Robson has all the right moves

Teenage chess grandmaster has all the right movesFairfax County youths try to put 16-year-old Robson in check

by Jamaal Abdul-Alim | Special to the Times

When 8-year-old David Chen sat down April 2 along with several dozen elementary school students to play simultaneous games of chess against 16-year-old Grandmaster Ray Robson, the third-grader set out to last at least 50 moves.


Nearly three hours into the "simul" -- an event in which a chess wizard plays several opponents at once -- David had distinguished himself by becoming one of the last two students to survive in the grueling match against one of the strongest players on the planet.


Not only did David last more than 50 moves against Robson at the event, part of the National Collegiate Final 4 Chess Tournament last weekend at management consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton in Herndon, but he actually played a game that looked sort of even -- at least in terms of material -- until the last dozen or so moves.


"I played a grandmaster and I lasted nearly 60 moves," said David, a third-grader at Louise Archer Elementary School in Vienna, when asked what he thought was the most significant aspect of his game against the young chess phenom known as "America's Youngest Grandmaster."


David was among 36 youths whose parents brought them for the simul against Robson, who wore a dark-colored suit and white shirt as he moved his slender frame from chessboard to chessboard inside a second-floor room at Booz Allen Hamilton.


Company executives said the office made for a fitting venue for the game of chess.
"Chess is the ultimate strategy game," said Mark Herman, executive vice president at Booz Allen Hamilton and a professional game designer. "We're a strategic and technological firm, so it's a perfect fit for us."


Full article here.