OMAHA CHESS WEBPAGE

NSCA HOLDS MEMBERSHIP MEETING AT MIDWEST OPEN IN OMAHA ON SATURDAY DECEMBER 6TH.

The final NSCA membership meeting of the year was held in Omaha at the Midwest Open, on December 6th. President Jim Walla, Secretary Matt Turner and myself were in attendance along with a healthy turnout of other members. Issues on the agenda concerned the future possibility of an online version of the Gambit to save money on printing and mailing as well as the possibility of awarding a scholarship to an NSCA member who is a graduating Senior. Secretary Turner presented a demographic breakdown of our membership and renewal status in each group which was interesting. Financially the organization seems to be doing well and there are currently over 200 NSCA members. The bad news is that the adult membership is severely shrinking which mirrors the problems with adult chess that the national organization is facing. More good news is that the Lincoln Chess Club has been offered a free meeting space at a church on 40th and C. President Walla is on top of things this year and has already arranged to have the State Scholastic Team Championship be held in Hampton, Nebraska.

DOUG GRANDE AND DAVID BALASH SHARE FIRST IN THE MIDWEST OPEN.

The oldest continuous Nebraska Open tournament is the Midwest Open which is always held in the Fall and was once the State Championship. Although the event was a bit late this year, the weather was cooperative and Tony Dutiel who organized, directed and played in the event drew 24 players, a respectable number in three sections. Due to declining attendance and shortages of good playing sites, the event was a one day only event, with a bit faster time controls. Thirteen players played in the Open. When it was over, there was a tie for 1st between Omahans, Doug Grande and David Balash. Since the two never played each other, Grande won the next tie breaker which is Solkoff. Barring a schedule conflict, Doug will play in the 2004 Closed Championship, next Spring in Lincoln.

MORE SHAKEUPS IN NEW WINDSOR AS GRANT PERKS IS FORCED OUT.

In what some suspect is a coup of some sort, acting COO Grant Perks of Ohio, who had been serving in that capacity for almost 3 months was either fired or forced to resign after a Board short one of Grant's biggest supporters, Tim Hanke, voted to replace him immediately with long time chess organizer and politician Bill Goichberg.

Only a few people on the inside know exactly what is going on in New Windsor but there appeared to be fundamental disagreements between Perks and USCF President Beatriz Marinello.

There are rumors of scandals, realignments and conflicts of interest, but one of Mr. Goichberg's first actions as COO was to institute an old program of incentives to try and stimulate a nearly comatose adult chess market, through a 6 month promotional membership and an offer of free TLA's in Chess Life.

Meanwhile, the land and building have still not sold, and USCF cannot move to Crossville, TN until it does. A wealthy businessman named Dato Tan of Singapore, offered to loan the USCF $200,000, but apparently USCF has not yet accepted this money, since it is a loan and must be paid back, and is not a gift.

Grant Perks was a fairly accomplished financial expert, and Mr. Goichberg has no experience actually managing a staff, payroll and office, so people are watching closely to see what happens. Stay tuned.

KASPAROV FIGHTS FRITZ X3D TO A 2-2 DRAW IN NOVEMBER MAN VS. COMPUTER MATCH.

Former Chess World Champion Garry Kasparov, proved that he is still at least the equal of the best chess playing computers in the world.

In a ESPN2 nationally televised 4 game match with X3D Fritz, which is reputed to be the most powerful chess playing computer ever developed, Kasparov drew games one and four, lost game two on a horrible blunder and decisively defeated the computer in game three.

Many had written off Kasparov after he lost a 6 game match to IBM Deeper Blue back in the late 1990's, but few realized that the decisive game in that match was really a book trap line that Kasparov had played into and required very little actual calculating on the part of the computer.

This match was unique because ESPN2 televised the games live, and apparently the ratings for the games were excellent for that network.

CORNUCOPIA HELD IN COLUMBUS ON NOVEMBER 13TH.

Jim and Karen Swartz once again organized and directed the Cornucopia Scholastic chess tournament in Columbus, Nebraska on the weekend of November 15th. Here are the results:

1st Place Open-Ken Roberts

1st Place Reserve Richard Olson, Clarks

2nd Place Reserve Nathan Klatt, Columbus

3rd Place Reserve Matthew Turner, Lincoln

SENIOR HIGH (K-12) SECTION

1st Place Team Columbus High School, Columbus Teammates: Jason Lescelius and Andrew Lescelius

2nd Place Team "Eagles" -- from O'Neill High School, O'Neill Teammates: Jonathan Carlson, Savannah Sidak

3rd Place Team "O'Neill" -- from O'Neill High School, O'Neill Teammates: Philip Mausbach, David Tompkins

1st Place Jonathan Carlson, O'Neill

2nd Place Jason Lescelius, Columbus

3rd Place Andrew Lescelius, Columbus

4th Place Bryan Davis, Clarks

JUNIOR HIGH (K-9) SECTION

1st Place Team Oak Valley School, Lincoln Teammates: Terra Thomson, Ben Nabity

2nd Place Team Robbins Homeschool, Lincoln Teammates: Isaiah Robbins, Joshua Robbins

3rd Place Team Black Knights Homeschool Group, Fremont Teammates: Amanda Boothe, Jonathan Boothe, Haley Halverson, Taylor Frederick, Chris Jones

4th Place Team Irving Middle School, Lincoln Teammates: Andrew Ide, Josh Melcher

5th Place Team Wattermann Homeschool, West Point Teammates: Matthew Wattermann, Katie Wattermann

1st Place -- tie Terra Thomson, Lincoln and Chase Gardner, Omaha

3rd Place Matthew McEuen, York

4th Place Matthew Wattermann, West Point

5th Place Andrew Ide, Lincoln

6th Place Isaiah Robbins, Lincoln

7th Place Rose Lombard, Lincoln

1st Under 700/unrated Ryan Hamik, O'Neill

ELEMENTARY (K-6) SECTION

1st Place Team St. Isidore Elementary School, Columbus Teammates: Brian Ackman, Stephen Pandorf, Trevor Thiele, Cale Albracht

2nd Place Team Hampton Lutheran School, Hampton Teammates: Carson Klute, Johnathan Carnoali, Cy Friesen, Andrew Swanson, Collin Friesen, Libby Johnson

3rd Place Team Maxey Elementary School, Lincoln Teammates: Michael Liou, Isaac Bohart, Matthew Shattil, Darrin Lim

4th Place Team Immanuel Lutheran School, Columbus Teammates: Jonathan Powell, Caleb Klatt, Elicia Micek

1st Place Jonathan Powell, Columbus

2nd Place Michael Liou, Lincoln

3rd Place Caleb Klatt, Columbus

4th Place Brian Ackman, Columbus

5th Place Stephen Pandorf, Columbus

6th Place Ben Melcher, Lincoln

7th Place Carson Klute, Hampton

8th Place Joseph Knobbe, West Point

1st Under 700/Unr Trevor Thiele, Columbus

1st Under 500/Unr Isaac Bohart, Lincoln

1st Under 500/Unr Cy Friesen, Hampton

PRIMARY (K-3) SECTION

1st Place Team St. Bonaventure Elementary School, Columbus Teammates: Derek Lahm, Adam Gilmore, Doug Brandstetter, Brennan Brockhaus

2nd Place Team McPhee Elementary School, Lincoln Teammates: Aaron Cook, Quentin Shafer, Joshua Bargar, Aaron Lewis

3rd Place Team St. Isidore Elementary School, Columbus Teammates: Matthew Greiner, Nicholas Pandorf, Austin Wendt, Craig Ackman

1st Place Christopher Wattermann, West Point

2nd Place Derek Lahm, Columbus

3rd Place Andrew Peterson, Lincoln

4th Place Adam Gilmore, Columbus

1st Under 500 Aaron Cook, Lincoln

1st Unrated Doug Brandstetter, Columbus

Thanks to Jim and Karen for continuing to successfully run this Fall event which always draws a nice crowd from all parts of the state.

Ken Roberts in 2003, Lincoln City Champion.

Ken Roberts, who lives in Wahoo, Nebraska, played in the annual Lincoln City Championship, which this year drew six players. When all was said and done, Ken emerged as the new Lincoln City Champion.

At the same time, the weekend of the NU-Texas game, saw a dismal turnout for the CLAM, which used to be called the Nebraska Amateur Open and Class Championships. This event is supposed to be held in conjunction with the State Closed event, but for various reasons, it was not, this past Spring.

The number of attendees at adult chess events is getting seriously small, and most organizers can no longer afford to even run events, unless they get some players to show up. The only alternative is to secure free or very low cost sites or simply stop running events.

Another One Bites the Dust.

Recently it has come to my attention that there will not be a Polar Bear Chess Tournament held this year. Gary Marks, who has run this traditional event every Fall since 1973 has decided not to do it this year, citing costs of securing an available and suitable playing site. It is but one more example about how chess in Nebraska, particularly for interested adults is disintegrating. A few years ago, Wayne Pressnall, stopped holding the NebraskaLand Days Open in June.

Latest Chess Life a Huge Disappointment to Many, As New Windsor Promises a Higher Quality Edition Next Issue.

The latest Chess Life featured a cover shot of Beatriz Marinello who in August became the first woman to ever be elected President of the USCF. Unfortunately, the quality and lack of content in the issue, was alarming to many members who felt the issue was a travesty. The issue had only 36 total pages in it, almost half of what is normal. One poster to the RGCP newsgroup remarked that he could only find 7 pages worth reading.

In a related story, USCF has chosen a new Chess Life Editor to replace Peter Kurzdorfer who was let go in August. His name is Kalev Pehme. If that name sounds familiar, it might be because his character was in the movie Searching For Bobby Fischer. Mr. Pehme is the father of Josh's best friend in the movie.

Hopefully Mr. Pehme will work to improve the quality of the magazine as one of his top priorities.

USCF'S 2003-2004 FIRST QUARTER FINANCIAL REPORTS, NOT ENCOURAGING.

For those who hoped that USCF would begin to show signs of recovery from its serious financial woes, think again. Recent financial reports out of New Windsor showed losses of over $200,000 in the first quarter of the 2003-2004 fiscal year. In addition, the sale of the land and building and the move to Crossville, Tennessee is apparently on hold, because there is not a serious bidder on the current property.

DISASTER IN LA, CRUSHING FINANCIAL LOSSES LEAD TO ED FRANK NIRO'S RESIGNATION.

The annual Delegates meetings at the U.S. Open, this year in Los Angeles, led to the shocking revelation that USCF slipped closer to oblivion this year, losing $318,000 in operations alone. Combined with $48,000 in losses from the LMA investments, the USCF experienced a staggering $364,000 loss.

The news was so bad, that Executive Director Frank Niro, reportedly resigned and left the meetings to return home, ending 16 months as leader of the troubled organization. The Delegates themselves were apparently stunned by these losses as recent financial reports done in house suggested that USCF might even enjoy a small profit this year for the first time since 1996. The main culprit was the incorrect figuring of 2 year and three year membership revenues. Accounting rules require that revenue resulting from multi-year memberships only be credited in the amount one amount in year one and another amount in year two, etc.. This was not done and when the auditors caught it and adjusted the figures, the huge losses were revealed.

USCF still continues to experience a flight of adult regular members who must pay most of the bills. Almost 10,000 adults have now fled the organization for one reason or another since 1995. The dues were increased another $9.00 in January of this year, and the negative side effects already began showing up in monthly membership audits that now show only about 23,000 adult regular members left who are paying the premium price.

Another problem for the organization is that they have antiquated computer and techology systems which makes the clerical tasks of rating tournaments and processing memberships much more labor intensive and time consuming.

As USCF comes dangerously close to complete insolvency and bankruptcy, the Delegates gave a virtual free hand to the newly elected Board to do whatever they think is best to save the troubled organization. See the next couple stories on this page for some more interesting twists to this story.

Christian and Fabrikant share 1st in 11th Great Plains Open.

The UNO Chess Club officially became the host of the 11th Annual Great Plains Open, which was held on June 28-29 in Omaha.

Considering the short notice and no announcements in Chess Life or the Gambit, the event did reasonably well, drawing a total of 19 players. Tony Dutiel organized, directed and played in the event. At the end King Christian and Ben Fabrikant both of Lincoln, tied for 1st in the Open Section with 4.5-.5. Since their game against one another was a draw, Christian won the tiebreak comparison and will be seeded into next Spring's State Closed Championship.

Tony also organized the State Bughouse Championship which drew 4 teams and was won by Tony and Joe Colligan playing together.

The State Blitz Championship was held Sunday after the main event was over. Tony Dutiel won clear first in that event and Roger Simond was 2nd.

There was a Reserve section open to players rated under 1600 on Saturday only. It was won by Bob Williams and Eric Servellon both with 3-1.

It was great to see some events held in Omaha and now that UNO has a chess club we can organize tournaments and use UNO buildings and facilities. I would like to compliment the players for behaving themselves and showing a genuine appreciation for nice playing sites. One issue that is beginning to become a problem during tournament games all over the country is the ringing of cellphones. Some directors and organizers have a zero tolerance policy on cell phones and immediately forfeit players if their cell phone goes off during a tournament. While I'm not sure if that is necessary, players should remember to turn off off cell phones when they're playing their tournament games.

LINCOLN CHESS FOUNDATION 1ST SUMMER CHESS CAMP A SMASHING SUCCESS.

The Lincoln Chess Foundation decided to pick up the mantle and organized a summer chess camp that was modelled on the same ideas as the Brownell-Talbot summer chess camp of the mid 1990's. The event drew an outstanding 63 players to Lincoln for a week of chess instruction and fun in the week of June 23-27.

Instructors included David MacEnulty, Alexey Root and Miron Sher who had all been a part of Brownell Talbot's program at one time or another. I think there were some local instructors too, but not having exact details, I don't want to mention names without knowing for certain.

Congratulations to the LCF for taking the initiative and organizing this event. Particularly Ken Kiewra of Lincoln has been a real force behind reviving the Lincoln Chess Foundation as a major player in Nebraska chess.

KIEWRA WINS 2003 STATE CLOSED WITH A PERFECT 5-0 SCORE.

Keaton Kiewra won his second straight State Closed Championship in Lincoln on April 5-6, with a perfect 5-0 score. Tom O'Connor who was playing in place of Vadim Gladyshev who had a business conflict, finished in 2nd place with a score of 3-2. There was a tie for 3rd place between Kent Nelson and Doug Grande with 2-3. Kent got the 3rd place trophy on tiebreaks. Despite a threatened blizzard on Sunday, the standings are final, as the last game between David Balash and Doug Grande ended in a draw. The event for the first time ever was held alone without any open events on either day, partly due to space limitations. No spectators of any kind were allowed in to watch the games, so interested parties will need to see the games in the next Gambit. Congratulations to Keaton on his second straight State Championship.

2003 State Closed Name Final Score Keaton Kiewra 5.0 Tom O'Connor 3.0 Kent Nelson 2.0 Doug Grande 2.0 Ben Fabrikant 1.5 Dave Balash 1.5

MILLARD WEST CLAIMS 2ND STRAIGHT NEBRASKA STATE TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE.

Congratulations to the Millard West Wildcats, coached by Bart Wormington. They swept to their second straight State Team Championship title on Saturday March 29th in Columbus, Nebraska. As of this writing, I have not received official results of this event, but I do know that Millard West was high school team champion. Thanks to Karen and Jim Swartz for running this event, which I understand was well attended and drew over 100 players.

DISTRICT 66 TOURNAMENT EXPOSES ALMOST 100 CHILDREN TO TOURNAMENT CHESS.

Swanson Elementary school was host to a very nice children's chess event on Saturday March 29th. The event was run by Tony Dutiel and was open only to students grades K-8 who attend school in District 66. A good time was had by all and the players and their parents seemed to enjoy the experience. It is good to see District 66 sponsoring events like this and we hope they will run a couple more of them next year.

TERRY LIKENS CLAIMS 1ST IN ANNUAL CHADRON STATE COLLEGE EVENT ON SATURDAY MARCH 22ND IN CHADRON.

Every Spring for the past 20 years Chadron State college has hosted an unrated chess event on the campus. Traditionally this event draws about 20-30 players from the surrounding communities and from people in the Nebraska panhandle as well as the Black Hills and Rapid City. For the past couple of years Terry Likens of South Dakota has run and played in the event, which is organized by CSC Sociology Professor, Ron Williams. This year Terry won 1st place with a 4-0 score. My son Heath took 4th losing only to Terry. Brent Wearne of Gering, and Loren Pospisil of Bayard were also in attendance.

STATE INDIVIDUAL SCHOLASTIC CHAMPIONS CROWNED IN COLUMBUS ON FEB. 22ND.

The State Individual Scholastic Championships were held in Columbus, Nebraska at Peace Lutheran Church on Saturday, February 22nd.

Here are the 2003 Nebraska State Scholastic Champs:

High School Champion and Denker Representative-Keaton Kiewra of Lincoln

Middle School Champion-Kevin Swartz of Columbus

Elementary Champion-Albert Zhou of Lincoln

Primary Champion-Matthew Shattil of Lincoln

Reserve Champion-James Gillespie

Open Champion-Ken Roberts of Wahoo

UNRATED EVENTS BECOMING A POPULAR ALTERNATIVE TO USCF RATED EVENTS.

OMAHA HIGH SCHOOL TEAM TOURNAMENT A FUN AND SUCCESSFUL EVENT.

Approximately 54 high school chess players, representing at least 10 Omaha area high schools converged on Omaha Central today (March 1), for an unrated team event. Tony Dutiel directed this event which drew a nice contingent of players and was organized by a group of Omaha high school chess coaches. Look for a possible series of these next school year, particularly given the success of this one.

UNRATED TEAM EVENT IN KEARNEY A REMARKABLE SUCCESS.

There was an unrated team event run on Saturday February 8th at the University of Nebraska, Kearney. The event was organized by Randall Heckman and Tony Dutiel e-mailed me to report that the event had drawn an outstanding 98 players in various sections. Are we possibly looking at the future of Nebraska chess here? Tony and his team took clear 1st in the Open section. Their toughest competition came from Jim, Karen and Kevin Swartz.

HEATH TAKES TOP HONORS IN CSC UNRATED EVENT.

My son Heath found the opportunity to play some tournament chess this past month, capturing clear 1st place in a tournament held at his college. He won his final game against a player who had been easily winning his other games. Heath ended up getting a $25.00 gift certificate to the local Walmart store, which he quickly put to good use.

CENTRAL CITY HOSTS UNRATED EVENT ON JANUARY 25TH

I haven't yet heard who won, but Richard Olson was hosting an unrated chess tournament in the same location as the Bowman event in Central City.

KEN ROBERTS WINS TOP HONORS IN THE BOWMAN'S TOURNAMENT IN CENTRAL CITY ON 1/18/03

It changes it's name every year or two, but it's always held in Merrick County in Central Nebraska. This year it was once again run by Richard Olson of Clarks. The Merrick County Open no matter what it's called, always draws a nice crowd of players of all ages and abilities from all parts of the state. This year was no exception, although I was unable to make it out there again this year. Keaton Kiewra who had won or tied for 1st the last three years in a row did not attend this year, nor did Kent Nelson who was under the weather. The winner was A-Player Ken Roberts of Wahoo, Nebraska. A new high rated player from Lincoln, King Christian had trouble finding the playing site and missed the first round. Tony I believe tied for first in the Reserve section and once again played in both the Open which is a POY event and the Reserve simultaneously.

OUR ATTENTIONS TURN TOWARD SCHOLASTIC CHESS.

On Saturday March 29th, the Nebraska State Team Scholastic event will be held at Peace Lutheran Church in Columbus. This year, we are hoping to attract a nice crowd of high school players from all over the state for Nebraska's second oldest traditional event. The defending State Team champs are the Millard West Wildcats coached by Bart Wormington. It is hoped that teams from all over Nebraska will play in this event, which will be organized by Jim and Karen Swartz. Team titles will also be awarded in Primary, Elementary and Middle School divisions. NSCA and USCF membership is required in this event and is available on site.

AMERICINN EVENTS HELD IN VARIOUS LOCATIONS IN NEBRASKA IN JANUARY.

The AmericInn Motel chain hosted a series of scholastic chess events all over the U.S. in their motels. There were at least two held in Nebraska. The one in Lincoln was directed by Tony Dutiel of Omaha and was held on January 12, 2003. It drew a respectable 16 people in two sections. In the Open section, Albert Zhou and Robert Kopp tied for 1st with scores of 3.5 out of 4.0. Brandon Thomas, an unrated player finished 1st in the Youth Section which was open to under 1000 or unrated players.

I know there was another tournament held in central Nebraska on Sunday January 19th, run by Richard Olson, but I am uncertain how many players attended or who won. I know that O'Neill High School brought some students and that Jim Walla, NSCA President was in attendance. The winners of these events are eligible to move onto regional championships and if they win there will be invited to play for scholarships in a national event in Minneapolis.

NEW NEBRASKA RATING SYSTEM.

Here is the initial rating list for active Nebraska Players. As of January 1, 2003, I will happily rate any Nebraska events reported to me on the Nebraska Rating list. The formula for computing your established rating will be the old Elo formula which is basically R1-R2/25 +/- 16, where R1 is your current rating, R2 is your opponent's current rating and 16 is the game result. R1-R2/25 has a maximum value of + or - 16 points. If the value of this portion of the equation exceeds this a player will gain a minimum of1 point and a maximum of 32 points for each game won or lost, regardless of ratings differences. So if an 1800 player defeats a 1300 player, he'll still gain 1 point and the 1300 player will still lose one point. Conversely if the 1300 player wins, the 1800 player will lose 32 points maximum for that single game and the 1300 player will win 32 points maximum. The + or - 16 portion of the equation is the game result. This means that the game is worth a base value of 16 points for whichever side wins. If the game is drawn then the points gained or lost are calculated entirely based upon rating differential. Due to deflation in ratings, the December Ratings for USCF had 39 points added to them, so that the mean is 1500.

No Nebraska Ratings will be calculated as less than 1000. I am considering starting a separate rating list for children, but will do so when I have the time and see the response to my initial efforts.

January 2003-NEBRASKA RATINGS

Events Rated and Updated:

Omaha Library Tournament 3 rds 1/11/03-8 players

Lincoln AmericInn Open Section 4 rds 1/12/03-5 players

Bowman Chess Open and Reserve 1/18/03-21 players

Last Name	First Name	Initial Nebraska Rating
Christian	King	2130
Kiewra	Keaton	2089
Gladyshev	Vadim	2059
Nelson	Kent	1955
Draney	Bruce	1953
Grande	Doug	1847
Friend	Arnold	1839
Balash	David	1819
Slessor	Kent	1766
Given	Doug	1751
Dutiel	Tony	1760
Nilssen	Ragnvald	1639
Slocum	David	1619
Zhou	Albert	1569
Baker	Sean	1555
Draney	Heath	1519
Roth	Cletus	1510
Kopp	Robert	1425
Baltaro	John	1314
Williams	Bob	1304
Washburn	Terry	1268
Harmon	Jay	1221
Norrell	Nate	1086
Buchanan	Gary	1051
Headlee	Dayton	1000
Given	David	1000
Borchers	Ryan	1000
Servellon	Eric	1000
Kamal	Ahsan	1000
Gillespie	James	1791/4
Graham	Stuart	1000
Fritz	Austin	1121
Crabill	Wray	1589

New Nebraska Rated Players:

Ken Roberts 1861

Dale Ruzicka 1725

Carlos Cardenas 1724

Kevin Swartz 1603

Gary Marks 1625

Karen Swartz 1554

CHRISTIAN AND DUTIEL SHARE 1ST IN JANUARY 2003 LIBRARY EVENT.

King Christian (2077) of Lincoln and Tony Dutiel (1712) of Omaha, shared 1st in the 2nd Library Tournament which was held on January 11,2003 at the downtown Dale Clark Library on 15th and Farnam. The event drew eight players. The events are USCF rated, but there is no entry fee and no prizes. They are for rating only.

OMAHA HIGH SCHOOL COACHES ORGANIZE AN UNRATED HIGH SCHOOL TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP.

Three Omaha high school chess coaches have decided to host an unrated high school only team championship, which will be held at Central High School on Saturday March 1st. Bart Wormington of Millard West, Drew Thyden of Central and Bob Yakus of Millard North are inviting interested high schools in the area to show up to participate. They are hoping that not requiring USCF or state memberships and charging only a reasonable entry fee will draw a significantly higher number of players. This event is NOT the same as the official NSCA State Team Championship which is mentioned above and will be held in Columbus on March 29th. Still I hope that this event gets local high school players enthused enough that they spring for the memberships a few weeks later and choose to participate in the event. Last year, there were only 4 high school teams represented in the State event and all of them were from Omaha.

David Balash is 2002 Omaha City Champion.

Omahan David Balash capped off a fine chess year by winning the annual Omaha City Championship which was held at the Dale Clark Library on Saturday December 28th. Balash finished with 2.5 out of 3.0, a clear half point ahead of Tony Dutiel. The winner of the Reserve section was Terry Washburn.

A special thank you goes to Tony for organizing, directing and playing in this event. If it weren't for Tony, Nebraska chess would probably be non-existent.

A nice field of 16 players showed up and 8 played in each section.

David according to USCF's rating page, has risen from 1367 in December of 2000 to his present unofficial rating of 1830, and improvement of nearly 500 points in two years.

David did very well in the 2002 Cornhusker State Games and as a result will be one of six players participating in this year's State Closed Championship in Lincoln.

A UNO Chess Club? It's Possible!

Some of you may remember Steve Moore who ran some events and also edited the Gambit for awhile before becoming a music teacher. Steve recently contacted me about possibly organizing an Omaha Chess Club that would meet at UNO. There would be some major advantages to having UNO host the Omaha Chess Club. One of them is that we would have a free meeting site. Another is that we would not be obligated to patronize businesses. A third is that the University has security and we would have security there to make sure that chess players were not misbehaving. There is one catch (naturally). We have to have at least 6 UNO students petition the University in order to create the club. Steve and I are two, but we need four others who would be interested. Anyone who is interested and IS a current UNO student should contact me ASAP at my e-mail address at the bottom of the page.

CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY AND UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA KEARNEY BOTH ORGANIZE CHESS ACTIVITIES.

I have heard from reliable sources that Creighton University now hosts an informal chess club on Wednesdays from 4-7:30 in the lower level of their student center. The contact person for Creighton is Anthony Heller. UNK is hosting an unrated team championship on February 8th. Entry fee for this event is $4.00 and the organizer is Randall Heckman. Richard Olson is also offering a "No Cost Chess Tournament on January 25th at Nebraska Christian School, northwest of Central City.

2003 Closed Field Now Set

The field is now complete for the 2003 Closed which will be contested sometime in the Spring of next year. Below are a list of Qualifiers and how they earned their slot:

Keaton Kiewra-Defending State Champion

David Balash-Cornhusker State Games

Vadim Glayshev-Cornhusker State Games

Jason Mueller-Midwest Open

Kent Nelson-Nebraska Player of the Year

Ben Fabrikant-Great Plains Open

Cornucopia Scholastic draws over 100 people to Columbus, Nebraska on November 23rd.

The final POY event of 2002 was held November 23rd,2002 in Columbus, Nebraska. The Cornucopia which was begun in Omaha back in the early 1990's was moved to Columbus, Nebraska a few years ago and has been ably run by Jim and Karen Swartz. The weather was great and considering it's late November in Nebraska, it was all anyone could hope for. The Open section featured the two top scorers this year in the POY competition vying for a slot in the Closed. When it was all said and done, Kent Nelson finished ahead of Tony Dutiel in the competition, by drawing Tony in Round 3, so Kent qualifies.

However, Kent lost in the last round to A-Player Ken Roberts and Tony drew Albert Zhou, allowing Roberts and Dutiel to tie for 1st in the event. Forty two players participated in the Elementary section and two children with perfect scores were both awarded 1st place trophies. Top team in the Elementary section was Immanuel Lutheran of Columbus.

More complete results will be posted when I get them from Karen.

Midwest Open won by Kiewra.

Nebraska's oldest continuous rated chess event, the Midwest Open was held at Southeast Community College in Lincoln on November 2-3. The winner was Keaton Kiewra of Lincoln with a score of 4-1. Kent Nelson is organized and Richard Olson of Clarks, directed the event, which drew a good crowd of 25 players in two sections. Second place was shared by Jim Ellis of Missouri and David Balash of Omaha. Jason Mueller of Omaha qualified for the State Closed championship next Spring, since both Keaton and David were already seeded. Thanks to all who participated in this event which has been held for over 50 years.

Kiewra and Nelson win Annual Polar Bear Chess tournament.

Every Fall, since the early 1970's, Lincolnite Gary Marks has organized and directed the Polar Bear Chess Tournament in Lincoln. Gary used to wear shorts 365 days of the year, regardless of temperature, which is where he came up with the idea to be like him on a brisk Fall day. Of course in Nebraska, some Fall days are brisk and some are pretty warm. Back in 1999, the famous October blizzard occurred on the same weekend as the Polar Bear, but this year the event was held at Southeast Community College on 88th & O, on Saturday October 26th, and the weather was nice. The event was directed by Gary and Tony Dutiel. A fairly nice crowd attended and Gary offered trophies in a Primary, a Junior, a Reserve and an Open section. The Open section is a POY event. In the Open, there was a tie for first between Kent Nelson and Keaton Kiewra with scores of 3.5-.5. They drew in their game and won their other three games.

OMAHA CHESS CONTINUES TO EXPERIENCE PROBLEMS IN SITE USE.

Recently there have been several negative developments in Omaha with site use for chess playing. At the end of the Summer, the owner of the History Center down on 13th Street, announced that he was changing his focus away from being a coffee shop and would no longer offer space on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for chessplaying. Within a couple months, his store closed altogether. Some chessplayers approached another coffee shop across the street and have begun meeting there, but there is not nearly as much space.

At the Polar Bear, I was informed that Borders Bookstore on 72nd and Dodge had kicked the Omaha Chess Club out due to the fact that players were not purchasing enough food and drink and were taking up too much space in the store's cafe on Tuesday night. When I visited the club back in September, I noticed that most of the people were playing bughouse chess and their language, conduct and behavior was somewhat rowdy. In fact I came at about 9:30, and a Border's employee came over and warned them that someone had complained about their behavior while I was there. As Han Solo said in Star Wars, "I've got a bad feeling about this". When you are guests of a business, they only want you if:

a. You are polite and pleasant to have around.

b. You purchase food or drink and help the business be profitable.

c. You attract other customers into the store and do not drive customers away.

When I visited the club a couple weeks later, the club had been forced to move upstairs to the 2nd level of the store and set up and take down their own tables. Then at the Polar Bear I was informed that we were booted. Officially Borders said that chess players were NOT buying enough food and drink to justify the space they were using, but I will only believe that this is the real reason if and when they invite us back. According to one person I spoke with, we will supposedly be allowed back next winter when business in their cafe drops off.

I am troubled by a trend that has been going on for 3-4 years with chess players. In 1998 certain chessplayers began violating the rules of the Church of Christ SW which had generously offered to allow us to use their site for several years after Steve Morales had moved away. People went into off limits part of the building and goofed around. People propped open the door when it was freezing cold, causing heating bills to be higher. People smoked in the building which was strictly forbidden. Since I was the contact person, I finally decided to leave the church before we were kicked out. In 1999, we moved to Barnes and Noble in Crossroads Mall, and within a couple months they kicked us out because we were taking up too much space and not purchasing enough food and drink. (Sound familiar?)

We were temporarily invited to play at a deli-sandwich shop in northwest Omaha, but were eventually booted out of there, again supposedly for not buying enough food and drink. Then we found a home at Borders on 72nd and Dodge. Does anyone really believe that we are buying LESS food and drink now than we were back in 2000? Although this is possible, I am much more suspicious that lousy behavior and conduct by chessplayers is the more likely reason. We shall see if we DO get invited back to Borders or if that is just the excuse they use to permanently boot us.

One of the problems in my opinion is bughouse chess. Bughouse is a popular variant of chess that is much noisier and out of control than regular chess. Bughouse although enjoyable for those who play it, tends to scare off visitors who come in for the first time, see a bunch of people playing a strange game that is obviously NOT chess, and also bughouse takes up 4 players at a time, often leaving no people available to introduce themselves to new people and to engage them in a friendly game. New people see rowdy conduct, foul language, people putting multiple queens, rooks, bishops, knights and pawns on the board and pounding chess clocks. Not only that, but the rowdiness also annoys customers who are in the cafe to study, read or quietly chat with their friends while they enjoy a cappucino or a latte. Soon they begin complaining to the management about rowdy, obnoxious chess players and as a business Borders begins reconsidering whether the cost/benefit ratio of allowing a chess club to meet in its business is really such a good idea.

My understanding is that Lincoln's chess club is also disbanded at this time. It is a statement to say the least when there is not a an active chess club in either of Nebraska's two largest cities, but that is my understanding. It may be that we are going to have to enforce a code of conduct if and when we do acquire another site, or this problem might continue.

USCF EXPERIENCES NET $700,000 LOSS IN 2001-2002.

The USCF continues to experience serious financial problems. The Delegates just concluded their annual meeting in Cherry Hill, New Jersey and the news was not good. Due to past accounting irregularities and recent toughening of standards on accounting firms in light of the Enron and Worldcom fiascos, the USCF was forced to accurately reflect a loss of net worth of almost $700,000.

At least half of this loss is from prior year adjustments to faulty accounting methods, but the other $350,000 are losses from decreased sales, slumping revenues and a technologically impaired office that continues to employ far too many people to perform labor intensive tasks that most companies now have automated, such as membership and sales order processing.

The Delegates decided to take several highly important and controversial actions. One is that the USCF is going to probably put the land and building in New Windsor up for sale so that it can relocate to Miami, Florida, where it can share space with the newly opened Chess Hall of Fame Museum which is owned by the Chess Trust a long time partner of USCF.

The other decision was to raise dues. Beginning in January of 2003, the following dues rates will be in effect:

Adults-$49.00/year

Juniors-$25.00/year

Scholastic I-$19.00/year with Six Chess Life Magazines

Scholastic II-$13.00/year with One Chess Life Magazine

The rates will at the discretion of the Executive Director offer a commission on memberships sold by an affiliate of $4.00 on adult memberships, $2.00 on Juniors and $2.00 on the $19.00 Scholastic Membership and $1.00 on the Scholastic II membership. This commission may be retained entirely by the affiliate or it may be passed on to the member.

Also beginning in January 2003, it will cost anyone who wishes to affiliate with the USCF and run tournaments $49.00/year instead of the current $40.00.

If you have any opinions or feelings about this, I suggest you contact Nebraska's Delegate, Mike Nolan who lives in Lincoln and tell him how you feel.

For discussions of current chess political issues.

Cornhusker State Games draw 113 over two days.

The Annual Cornhusker State Games was held on Saturday July 20th and 21st 2002 at Southeast Community College in Lincoln. Mike Nolan, who has organized and run the event for many years, once again presided.

The winner of the Open section was State Champion and State Scholastic Champion Keaton Kiewra of Lincoln. Since Keaton has already qualified for the State Closed next year, the slots in the Closed went to David Balash of Omaha and Vadim Gladyshek of Lincoln.

In the Reserve Section top scorer was outgoing NSCA Secretary Karen Swartz (no, I did not say Kevin, I said Karen), who scored a perfect 5-0 score. (Wow!!!!!).

Jeremy Reisberg won the Junior section and Toby Burge won the Scholastic section.

The NSCA held its annual membership meeting on Saturday morning. The following people were elected or re-elected as officers for three years:

NSCA President-Jim Walla of Lincoln

Historical Archivist-Bob Woodworth of Omaha

Treasurer-Bob Dierks of Omaha

Omaha Regional Vice President-Bruce Draney

Secretary-Temporarily left vacant until a search can name a replacement. New Secretary is Matt Turner, just appointed.

Thanks to all of those people who have served or continued to serve as officers in our organization. Karen Swartz, and Neil Reeves in particular deserve our thanks for helping run the organization.

BOB HOLLIMAN WINS GREAT PLAINS OPEN. BEN FABRIKANT QUALIFIES FOR 2003 CLOSED.

In mid May, Bob Holliman of Missouri captured clear first place in the Great Plains Open held in Lincoln at Southeast Community College. The event drew 13 players and Bob finished with 3.5-.5. Ben Fabrikant and Doug Grande tied for 2nd place with 3-1, but Ben won the slot in next year's Closed as a result of better tie breaks.

Thanks to all people who showed up and supported the event.

USCF ADULT MEMBERSHIP, A CONTINUED DISASTER IN THE MAKING.

The USCF has been experiencing a serious Regular Adult membership decline for over seven years. New early July figures were just released today and they show that the USCF now only has 25,078 regular full dues paying members left in the organization. For a dramatic look at a graph which illustrates the decline of adult regular membership go to: adultmembership graph

Nebraska Scholastic Team Championship draws a nice crowd in Lincoln on Saturday April 20th.

This year, Maxey Elementary School in Lincoln played host to the Annual Nebraska State Scholastic Team Championship which crowns team champions in High School, Junior High/Middle School, Elementary and Primary grades. Although there is an official individual tournament now held, individual champions were also crowned at this team event.

This year, the tournament was organized by Tom O'Connor and Ken Kiewra. Despite some computer problems in the last round, the event offered outstanding playing conditions and the participants seemed to have a lot of fun. My knowledge of all winners is limited, but here are some things that I am certain of:

2002-Nebraska High School Team Champion was Millard West, which narrowly edged Millard North by 1/2 point. Omaha Central was 3rd, and Skutt Catholic High School of Omaha was 4th. High School champion was Heath Draney of Skutt Catholic with a score of 4-0. This was Heath's last Scholastic tournament, so it was nice to see him bow out as a champion.

2002 Junior High Middle School Team Champion was Columbus Home School Association. Kevin Swartz who won the State Individual Championship back in February repeated with a perfect 4-0 score. Although Kevin and Heath played in the combined section, they both went undefeated and did not meet, so both were able to go undefeated.

I am uncertain about who triumphed in the other sections, so rather than misreport, I will check on the results and post when they are available.

Kevin Fleming Resigns as NSCA President and announces move to Dallas-Fort Worth Area.

Kevin Fleming who has been serving as NSCA President since my resignation in 1999, shocked us all by announcing he is stepping down immediately as President of the NSCA because he is moving to the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area.

Kevin has been an active player, organizer and promoter of chess in Nebraska for 20 years and he will certainly be missed. He has won several state championships, is one of the few Nebraskans to reach the level of Master, and has also been Gambit Editor as well as a director, organizer and active player. Neil Reeves has offered to serve as interim President until July when the membership meets at the Cornhusker State Games and can elect a permanent replacement. We will all miss Kevin, although certainly we won't miss losing to him. We all wish him the best and thank him for his efforts over the past 20 years on behalf of Nebraska chess.

Keaton Kiewra captures 1st State Title

Lincoln East High School student Keaton Kiewra made it a double, by capturing 1st place in the Nebraska State Closed Chess Championship on April 4-5 in Lincoln at Southeast Community College, with a score of 4-1.

Keaton was not beaten, but was nicked for two draws in the round robin event, one against Bruce Draney in Round 1, and the other against Neil Reeves in Round 4.

Ben Fabrikant, a student at UNL turned in a nice performance, scoring 3.5 to take clear 2nd, losing only to Keaton in the final round, and gaining a draw with Matt Cushing.

Cushing and Draney tied for 3rd with 2.5, but Cushing got the 3rd place trophy for defeating Draney in head to head competition. Tony Dutiel scored 1.5, and Neil Reeves recovered from a dismal first day to score two draws in the final two rounds. Congratulations to Keaton who captured the State High School Individual title and now is State Closed Champion as well. Below is a crosstable.

Pairing #	Name	1	2	3	4	5	6	Total
1	Keaton Kiewra	X	1	1	.5	1	.5	4.0
2	Ben Fabrikant	0	X	.5	1	1	1	3.5
3	Matt Cushing	0	.5	X	1	.5	.5	2.5
4	Bruce Draney	.5	0	0	X	1	1	2.5
5	Tony Dutiel	0	0	.5	0	X	1	1.5
6	Neil Reeves	.5	0	.5	0	0	X	1.0

Draney and Pressnall share 1st in Defenders of the Crown.

This year the Defenders of the Crown was held for the first time ever in Hampton, Nebraska, between York and Aurora, at the Zion Lutheran Church Hall. The event drew a large contingent of players from the eastern, central and western parts of the state. Organizer Richard Olson decided to add a Reserve section for players rated under 1600.

In the Open section which was a POY event, 12 players competed over 4 rounds. When it was over there was a tie for 1st between Bruce Draney of Omaha, and Wayne Pressnall of North Platte, both with 3.5-.5. The two did not play one another, but Draney won the DOC ceramic trophy on tiebreaks.

NEXT UP IS THE CLOSED/AMATEUR/CLASS CHAMPIONSHIPS IN LINCOLN ON 4/6-7/02 AT SOUTHEAST COMMUNITY COLLEGE.

Nebraska's annual State Closed Championship will be held once again in Lincoln at the Southeast Community College on 8800 O Street. The Amateur Open will be Saturday April 6th only, and the NSCA Class Championships will be on Sunday only. There is a flier in the latest Gambit and inquiries should be made to either Tom O'Connor or Kent Nelson.

2002 Nebraska Closed Championship Field.

Assuming that no one cancels, the following individuals will play for the title of 2002 Nebraska State Championship next weekend (April 6-7) in Lincoln:

Keaton Kiewra

Matt Cushing

Bruce Draney

Ben Fabrikant

Tony Dutiel

Neil Reeves

Nebraska state Bughouse/Blitz/Action Championships held March 1-2 at Omaha History Center

The Blitz tournament Friday was won by Mike Blankenau, and Joe Colligan who tied each other 1-1. Players ripped off 14 games of speed chess. Action championships Saturday drew 7 players, Ben Fabirkant of Lincoln walked away with first going 5-0. 1st place under 1500 was a tie between Sean Baker (3-2), and Heath Draney (3-2). Even though it was -5 in the wind chill, things really heated up later that evening with the State Bughouse competition. 6 teams battled it out Kevin Fleming-David Balash, Sean Baker-Heath Draney, Mike Chess-Rich Chess, Tony Dutiel-Doug Grande, Johnny Cooper- Ben Fabirkant and Brian Stensrude-Joe Colligan.

Nebraska Upcoming events:

March 23, Aurora Defenders of the Crown. POY event. See gambit for further details.

April 6-7-State Closed/Amateur/Class Championships, see above.

April 20, State Team Scholastic Championship. Columbus, Nebraska. K-3, 4-6, 7-12, Reserve, and Open.Top Team in each section is State Champ.

Great Plains Open. 4rounds, POY event. May

Eastern Nebraska TBA

State Individual Scholastic Championship dodges a blizzard and crowns champions.

The Nebraska State Scholastic Individual Chess Championship was held at Peace Lutheran Church in Columbus on Saturday February 9th. A projected blizzard led to the organizers wisely deciding to shorten the event to three rounds in order to allow time to get home safely. Despite some cancellations the event drew a respectable 65 players and about 10 decided not to take the chance of travelling, given the forecast.

Here are the winners. Congratulations to our new State Scholastic champions:

High School: Keaton Kiewra-Keaton will represent Nebraska in this summer's Denker Tournament of Champions in New Jersey.

Junior High: Kevin Swartz-This is Kevin's sixth straight State Championship, an all time record.

Elementary: Jonathon Powell

Primary: Caleb Klatt

The Open section was won by Tony Dutiel with 3 points and the Reserve was won by Sean Baker.

Thanks to Karen and Jim Swartz for managing to make this all work.

Annual Merrick County Open held on January 17th, is first POY event of 2002.

The POY year always kicks off with the Merrick County Open, which this year was held once again in Central City, Nebraska. Although I was unable to attend this year, I was told there was a three way tie for 1st in the Open Section between three time defending champion Keaton Kiewra, Omahan Jason Mueller and Lincolnite Kent Nelson. Richard Olson of Clarks should be commended for holding this event in Central Nebraska for almost 20 years in a row. Merrick County is now the third longest running traditional chess event in the state. At this writing I am unaware of who won the Reserve or the Junior sections.

Omaha City Championship, crowns Jason Mueller and Tom Herfordt as Co-City Champions for 2001.

The annual Omaha-Metro Area City Championship was held at First Baptist Church near downtown Omaha on the first weekend in December. A respectable 12 or so players showed up to compete for the title of Omaha City Champion and Omaha City Junior Champion. There was a tie for first this year giving us co-champions. Jason Mueller who is a strong player (1900's), from Bellevue and Tom Herfordt who hadn't played lately but played well in this event. Congratulations to both players and thanks to Tony Dutiel for arranging and directing the event.

Recent Chess News:

FIDE crowns a new World Champion

The International Chess Federation FIDE once again held a knock-out world championship event to determine who would hold that title for the next year. Despite the controversy of the format and the frequency with which it is now held, the new champion is a newcomer named Ponomoriev.

Cornhusker State Games Draw 100 in 4 Sections on July 21-22.

The top finishers in the Open section this year were Keaton Kiewra of Lincoln with 4.5-.5, and Neil Reeves also of Lincoln with 4-1. Both Keaton and Neil qualify for the 2002 State Closed Championship.

In the Reserve, top finisher was Harris Brand of Omaha with a perfect 5-0 score.

There was a tie for first in the Scholastic section between Craig Maly, and a young man named Awad. Both had perfect 5-0 scores.

Your's truly, was head director this year, and Mike Nolan of Lincoln did his usual fine job of organizing the event.

For further information check out this July's Archive

Roger Simond wins Eastern Nebraska-Father's Day Open.

State Champion Roger Simond finished 1st in the Eastern Nebraska Father's Day Open in Omaha on Saturday June 16th with a score of 3.5-.5.

Tom Kopp took the 1st Reserve with a score of 2.5 out of 4.0.

Second place went to David Balash who had 3-1. Heath Draney took top under 1600 with 2.5-1.5.

Robbie Kopp took 2nd in the Reserve with 2.0-2.0 and the top Father-Child Trophy went to Heath and Bruce Draney for a combined score of 5.0. Thanks to all who took part.

COMPARING MEMBERSHIP BY CATEGORY MARCH 1995 AND MARCH 2002

CLICK HERE FOR A CIRCLE GRAPH COMPARISON-MEMBERSHIP GRAPHS

News:

NebraskaLand Days Open cancelled.

Wayne Pressnall decided not to organize or direct the NebraskaLand Days Open this year in North Platte. The event which had been held annually in June since the late 1960's, was Nebraska's second oldest event. Only the Midwest Open had been held more years in a row. I was disappointed but not terribly surprised that the event had been cancelled. New USCF TLA policies have had a negative impact on many organizers who have been struggling with declining attendance at their local events. If I make it on the Board, I hope to see that fair and reasonable advertising rates are reinstated for TLA's. Maybe someone can hold the event next year.

Colligan and Fleming share 1st in the Great Plains Open.

The Great Plains Open was held in Omaha at the History Center on Memorial Day weekend, May 26-27. Twenty two players took part in the event which was a pretty good turnout, all of whom were local players. The event was a 4 rounder and the winners were Experts Kevin Fleming and Joe Colligan, who finished with 3.5 points. Don Shennum won the blitz championship on Friday May 25th and Ben Fabrikant and John Cooper won the State Bughouse Championship on Saturday night. Thanks to Tony Dutiel for organizing and directing this traditional event.

Roger Simond is 2001 Nebraska State Champion.

Lincoln A Player Roger Simond captured the 2001 State Closed Championship with a score of 4-1, outdistancing Keaton Kiewra also of Lincoln who finished a half point back with 3.5.

The Amateur Open held on Saturday April 7th at the same time as the first three rounds of the Closed was won by Bruce Draney with a score of 4-0. Thanks to Kent Nelson and Tom O'Connor for organizing and directing these events.

The NSCA Class Championships were held on Sunday. Although I was not in attendance Sunday, it is my understanding that John Cooper, Sean Baker and Doug Given were among the Class Champions.

State Team Scholastic draws an outstanding 92 players to Columbus on March 31st.

An outstanding 92 participants took part in the annual Nebraska State Scholastic Team tournament, the oldest scholastic event in Nebraska. This year the event was held in Columbus at beautiful Peace Lutheran Church. In the Primary section, the joint winners were Nathan Klatt, and John Powell and the team champion was Immanuel Lutheran. Kevin Swartz followed up his individual title by claiming clear 1st in the Elementary section. Immanuel Lutheran was again the winner of the team trophy. Your's truly (Bruce Draney), won clear 1st in the Open section with 3.5-.5. I am unsure who won the Middle School and High School sections. I believe Russell Middle School was leading their section and there was a battle between Millard West, Millard North, Elkhorn and O'Neill in the High School section.

Thanks to Karen and Jim Swartz and Tom Powell for organizing this fine event.

JOHN TOMAS OF CHICAGO NEW INDUCTEE INTO THE NEBRASKA CHESS HALL OF FAME.

John Tomas, one of Nebraska's most talented chess players and writers was recently accepted as the latest inductee into the Nebraska Chess Hall of Fame. John has been Nebraska State Champion a number of times and has also been involved in chess journalism for a number of years. He currently resides in the Chicago area. We are hoping to get John to come to Nebraska to attend a special induction ceremony. Congratulations to John who is the first new inductee into our Hall of Fame in two years.

Kent Nelson and Carlos Cardenas capture 1st in the Defenders of the Crown on Saturday March 17th in Aurora.

A nice crowd of between 20 and 30 attended the annual Defenders of the Crown chess event in Aurora Nebraska on St. Patrick's Day. When it was all over, the Open section was won by Kent Nelson and Carlos Cardenas with perfect scores of 4-0. The event was run by Richard Olson of Clarks, Nebraska and has become a traditional March favorite for Central Nebraska Chess.

Kiewra captures 2001 Nebraska State Invididual Scholastic K-12 Championship.

Keaton Kiewra won the Nebraska State High School Individual Scholastic Championship on February 10th in Columbus, Nebraska. Although Keaton is an eighth grader he will be eligible to represent Nebraska in the Denker Tournament of Champions in Framingham, MA, this August.

Kevin Swartz of Columbus won the K-8 division.

Keaton Kiewra captures 1st Place in the Heavy Hitter Chess Event in Central City on January 27th. Richard Olson's Merrick County event has changed towns, and changed themes, but it continues to draw a nice crowd of players from all parts of the state in mid to late January. This year's event was held in Central City, Nebraska and the theme was baseball. Sean Baker of Omaha captured the Junior section and Carlos Cardenas and Rick Eickemeier shared 1st in the Reserve division.

Joe Colligan wins the 2000 Omaha City Championship.

The Annual Omaha-Metro Area City Championship was held on December 11th in downtown Omaha at the History Center. Ten players took part including defending champion Bruce Draney. The 4 round event was won by Joe Colligan of Omaha who returned to rated chess after about a nine year absence. Congratulations to Joe who had 3.5 points. Second place was Bruce Draney who was defeated by Doug Grande in round 2, but finished with 3-1.

Top player under 1700 was Balash who played a tough game against Colligan in the final round and finished with 2.5.

Thanks to the History Center and to Doug Bishop for agreeing to run the event.

Nationwide Attendance study now finished for USCF. Click here for National figures for 99-2000, 98-99, and 97-98.

State by State 3 year figures now available by clicking here.

OMAHA AND NEBRASKA CHESS INFORMATION OF INTEREST

NEBRASKA STATE CHAMPIONS SINCE 1990:

1990-Mike Dreiger

1991-Kevin Fleming

1992-Kevin Fleming

1993-Mike Blankenau

1994-Mike Blankenau

1995-Wayne Pressnall

1996-Kevin Fleming

1997-Kevin Fleming

1998-Matthew Cushing

1999-Matthew Cushing and Mike Dreiger

2000-Justin Ballard

2001-Roger Simond

2002-Keaton Kiewra

OMAHA CITY CHAMPIONS SINCE 1991.

1991-Mike Blankenau

1992-Bob Holling

1993-Bob Holling

1994-Bruce Draney

1995-Bruce Draney

1996-Bruce Draney

1997-Mike Blankenau

1998-Luke Kappas

1999-Bruce Draney

2000-Joe Colligan\

2001-Herfordt & Mueller

2002-David Balash

LINCOLN CITY CHAMPIONS SINCE 1992.

1992-Tom O'Connor

1993-Loren Schmidt-Zoran Kilibarda

1994-Kent Nelson

1995-Kent Nelson

1996-Kent Nelson

1997-Jordan Otte

1998-Roger Simond

1999-Stan Capps

2000-Tom O'Connor

2001-Kiewra & Nelson

TOP NEBRASKANS IN THE MIDWEST OPEN SINCE 1988

1988-Kevin Fleming (4.5-.5)

1989-Mike Blankenau-(4.5-.5)

1990-

1991-Paul Rohwer-(4.5-.5)

1992-Mike Blankenau-(4.5-.5)

1993-Paul Rohwer-(4.5-.5)

1994-Pressnall, Fleming, Reeves, Jenkins, Reynolds (4-1)

1995-Mike Dreiger, Bruce Draney, Roger Simond (4.5-.5)

1996-Joe Kruml-(4.5-.5)

1997-Bruce Draney and Bob Holling (4-1)

1998-Matt Cushing

1999-Kevin Fleming

2000-Roger Simond

2001-Matt Cushing

Nebraska State Chess Association Officers

President: Jim Walla-Lincoln

Treasurer: Bob Dierks-Bellevue

Secretary: Matt Turner-Lincoln

Archivist: Bob Woodworth-Omaha

Omaha Region VP: Bruce Draney-Omaha

Lincoln Region VP: Neil Reeves-Lincoln

Western Region VP: Wayne Pressnall-North Platte

NEW NEBRASKA CHESS PHONE DIRECTORIES NOW AVAILABLE FOR $1.00.

December 2002 RATINGS NOW AVAILABLE:

If you want to know what your new official rating is for April Rating list, you can find out by going to the Nebraska State Chess Association Webpage. This official rating is supposed to be used for events that begin between , December 1st, and February 1st. Unofficial weekly rating updates available at the above link.

NEW FORMER NEBRASKA PLAYER LOCATOR FEATURE

Using the link at the bottom of the page you can now possibly locate old friends and acquaintances that used to live or play chess in Nebraska. If you have information about the whereabouts of a former Nebraska player and that person isn't listed, contact me at bdraney@novia.net and any help you can provide in tracking down former Nebraskans is appreciated.

UPCOMING LOCAL CHESS EVENTS:

OMAHA CHESS CLUB : Currently there is no meeting place for the Omaha Chess Club. See the article above for the reasons why.

THE OMAHA CHESS ARCHIVE: is a monthly publication outlining chess, *NEW* June and July Issues for 2001 now available

To find out more about chess in Omaha or Nebraska

contact:

BRUCE DRANEY
14002 FREDERICK CIRCLE
OMAHA NEBRASKA 68138
OR CALL (402)-896-2003
You can reach by e-mail at: bdraney@novia.net

HEATH'S CLIFFSIDE COTTAGE CHESS EQUIPMENT
14002 FREDERICK CIRCLE
OMAHA NEBRASKA 68138
Heath's Cliffside Cottage

Links to other Chess sites of interest

Nebraska Chess Webpage

USChess Online

USChessLive

Duif's Place

Sneak Peak at the March 1998 Omaha Chess Archive-Nebraska Scholastic History

Sneak Peak at April 1998 Omaha Chess Archive-History of State Scholastic Part II

Complete List of Nebraska State Scholastic Team and Individual High School Champions, 1965-2000

Where are they now former Nebraska player locator

Article on the history of the ACR Swenson Memorial 1949-1977

State Champions in the Midwest

Presidents of Midwestern States

Biography on Hall of Fame inductee.