Congress holds annual bipartisan chess tournament

WASHINGTON (Gray DC) - Twelve-year-old Devanshi Chowdada sang the national anthem and then became one of several members of the St. Louis chess club to compete in the bipartisan Congressional Chess Tournament.

“Really nice that the St. Louis chess club has been making great advancements in this game of chess,” Chowdada said. “Glad to see when you have a passion that there are resources nearby for you to try and advance and grow.”

The tenth annual event was hosted by Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-MO, St. Louis is the Chess Capital of the United States by proclamation of the U.S. Senate.

“There’s grandmasters there, there’s a lot of teaching that happens,” Schmitt said. “There’s a lot of youth programs. The facility itself is just, it’s great. In fact, when I got to the Senate, the chaplain is a chess player. He knew St. Louis by reputation, had been to St. Louis because he liked to play chess.”

St. Louis Chess Club grandmasters also attended the tourney and are happy to pass the torch to the next generation.

“They service kids in schools, but they also have chess tournaments for adults, including some of the best chess tournaments in the world,” said Reese Ashley, the first Black chess grandmaster.

Despite the high profile setting and opponents, the students were still able to have fun.

“When I play with opponents, it’s not just about the game, but it’s the ethics as well, so I get to make a lot of friends,” Chowdada said. “And some of my friends are here too, playing.”

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