UK Chess News
Chess Rising Stars

Nottingham High School hosted the English Junior Coaches and Organisers Association (EJCOA) National Youth Finals 2024. This FIDE rated 3-day standardplay event required children to qualify, either by rating or through Zonal tournaments.

Chess Rising Stars London Academy was well-represented in the Finals. We had students competing in the U8, U10 and U12 categories.

Noah with his EJCOA U12 Boys trophy

Our outstanding result came from Noah, who achieved 4.5/5 to share 1st place in the U12s with WCM Ruqayyah Rida. His only draw was against a fellow Chess Rising Stars student, Callum, in round 3.

Noah won the U12 Boys category and continued his outstanding 2024 season in style. This national title is particularly impressive given that he has only been competing in chess tournaments since January 2023.

 

We are excited to follow Noah’s progress and will be looking out for all of our students in their Summer Holiday chess tournaments.

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CRS London Academy, UK Chess News
Dec 19, 2023

Bronze Medals at the LJCC Finals

This year’s prestigious London Junior Chess Championships (LJCC) Finals were a successful one for Chess Rising Stars. Our students, Sachin and Ashwin, shared 3rd in the U10 Major with an admirable 5.5/7.

The first weekend of the 2023 LJCC Finals were held at the University of Westminster, Marylebone Hall. Hundreds of chess players of all ages took part, making for an inspiring atmosphere for our young students.

L to R: Chris, Arnav, Sachin and Maria

Sachin and Ashwin are both active members of our Elite Chess Club. We work together on areas of strategy, tactics and mindset to build the confidence and skills necessary to compete beyond Chess Rising Stars.

We are proud to add to our series of individual tournament accomplishments this year, building on the successes the Elite Club students achieved at the UK Chess Challenge Terafinal earlier in the year.

We had 12 current Chess Rising Stars students who met the high standard necessary to qualify for the LJCC Finals. This illustrious tournament has been running for nearly 100 years and provides a first-rate competitive experience for junior chess players.

On Saturday our coaches, Maria and Chris, paid a visit to offer their support and guidance plus drop off some prizes to take home as souvenirs! Tom also set a fine example, competing in the Open tournament and scoring 3.5/4.


The Chess Rising Stars team are looking forward to the upcoming U8 and U12 LJCC Finals later this month. The achievements of Sachin and Ashwin are a shining example of what can be accomplished with the knowledge and support of our experienced coaches.

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CRS London Academy, UK Chess News
Dec 19, 2025

EJCOA Zonal Wimbledon 2026

Chess Rising Stars are hosting our first ever OTB tournament, the EJCOA Zonal Wimbledon, on Saturday 21st February 2026 at the Everyday Church, Wimbledon, SW19 8LR.

We have been preparing throughout 2025: in the Spring three of our coaches completed their ECF Arbiter qualifications. During the Summer, coach Chris achieved his first FIDE International Arbiter norm. Then in the Autumn Term, we introduced ECF rated games at our Chelsea and Wimbledon Clubs and secured our venue for the Zonal next February.

We are looking forward to welcoming children who are keen to qualify for the English Junior Coaches and Organisers Association (EJCOA) National Youth Championships Finals at Nottingham High School in July which is a rare opportunity for UK juniors to compete in a high-level FIDE rated standardplay tournament.

CRS student, Noah, with his U12 Boys trophy at the 2024 EJCOA Finals

EJCOA Champions

Chess Rising Stars students have already achieved EJCOA success on the national stage with Noah winning the U12 Boys category in 2024 and Silk becoming the U10 Girls champion in 2025. We are excited to see what 2026 will bring!

Register Now

Our website has further information about the EJCOA Zonal Wimbledon, plus the Entry Form, or you can fire us a quick email to london@chessacademy.uk and we would be happy to help.

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CRS London Academy, UK Chess News
Oct 20, 2023

Chess Rising Stars at the Terafinal

The 2023 Terafinal was held in Blenheim Palace and three Chess Rising Stars students met the high standard necessary to qualify to compete. We are now delighted to report on their successes in this distinguished tournament.

Sheng, Ashwin and Aden are all members of our Elite Online Chess Club. We established this club back in 2021 to support those children who were looking to compete in tournaments and team matches beyond Chess Rising Stars. Their hard work over several years has culminated in this triple achievement.

After a gruelling weekend of 11 rapidplay games, Sheng was crowned the U10 Girls Champion, Ashwin finished in 3rd place overall at U10 and Aden in 7th. We are proud of their efforts and are confident this is just the beginning of their junior chess success.


Our students with their prizes

From an original pool of over 10,000 children across the UK, just 60 had achieved the results necessary to reach the Terafinal. October 2023 marked the first time that Chess Rising Stars students had managed to reach this last stage of the UK Chess Challenge. Good things come in threes!

You can read more about our U10 Girls Terafinal Champion here.

2023 Terafinal Qualifiers – Three Chess Rising Stars in the U10s

Our chess calendar remains busy with the next major tournament already in our sights – the London Junior Chess Championship in December. LJCC Qualification tournaments are being held across the UK and registration is now open. We are confident of building on our Terafinal experience and putting in another strong showing.

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