Chess for Everyone comes to Toronto’s Waterfront

Chess for Everyone comes to Toronto’s Waterfront – Sunday June 15

Organized by Annex Chess Club and Chess Institute of Canada, the first annual Harbourfront Centre Chessfest takes place in a newly-opened space at Toronto’s waterfront as part of Harbourfront Centre’s Summer on the Squares series.

Bring the whole family down to Harbourfront (see getting here) and make your way to the North Exhibition Common.

Check the events list, below, including lots of FREE activities as well as fundraising events (marked $) in support of the Canadian team at the 2014 Chess Olympiad in Tromsø, Norway.

Great chess programming for all ages and skill levels, 11 am to 5 pm.
$ Enter the 2014 Toronto Blitz Chess Championship – with arbiters Tyler Longo andAlex Ferreira – a one-day Swiss tournament, 7 double rounds at a blitz time control of 3′+2″
$ Play the Blindfold Master – with renowned blindfold master FM Hans Jung
$ Play the Grandmaster – with Canadian Chess Champion GM Bator Sambuev
Meet the Queen of Chessfest, WNM Yelizaveta Orlova, two-time member of the Canadian Women’s team – FREE
Get FREE tips from master chess instructors, WIM Natalia Khoudgarian, on the Canadian Women’s Olympiad team, and IM Artiom Samsonkin, formerly on the Canadian Open team
FREE face-painting and dress-up
Learn to play chess – FREE lessons from Chess Institute of Canada instructors
$ Purchase a standard tournament chess set from The Regency Chess Company at a special price
Learn about the history of Canadian Chess Olympiad teams – FREE
Play a game on a giant chess set – FREE
Or just sit down to play with a friend at one of our open tables – FREE
Register online to get tickets for the simultaneous exhibitions and the blitz tournament.

Make it a chess weekend!

If you’re coming in for Chessfest from out of town, come a day early and play in Vlad Dobrich’s Saturday afternoon rapid tournament.
Saturday Rapid – June 14 near Yonge and Finch. A special edition of the weekly event in support of the Canadian Olympiad Team starts at 2:00 pm. Contactvladdobrich@gmail.com for details.

Getting here:

We recommend travelling by TTC. (The TTC Day Pass allows unlimited travel on Sunday for 2 adults and up to 4 children or youths for $11.)

TTC indicates that the best way to get to Harbourfront Centre during the event is from King subway station.

Simply exit King subway “transfer (or pass) in hand” and board the 509 Harbourfront bus westbound.

The 509 bus travels south on Yonge Street and then west on Queens Quay. Disembark at Lower Simcoe Street, which is on the north side of Queens Quay. Across the street on the south side is the Harbourfront Centre Chess Fest.

For directions to the North Exhibition Common, see the venue map.

For more information or other means of travel, consult Harbourfront Centre’s travel advice.