Thursday, February 16, 2012

2011 Elaine Howie Fund - Nicholas Lee (Gold)

Nicholas Lee, 2011 Alberta Youth Chess Championship


Nicholas Lee
GRADE 7, Calgary, Alberta

School: Glenmore Ac.

Nicholas Lee is a grade 7 student from Calgary, Alberta. During 2011, he attended Calgary Chess Club as well as various tournaments across Alberta. Nicholas demonstrated significant progress in all fourteen events he took part in, reaching new heights at an incredible pace. Many times, he finished not just with great results, but amazing spirit and placements amongst much higher-rated players. Almost half his performances were at least 250 points above his pre-tournament CFC rating, and that doesn’t even account for his remarkable second place finishes at the Alberta Chess Challenge and Calgary Youth Chess Championship. These factors alone were enough to credit the “Gold Award” to Nicholas’ name. However, I knew I had made the right decision when his family sent a very touching letter describing Nicholas’ chess journey. Nicholas started playing chess only a couple years ago, in the fall of 2009, when he had just turned nine years old. Combining personal passion and a self-directed drive to compete and improve, he developed with increasing strength in a relatively short period of time. “The Elaine Howie Fund Gold Award is tangible affirmation of Nicholas’ hard work and improvement and provides reinforcement for his continued chess development.”

Nicholas would like to thank God, his family, and the Calgary chess community. Special appreciation goes to Tony Ficzere, Roy Yearwood, Simon Ong, and especially Dan Kazmaier – for their interest, encouragement and support of his tournament chess journey. Nicholas’ family would also like to congratulate all fund award winners.

Photo provided by Nicholas' family.

Full list of Nicholas' best achievements in 2011:

· Ranked 14th in U14 (CFC 1474) and 25th in Grade 7 (CMA 1431) by the end of the year
· CFC +373, CMA +355
· Rating progress in all 14/14 tournaments in 2011!
· Representing Calgary Chess Club and various tournaments in Alberta
· 1st place (5.0/5.0), Back2School Tournament
· 2nd place (3.0/4.0), Alberta Chess Challenge, Grade 6, winning two playoff games
· 2nd place (3.0/4.0), Calgary Youth Chess Championship, U12, performance rating of 1222 (121 pts. above Nicholas’ pre-tournament CFC rating of 1101)
· 2nd place (3.5/5.0), Calgary Regional Chess Challenge, Grade 6, winning two playoff games
· 2nd place (4.0/6.0), Calgary Junior Knockout Championship & Reserves
· Tied for 3rd place (3.0/5.0), AYCC, U12, performance rating of 1423 (259 pts. above Nicholas’ pre-tournament CFC rating of 1164)
· Tied for 3rd place (3.0/5.0), Schleinich Memorial Championship, performance rating of 1307 (180 pts. above Nicholas’ pre-tournament CFC rating of 1127)
· Performance rating of 1733 (458 pts. above Nicholas’ pre-tournament CFC rating of 1275), Calgary International
· Performance rating of 1692 (259 pts. above Nicholas’ pre-tournament CFC rating of 1433), Alberta Junior Championship
· Performance rating of 1639 (417 pts. above Nicholas’ pre-tournament CFC rating of 1222), Alberta Reserves Championship
· Performance rating of 1630 (267 pts. above Nicholas’ pre-tournament CFC rating of 1365), Calgary Chess Club Championship
· Performance rating of 1587 (262 pts. above Nicholas’ pre-tournament CFC rating of 1325), Edmonton International Reserves

3 comments:

Dan K said...

Way to go Nicholas! Congrats to all the current and upcoming winners.

Simon Ong said...

Good job, Nicholas!

Thanks, WFM Smith, for encouraging our Canadian chess juniors with the Elaine Howie Fund!

Infinity Chess King said...

Wonderful to see the kids playing the game.