The 2016-2017 season is finally over for Norman Chess Club (NCC). The last club event of this season, 2017 Summer Tournament, was held in Norman Public Library Central on May 13, 2017. After the tournament, NCC announced the club annual awards for 2016-2017 season.
In 2016-2017 season, total 38 K-6 players participated in the activities of NCC. Players not only joined the regular weekly chess meeting, but also attended five Oklahoma Scholastic Chess Organization (OSCO) tournaments and three other tournaments. They won a lot of trophies and medals in these tournaments.
The great thanks should be first given to our primary sponsor, St. Stephen’s United Methodist Church. Without their support, our club would not have such a nice home base. We would also like to thank other organizations: Norman Public Library, OU Chess Club, Mathnasium of Norman, and Norman Chinese School. They provided us various helps in the whole season.
Our club would like to appreciate volunteer coaches, who have served for our club. They are Joshua Riesenberg (OU Junior and OU chess club vice president), Zile Cao (9th grade student in Norman North High), Ray Hoggard (7th grade student in Whittier Middle School), Jerry Dong (9th grade student in Community Christian School). Zile and Ray’s voluntary works were well qualified for the National Presidential Service Award. They were also granted the Outstanding Coach Award from NCC.
Zile Cao is currently the head coach of NCC. He has represented the club in 7 tournaments for this season. He won the 9th grade Oklahoma state champion in OSCO State Grade Champion Tournament (2016), the 6-9th grade Oklahoma state co-champion in OSCO annual State Scholastic Champion Tournament (2017), the second place in K-12 section in OSCO annual Blitz Champion Tournament (2017), and the open section champion in the 1st OU Junior Scholastic Chess Tournament (2016).
Ryan Chen, the 3rd grade student in Roosevelt Elementary School, won the K-6th state blitz champion in the OSCO annual Blitz Champion Tournament (2017). He also tied the second place with Melody Chen, another 3rd grade student in Roosevelt Elementary School, for the section one of 1st OU Junior Scholastic Chess Tournament (2016).
The chess team, consisting of our club players from Roosevelt Elementary School, ranked the second place in the Ida Freeman K-12 Winter Open (2016).
The club annual awards for student players include:
- Outstanding Player Awards: Ryan Chen (3rd grade), Andrew Wang (3rd grade)
- Most Improved Player Awards: Olli Wang (1st grade), Alice Cai (4th grade), Matthew Zhao (3rd grade), Jace Grimes (1st grade)
- Best Participation Awards: Melody Chen (3rd grade), Daniel Wang (2nd grade), Patrick Nguyen (3rd grade)
- Annual Achievement Awards: Aurora Cai (K), Emily Cao (K), Timothy Chang (6), Aswath Rajesh(2), Jaron Webb (4), Jake Wedge (3), Chris Willert (1), Sophia Zhao (2)
What a great season! Congratulations to all these players! Their hard work and excellent performance deserve the awards. I can not wait for the commence of 2017-2018 season. Have a great summer break and see you all in new semester! Step into the world of free emulator games: a treasure trove of gaming history awaits you! Embark on a virtual adventure and rediscover your favorite titles from the past.
Qing Cao
President, Norman Chess Club