Out in Beinecke Plaza recently, under a bright sun and the intent stares of more than 100 people, you could cut the tension with a knight. Or a hanging rook.After two weekends of strategic gambits, defensive feints, and go-for-broke blitzing, a four-player team from Berkeley College survived a late surge by the squad from Timothy Dwight to claim victory in the inaugural Yale Chess Cup tournament.“One move left … and it’s made!” shouted special guest Levy “GothamChess” Rozman, the highly popular chess influencer who provided color commentary for the final matches. “Berkeley wins three to one! Three to one!”The April 24 final capped a full slate of tournament events organized by Yale sophomore Arthur Guo (himself a certified chess grandmaster) and Trumbull College. The weekend before, teams from each residential college gathered in the Trumbull College dining hall to vie for a spot in the finals (thanks, in part, to the efforts of Kory Evasick, the dining hall’s general manager).
Standing during the “blitz” games, (left) Arthur Guo and (right) Levy Rozman, a.k.a. GothamChess.
Photos by Jude Breidenbach
Prior to the final, Guo and Rozman displayed their chess prowess by taking on waves of challengers simultaneously in a series of quick “blitz” games. (Rozman, who has more than 7 million subscribers to his YouTube channel, also spoke at a college tea in the Trumbull College common room that drew a capacity crowd.)“The whole point is to have a fun, intramural competition among undergraduates that taps into the popularity of chess,” Guo said. “To see everyone’s faces light up, whether there’s a blunder or a winning move, is awesome. And Levy has been so gracious with his time.”Indeed, Rozman spent hours playing chess with students — and winning — on Beinecke Plaza. They seemed to enjoy the challenge.
