{"id":15765,"date":"2026-06-04T03:17:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T01:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stocks-future.com\/?guid=1268c04e24c135455efd05955dc54025"},"modified":"2026-06-04T03:17:00","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T01:17:00","slug":"u-s-sen-eric-schmitt-r-mo-u-s-rep-wesley-bell-d-mo-and-saint-louis-chess-club-host-bipartisan-congressional-chess-tournament-with-leading-chess-figures-and-saint-louis-students-in-the-nation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/?p=15765","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO), U.S. Rep. Wesley Bell (D-MO) and Saint Louis Chess Club Host Bipartisan Congressional Chess Tournament with Leading Chess Figures and Saint Louis Students in the Nation\u2019s Capital"},"content":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) and U.S. Rep. Wesley Bell (D-MO) hosted a special bipartisan Congressional Chess Tournament in partnership with the Saint Louis Chess Club<\/a>, where members of Congress faced off against chess students and internationally recognized chess players during an event designed to showcase the importance of chess education in schools across the country.<\/p><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>

\nSchmitt was joined by Rex Sinquefield, co-founder of the Saint Louis Chess Club, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), U.S. Rep. Wesley Bell (D-MO), U.S. Rep. Bob Onder (R-MO) and U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO), as well as Grandmasters Var Akobian and Yasser Seirawan and International Masters Eric Rosen and Irene Sukandar \u2014 respected and recognizable figures from both the congressional and chess communities.<\/p>

\n\u201cIt was an honor to show off Missouri talent and welcome the Saint Louis Chess Club here to Washington, D.C. Chess teaches young people critical thinking, discipline, and the strategic skills they\u2019ll need to succeed in life. As a proud St. Louisan, I\u2019m honored to represent the chess capital of the world,\u201d said Sen. Schmitt.<\/p>

\n\"Chess is a thinking game, a strategic game, where you must anticipate several moves ahead. It teaches us so many lessons that apply to everyday life,\u201d said Rep. Bell. \u201c<\/b>The St. Louis region has a huge chess presence, bringing together and inspiring generations of people. I\u2019m proud to be co-hosting the Bipartisan Congressional Chess Tournament, celebrating chess in St. Louis and across the country.\u201d<\/p>

\nSeven students from the Saint Louis Chess Club\u2019s Select Chess Program traveled to Washington to participate in the tournament, competing against Schmitt and members of the Congressional Chess Caucus. The Congressional Chess Tournament highlights the educational benefits of chess and encourages schools to engage in chess programs that promote important developmental skills, including problem-solving, critical thinking, strategic planning, concentration, and spatial awareness.<\/p>

\n\u201cIt\u2019s an honor to be back on Capitol Hill to bring the Chess Capital of the United States to Washington for this longstanding bipartisan tradition,\u201d said Rex Sinquefield, co-founder of the Saint Louis Chess Club. \u201cOur work to revitalize chess in schools across Missouri and throughout the United States continues to grow every year. With more than 100,000 students in the greater Saint Louis area engaged in scholastic chess, we are excited about the game\u2019s growing popularity among America\u2019s youth and look forward to continuing to partner with Congress to expand awareness of chess and its many educational benefits.\u201d<\/p>

\nAs the Chess Capital of the United States, Saint Louis is home to the Saint Louis Chess Club, the nation\u2019s premier chess organization for scholastic and competitive chess. The club\u2019s scholastic programs reach more than 100,000 students through innovative initiatives, including Scholastic Tournaments, Digital Classroom, First Responders C.H.E.S.S., and other educational programming. Seven in 10 students enrolled in these programs say they look forward to school more on days when chess is played and believe the game has taught them that they can accomplish difficult tasks through hard work and perseverance.<\/p>

\n\u201cChess teaches discipline, resilience, creativity, and decision-making under pressure \u2014 skills that extend far beyond the chessboard,\u201d said Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan. \u201cIt\u2019s inspiring to see students from Saint Louis sharing their passion for the game with leaders from across the country here on Capitol Hill.\u201d<\/p>

\nAt the competitive level, the Saint Louis Chess Club has made history by creating the Sinquefield Cup and the Cairns Cup, premier international tournaments that have attracted many of the world\u2019s top players and helped revitalize chess in the United States. Today, approximately 25 Grandmasters live and train in Saint Louis \u2014 more Grandmasters per capita than anywhere else in the world.<\/p>

\nSaint Louis is also home to the World Chess Hall of Fame & Galleries<\/a> (WCHOF), a leading arts and cultural institution centered on chess that has welcomed more than 250,000 visitors across 75 exhibitions. WCHOF has recently opened a major new year-long exhibition, \u201cGame Plan: The Strategy of Chess & Sports<\/a>,\u201d exploring the connection between chess, athletics, and elite performance through interactive experiences, sports history, and stories highlighting the shared strategy, discipline, and competitive mindset behind both chess and professional sports. The exhibition spans all three galleries and runs through Spring 2027.<\/p>

\nTo learn more, visit www.saintlouischessclub.org<\/a> and www.worldchesshof.org<\/a>.<\/p>

\nAbout the Saint Louis Chess Club<\/b><\/p>

\nThe Saint Louis Chess Club (STLCC) is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to making chess a vital part of the community and advancing Saint Louis\u2019s reputation as the nation\u2019s premier chess destination\u2014the U.S. Chess Capital. In addition to hosting world-class tournaments and providing a welcoming space for casual and competitive play, the Club offers a robust slate of educational programming, including beginner lessons, chess improvement classes, lectures, and special events for players of all ages and skill levels.<\/p>

\nRecognizing the cognitive, academic, and social benefits of chess, the Saint Louis Chess Club is deeply committed to scholastic education. The Club supports existing chess programs in area schools while actively developing new in-school and after-school initiatives that introduce students to the game and help young players thrive both on and off the board. For more information, visit www.saintlouischessclub.org<\/a>.<\/p>

\nAbout the World Chess Hall of Fame & Galleries<\/b><\/p>

\nThe World Chess Hall of Fame & Galleries (WCHOF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization committed to building awareness of the cultural and artistic significance of chess. It opened on September 9, 2011, in the Central West End after moving from previous locations in New York, Washington, D.C., and Miami. Housed in a historic 15,900 square-foot residence-turned-business in Saint Louis' Central West End neighborhood, the WCHOF features World Chess Hall of Fame inductees, the United States Chess Hall of Fame inductees selected by the U.S. Chess Trust, artifacts from the permanent collection and exhibitions highlighting the great players, historic games and rich cultural history of chess. The WCHOF partners with the Saint Louis Chess Club<\/a> to provide innovative programming and outreach to local, national, and international audiences. For more information, visit worldchesshof.org<\/a> and on social: Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, X<\/a>, and YouTube<\/a> channels.<\/p> Contacts<\/b>

\nMedia Contact:<\/b>Saint Louis Chess Club PR\nmedia@saintlouischessclub.org<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Today, U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) and U.S. Rep. Wesley Bell (D-MO) hosted a special bipartisan Congressional Chess Tournament in partnership with the Saint Louis Chess Club, where members of Congress faced off against ch…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15765","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-infos-businesswire"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15765","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15765"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15765\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15768,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15765\/revisions\/15768"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15765"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15765"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stocks-future.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15765"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}