Best College Athlete St. Louis 2014 – Wesley So


If you see Webster University junior Wesley So around town, make sure to address him by his official title: Grandmaster Wesley So. OK, don’t do that, but the kid is a chess prodigy. (And, yes, chess is a sport. It’s officially recognized as such by the International Olympic Committee, you haters.) 

So learned to play from his dad when he was just seven years old — an age many of us are still learning to “tie” our Velcro shoes. By the age of ten he was competing in international chess tournaments, and at fourteen he attained the highest title in his sport — grandmaster — making him the eighth youngest in the world to achieve such status. 

Now the twenty-year-old is ranked No. 14 worldwide and is a member of the top collegiate chess team in the country at Webster University. He has also won multiple national and international titles, such as the 2013 World University Championship and the 2014 National Open Blitz Championship. Oh, and he gives lessons, too. That’s — wait for it — So cool.

Source: http://www.riverfronttimes.com

Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
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