U12 girl
Age Group: U11
ECF grade (Jan 20): 154
School: St Paul’s Girls’ School
Favourite Opening: The Karas attack
Favourite Player: Mikhail Tal
Hobbies: Contortion, gymnastics, skiing and diving
Other Comments: Played in the European Online Youth Individual and Team Chess Championship 2020, the World School Chess Championship 2019 in Turkey, the European School Chess Championship 2019 in Romania; 3rd place in U12 Terafinal 2020, a top girl in Terafinal 2020 and 2019; double girl’s champion in the London Junior Chess Championships 2019 in U11 and U12.
Max Turner
UKCC 2020 Terafinal - 1st U18
Age Group: U18
ECF grade (Jan 20): 219
School: Longridge Towers School & Forest Hall Chess club
Favourite Opening: Taimanov Sicilian
Favourite Player: Akiba Rubinstein
Hobbies: Tennis and Running
Other Comments: Joint 2nd in British Chess Championships Major Open 2019
Joint 2nd 24th 4NCL Congress Open