Maria Lago/Staff Writer
The FIU Chess Club won first place at the Florida Collegiate Chess Team Tournament, for the second year in a row, in Orlando, FL.
From left to right: Thomas Zerquera, Yan Miellier, Nicolas Terradas and Juan Marquez, after the FIU Chess Club won the Florida Collegiate Chess Team Tournament. Photo courtesy of Laura Matzdorf.
The FIU team competed against five other Florida universities at the University of Central Florida. They played five games in two days, some of which lasted up to two hours, according to Chess Club President Laura Matzdorf.
“I went up against a lot of strong players but it was mostly to have fun. I ended up getting a really good score and I’m really happy about that,” said Juan Gomez, member of the chess club who played for the first time at the tournament. His rating score was 1457, which was the best score rating for FIU competitors, according to Chess Club Treasurer Juan Marquez.
Other participants in the team were Matzdorf, Marquez, Yan Miller, Thomas Zerquera and Luis Willis.
“It was a very unique experience because usually when you play in chess tournaments it’s very individual, but this was a team tournament, so you really felt like you were helping out your colleagues,” said Willis.
Marquez said that it was nice to see the people he played with at the chess club playing on a state level.
The chess club prepared for the tournament in their weekly meetings and also did independent training. They practiced by using websites like chess.com and blitz training, in which they set a timer and have three minutes to play, according to Matzdorf.
The meetings are open to all FIU Students, and they are held in front of Cafe Bustelo at the Graham Center, every Wednesday and Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., for chess players with any level of experience.
For more information about the Chess Club at FIU, please visit its Panther Connect page or check its Instagram page @fiuchessclub.
Featured photo by Maria Lago.
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