[imagefield_assist|fid=16990|preset=fullsize|lightbox=true|title=Julian Proleiko has been rapidly rising up the rating list over the past year. He picked up almost 80 points at the Barber.|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=700|height=462]
By Brian Jerauld, special to the Beacon
Three St. Louis kids represented Missouri on the national stage this week as they competed in elite, invitational scholastic events as part of the U.S. Open in Madison, Wisc.
The U.S. Open Championship is a national tournament that has been held annually since 1900. The “Open” in the title means anyone can register and play. Whereas cash prizes often lead the desire to compete in any event – and this one is no slouch, with $50,000 up for grabs – the overall winner of the U.S. Open is also guaranteed a spot in the U.S. Closed Championship, the invitation-only competition for the national crown, which the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis has hosted for the past five years and will do so again in 2014.
The tournament is an annual focus for many of the game’s greats. Reuben Fine all but owned the event through the 1930s, winning it seven times, as did Pal Benko – of the Benko Gambit – who notched eight titles through the ‘60s and ‘70s. Bobby Fischer won the event in 1957. Another winner was the St. Louis Chess Club’s resident Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan, who tied for first in 1985. Seirawan later won the event outright in 1990. Ben Finegold, who also served as the club’s resident GM, won the Open in 1994 and again in 2007.
With more than 500 participants expected for 2013, the U.S. Open has evolved into a chess festival of sorts, featuring a host of side events including blitz and “Bughouse” tournaments, and several national scholastic events -- where our local students took aim this week. ...
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