We just ended our 9th season at Webster University. This team has maintained the #1 ranking every single day, week, and month since inception, as well as winning 7 PanAm InterCollegiate Championships (8 out of 9) and 5 Final Four Championships in a row. The SPICE team also won 2 Final Four Championships with TTU, which makes it 7 straight titles.
Head Coach: Susan Polgar
Coach and Chief Strategist: Paul Truong
Titles won by Webster University – SPICE since August 2012 (2 World Championships, multiple Olympiad Gold, 5 World Open Championships & 65 National Titles)
Chess Olympiad Gold
In 2016, 2 members of Webster University – SPICE program, GMs Ray Robson (current student) and Wesley So (former student), were part of the historic US team which captured Olympiad Gold in Baku for the first time (with full competition in a non-boycotted year) since 1937!
In 2018, GM Jorge Cori won 2 Gold Medals (best performance on board as well as best overall performance of the entire Chess Olympiad at 2925!) at the Chess Olympiad in Batumi, first ever for Peru.
World Championships (2)
June 2013
– 2013 World Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Le Quang Liem)
July 2013
– 2013 World University Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)
World Open Championship (5)
July 2014
– 2014 World Open Championship: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
July 2015
– 2015 World Open Championship: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
July 2016
– 2016 World Open Championship: 1st place tie (GMs Illia Nyzhnyk, Alex Shimanov, Vasif Durarbayli)
– 2016 World Open Blitz Championship: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
July 2018
– 2018 World Open Championship: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
July 2019
– 2019 World Open Championship: 1st place (GM Le Quang Liem)
National Championships / Individual and Team titles (65)
August 2012
– 2012 U.S. Open Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)
– 2012 U.S. Open Rapid (G/15) Championship: 1st place (GM Andre Diamant and IM Vitaly Neimer)
– 2012 U.S. Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Andre Diamant), 2nd place (GM Anatoly Bykhovsky)
December 2012
– 2012 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Both A and B team tied for 1st place
– 2012 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top reserve player (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)
April 2013
– 2013 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Georg Meier, Wesley So, Ray Robson, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, Manuel Leon Hoyos, and Anatoly Bykhovsky)
June 2013
– 2013 National Open: 1st place (GMs Wesley So and Manuel Leon Hoyos)
– 2013 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)
– 2013 National G/10 Championship at National Open: 1st place (GM Wesley So)
August 2013
– 2013 US Open G/15 Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)
– 2013 US Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)
October 2013
– 2013 US G/30 Championship: 1st place (GM Georg Meier)
– 2013 US G/60 Championship: 1st place (GM Georg Meier)
December 2013
– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: 1st place (A team won with a perfect 6-0 score)
– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 1 (GMs Le Quang Liem, Fidel Corrales Jimenez)
– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 2 (GM Anatoly Bykhovsky)
– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 3 (GM Wesley So)
– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top board 4 (GM Ray Robson)
– 2013 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Top overall performance (GM Wesley So)
April 2014
– 2014 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Le Quang Liem, Wesley So, Georg Meier, Ray Robson, Fidel Corrales Jimenez, and Anatoly Bykhovsky)
June 2014
– 2014 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Wesley So)
August 2014
– 2014 US Open: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
December 2014
– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: 1st place (A team scored 5.5–0.5)
– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 1 (IM Ashwin Jayaram)
– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 2 (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 3 (GM Ray Robson)
– 2014 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 4 (GM Andre Diamant)
February 2015
– 2015 USATN: Top College Team (WGMs Anna Sharevich, Katerina Nemcova, WFM Luisa Mercado, Mara Kamphorst)
March 2015
– 2015 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Le Quang Liem, Ray Robson, Illia Nyzhnyk, Vasif Durarbayli, Fidel Corrales, Andre Diamant)
June 2015
– 2015 National Open: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
– 2015 National G/10 Open: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
July 2015
– 2015 SPFGI: 1st place (Thalia Cervantes)
December 2015
– 2015 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: 1st place tie (B team scored 5–1)
– 2015 PanAm InterCollegiate Women’s Championship: 1st place (SPICE girls scored 4–2)
– 2015 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 1 (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)
– 2015 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 4 (GM Ray Robson)
April 2016
– 2016 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Le Quang Liem, Illia Nyzhnyk, Aleksandr Shimanov, Ray Robson, Vasif Durarbayli, Fidel Corrales)
August 2016
– 2016 U.S. Open Rapid (G/15) Championship: 1st place (GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez)
– 2016 U.S. Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk), 2nd place (GM Vasif Durarbayli)
September 2016
– 2016 Chess Olympiad: Team USA got Gold for the first time (1937 in a full Olympiad or 1976 in boycotted Olympiad) in 79 years (GMs Ray Robson [current student] and Wesley So [past student])
– 2016 US National G/30 Championship: 1st place tie (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
– 2016 US National G/60 Championship: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
December 2016
– 2016 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Both A and B team tied for 1st place
– 2016 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 4 (GM Manuel Leon Hoyos)
March 2017
– 2017 College Chess Final Four: 1st place (GMs Le Quang Liem, Illia Nyzhnyk, Ray Robson, Aleksandr Shimanov, Vasif Durarbayli, Priyadharshan Kannappan)
June 2017
– 2017 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place tie (GMs Illia Nyzhnyk, Fidel Corrales Jimenez)
September 2017
– 2017 US G/30 Championship: 1st place (GM Ray Robson)
– 2017 US G/60 Championship: 1st place tie (GMs Ray Robson, Alex Shimanov)
December 2017
– 2017 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: 1st place (A team scored 5.5–0.5)
– 2017 PanAm Intercollegiate Championship: Tie for top board 1 (IM Aaron Grabinsky)
June 2018
– 2018 National Open Blitz Championship: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
July 2018
– 2018 US G/60 Championship: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
July 2018
– 2018 US G/30 Championship: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
​October 2018
– 2018 Chess Olympiad: GM Jorge Cori won 2 Gold medals, 1 for the best performance on board 3, and 1 for the best overall performance of the entire Batumi Chess Olympiad
December 2018
– 2018 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: 1st place (A team scored 5.5–0.5)
– 2018 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 1 (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
June 2019
– 2019 National Open: 1st place (Illia Nyzhnyk)
July 2019
– 2019 US G/10 Championship: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
– 2019 US G/60 Championship: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
August 2019
– 2019 U.S. Open Championship: 1st place (GM Illia Nyzhnyk)
December 2019
– 2019 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 1 (GM Peter Prohaszka)
– 2019 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 3 (GMs Emilio Cordova, Illia Nyzhnyk)
– 2019 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 4 tie (IM Aaron Grabinsky)
September 2020
– 2020 U.S. Collegiate Team Blitz Championship (GMs Burke, Quesada, Lenderman, Cordova, etc.)
October 2020
– 2020 U.S. Junior Championship (GM John Burke)
January 2021
– 2021 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: 1st place (A team scored 8–1)
– 2019 PanAm InterCollegiate Championship: Top board 2 (GM Yuniesky Quesada 8-1)
www.webster.edu/SPICE
Good news for chess ! GM Jorge Cori was twice world champion and four-time Pan American champion in his age category. Great He can get better results with time 🙂 Thank you for all you do for the chess world!!! Soon in the Olympic Games?
What is the story behind this amazing track record?
Very impressive!
be impressed, let me know more information.
Weighted Tournaments!
After all, the detractors said, how could a college from the Midwest, especially one in the city that is more known for Budweiser beer than chess, compete in such a sophisticated, elite game?