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The CCL Chess School

Chess, Community and Learning

 

Chess lessons and more, for players of all strengths and ages.

2022 National Grade Level Championships

December 31, 2022

There were a number of CCL members making the trip to Maryland for the National Grade Level Championships.  Our top finisher was Rohan Padhye who became a National Champion by tieing for first in the 9th grade.  He scored 6-1.  We had 3 other players finishing 5-2.  That includes: Mehmet Yilanli who finished tied for 6th place in the Kindergarten section, Levi Brinton who tied for 15th place in the 4th grade section, and Siddarth Kunapuli who tied for 18th place in the 7th grade section. (click on picture for a larger image)

Rohan Padhye
Rohan Padhye
Mehmet Yilanli
Mehmet Yilanli
Levi Brinton
Levi Brinton

Filed Under: News

For real?

December 6, 2022

MehmetY

Kindergartener Mehmet Yilanli just swept the U-1000 K-12 field of the Clinton Elementary Tournament with a perfect 5-0 score.  This result drove his rating from 668 to 980.  A remarkable fact is that in his school system, Mehmet was not allowed into Kindergarten because he was a little too young for the birthday cutoff, so he has to attend Kindergarten in another school district.  Wish him luck, as well as the many CCL players, that are heading to Maryland for the National Grade Level Championships this weekend.

Filed Under: News

2022 Ohio Grade Level Championships

November 15, 2022

CCL won 5 of the individual Ohio Grade Level Championships this year.  My comments will go down the 1st column and then the 2nd column.

  • Michael Lin - 11th-grade sole champion - 5-0
  • Minghao Gu - 8th grade co-champion - 4.5 - .5
  • Ethan Liu, Maxwell Chung - 1st place team, 4th grade.  Our 4th grade class is very strong.
  • Rohan Padye - 9th grade - sole champion - 5-0
  • Colin Park, Siddarth Kunapuli (first on tie-breaks), Jack Hamilton - 7th grade co-champions - 4-1 - a strong 7th grade group.
  • Mehmet Yilanli - Sole Kindergarten champion - 5-0 - Mehmet looks like the real deal.  I watched him put a beating on a number of older kids in speed chess.

For complete results go to https://www.uschess.org/msa/XtblMain.php?202211057502-15268735

Click on pictures to see a larger version.

Michael Lin 11th Grade 5-0
Rohan Padye 9th Grade 5-0
Minghao Gu 8th grade 4.5
(l-r) Colin Park, Siddarth Kunapuli, Jack Hamilton 7th grade Co-Champions 4-1
(l-r) Ethan Liu, Maxwell Chung 4th grade team champions
Mehmet Yilanli

Filed Under: News

Michael Lin becomes the 33rd CCL Graduate

September 14, 2022

Michael

Congratulations to our latest and 33rd CCL graduate, Michael Lin.  Michael has been a steady and hard worker in chess, participating in many tournaments.  Michael recently attended Arkon Open VI; he drew two NM and won the other 2 games, and tied for 1st place.  The skills that are developed in becoming a CCL graduate transfer to a successful future.  I am amazed at all of the accomplishments of CCL graduates in their future endeavors, which I am sure that I will see in Michael's future as well.

It is a hard-earned honor to become a CCL graduate, which includes a lifetime membership to CCL, based on good behavior, without the need to take lessons from CCL.  Anything that CCL has to offer (newsletter, library, team participation, etc. will always be available to you).    To become a CCL graduate, you need to meet any of the following requirements:

- 1 year in CCL and earning a rating of 2000
- 4 years in CCL and earning a rating of 1900
- 5 years in CCL and earning a rating of 1800

I will probably not know if you meet one of these requirements unless you notify me.

CCL Graduates
from first to most recent

  • John Hughes
  • Walker Griggs
  • Maggie Feng
  • Rahul Ramaswamy
  • Annorjan Naguleswaran
  • Luke Xie
  • Chris Shen
  • Noah Keating-Adams
  • Sam Massick
  • Anagh Kulkarni
  • Vikram Srivastava
  • Aristo Liu
  • Abhi Ramaswamy
  • Jason Wang
  • Ricky Wang
  • Vincent Baker
  • Forest Chen
  • Neo Zhu
  • Alex Kolay
  • Xavier Paganini
  • Justin Storn
  • Stanley Cao
  • Elton Cao
  • Jasen Lai
  • Shourjya Ghosh
  • Aryan Balyan
  • Viktor Mishkin
  • Dakshin Pisini
  • Rohan Padhye
  • Dae-San Kim
  • Adeti Mohanselvan
  • Joe Kleban
  • Michael Lin

Filed Under: News

Sneha becomes a TD while she, Jack, and Joshua each win a quad.

August 14, 2022

Sneha Prabu became a tournament director, directed her first tournament, and won one of the five quads.  Also winning their quads was Jack Hamilton and Joshua Grywalski.  Everyone got $50 for their efforts.

Sneha and Richard Perry
Sneha and Richard Perry
Jack and Joshua
Jack and Joshua

Filed Under: News

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Introduction to Our Community Chess Instructional Program

Welcome to CCL, a community-driven chess instructional initiative designed to bring timeless chess to learners of all ages and skill levels. Whether you’re a beginner taking your first steps on the board or an experienced player seeking to sharpen your strategies, our program offers something for everyone.

Chess is more than just a game—it fosters critical thinking, patience, and problem-solving skills. Our program is built around the belief that chess can unite people, challenge minds, and create opportunities for personal growth and community connection. To supplement the chess side of individual enrichment, we recently opened a prodigious activities wing to CCL, managed by renowned mathematician and prodigy Dr. Harvey Friedman.

Why Join Us?

Our program is driven by a passionate community of chess lovers dedicated to creating an inclusive, supportive, and educational environment. For details on how the community fosters the program, please go to the menu option The Community. By participating, you’ll have the opportunity to:

  • Learn at your own pace with flexible instruction formats.
  • Join a vibrant chess community and make new friends who share your interests.
  • Enhance your cognitive skills, such as strategic thinking and decision-making.
  • Compete in local tournaments and represent our community.
  • Work with renowned mathematician and prodigy Dr. Harvey Friedman in other prodigious activities.

Let’s make chess an engaging and enriching part of our community. Join us today and start your chess journey! Together, we can grow our community and inspire a love for this incredible game.

The Coaches

  • alancasden2
    National Master Alan Casden
  • International Master Atanas Kizov -- CCL Head Coach --
  • Walker
    Life Master Walker Griggs
  • GM VLATKO BOGDANOVSKI
    Grand Master Vlatko Bogdanovski
  • Zoran
    International Master Zoran Arsovic
  • NM Vladimir Kizov
    National Master Vladimir Kizov
    Head of Pre-CCL
  • Jacob Eismann
    Jacob Eismann

The Rest of the Team

  • Jeff
    Jeff Shen
    Business Manager
  • Adai
    Adai Adaikappan
    Community Laison
  • Courtenay
    Courtenay James
    Organizer
  • Shiv
    Shivkumar Kurulekar
    IT System Admin
  • Jagdish Patel
    Jagdish Patel
    Newsletter Editor
  • Harvey
    Dr. Harvey Friedman - Head of Prodigious Activites

Recent Posts

  • CCL Chess Students Shine on the Podium at SuperNationals VIII in Orlando, FL May 12, 2025
  • NEWSLETTER OF THE MOTCF April 15, 2025
  • CCL March Chess Camps February 25, 2025
  • Siddarth Kunapuli becomes the 37th CCL Graduate February 2, 2025
  • Making our 2025 MOTCF Teams January 23, 2025
  • Welcome Jacob ! January 21, 2025
  • Jeff Shen is taking over the lead role at CCL December 26, 2024
  • Simul Stuff December 23, 2024
  • CCL Alumni/Student Chess GetTogether December 13, 2024
  • 2024 State Grade Levels November 27, 2024
  • Life Master Walker Griggs is giving lessons! October 29, 2024
  • Chess Math is here! October 27, 2024
  • An Evening with Atanas October 23, 2024
  • March CCL Chess Camps October 17, 2024
  • Maxwell again! Good Gosh September 16, 2024
  • Louis Zhang becomes the 36th CCL Graduate July 30, 2024
  • Major Changes in CCL June 6, 2024
  • Catch Up Time May 17, 2024
  • Cole Braun wins Ohio Middle School Championship February 27, 2024
  • CCL Chess Camp 4/20-21/2024 February 17, 2024
  • Rohan Padhye win Cardinal Open while CCL finishes very strong January 19, 2024
  • Mehmet is a National Champion December 19, 2023
  • CCL wins most of the grades at the Ohio Grade Levels November 25, 2023
  • Justin Storn wins State Championship while CCL soars September 5, 2023
  • Matt Wang becomes the 35th CCL Graduate May 23, 2023
  • 2023 MOTCF March 29, 2023
  • 2023 Queen City Classic March 29, 2023
  • Kevin Xu February 25, 2023
  • Minghao Gu becomes the 34th CCL Graduate February 6, 2023
  • Jason Wang wins the North American Open January 3, 2023

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