National Master Kevin Chor - President & CEO - chess64forkids.org
My name is Kevin Chor. I’m the founder, president, and the website designer/owner for chess64forkids.org.
I am 15 years old, and I attend Arizona College Preparatory High School in Chandler, Arizona. I was introduced to chess purely by accident; I was 6 years old at the time. There was something about the game of chess that made me immediately fall in love with it. Soon after seeing how much I was drawn to chess, my parents signed me up for scholastic chess camps during the winter break and spring break of my kindergarten year, and the rest was history.
My first serious scholastic tournament was the Governor’s Cup State Chess Championship in Arizona, where I won first place in the Kindergarten Section, winning all nine games.
Since then, I have won numerous state, national, and international titles. From age 6 through 11, I dedicated my life to study the game of chess and competed across the globe.
I have represented Team USA at several International chess competitions. I have been a member of All American Chess Team since I was 7 years old. At the age of 11, I was awarded the National Master title from the United States Chess Federation.
When I was 14, I wanted to do more than just competing in chess tournaments. I wanted to show all the young kids what a fun and rewarding game chess can be. That’s when I started thinking about ways to give back to the community and to offer other kids the opportunity to learn this beautiful game of chess. I enjoy teaching chess to anyone, especially young children.
Besides chess, my other passion is playing competitive junior golf. I started learning how to play golf when I was 10 years old from my dad. I was relatively old for junior golfers to be starting at 10, as most of the top players started when they were 5 or 6. After I achieved my National Master title in chess, I decided to dedicate a lot more time to the game of golf. Currently, I have an USGA handicap of one. My goal is to be a scratch golfer or better by the time I’m a Senior in high school.
During my free time, I enjoy playing basketball with my friends. I also love watching horror movies, listening to music, and teaching others how to play chess.
In school, my favorite subjects are Math, Computer Science, and Culinary Arts. My favorite foods are Italian and Mexican.
At the age of 6, playing my first Arizona State Championship. Winning first place for my age group.
At the age of 7, this was my first attempt at a National Championship title; I finished tied for 7th.
The 2012 National Scholastic Chess Championship took place in Orlando, FL.
Last Round Championship game.
At the age of 7.
This was the main playing hall at the 2012 National Scholastic Chess Championship.
In November of 2012 (at the age of 7), I was invited by the U.S. Chess Federation to represent Team USA in the Boys 8 and under section at the World Youth Chess Championship.
The event took place in Maribor, Slovenia, where I won first place for all Boys 7 years old, and overall finished 10th place for Boys 8 and under. This was the awards ceremony where we got on the stage with the Ambassador to Slovenia.
At the age of 7, this is a picture of me and another Teammate at the World Youth Chess Championship 2012, in Slovenia.
At the age of 8, in the summer of 2013, I was ranked #1 in the U.S. for my age group. I was invited by the U.S. Chess Federation to represent Team USA in the Boys 8 and under section at the Pan American Youth Chess Championship.
The hosting city was Pocos De Caldas, Brazil. I took home the gold medal for Team USA and was the first American to win all nine games.
This is a picture of me with two other Teammates at the 2013 Pan American Youth Chess Championship in Brazil.
This is a picture of me with an opponent right before the round was about to start, at the 2013 Pan American Youth Chess Championship in Brazil.
At the age of 8, I was seeded #1 in the U.S. for my age group. I represented Team USA to compete at the 2014 World Youth Chess Championship, in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates.
In 2014, I earned an invitation to represent Team USA to compete at the World Youth Chess Championship in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. This is a picture of me playing bughouse with other players.
In 2014 (at the age of 9), chesskid.com invited top scholastic chess players to compete in a National On-line Invitational.
I took home the champion title in the 10 & Under section.
At the age of 9, not only was I playing against strong scholastic players, I was also competing in adult tournaments across the country. This picture was taken from the 2014 National Open, Las Vegas International Chess Festival.
At the age of 10, at the 2015 Pacific Southwest Open in Los Angeles, CA.
One of my proudest moments is when I was awarded the National Master title, at the age of 11.
At the age of 12, this is a picture of me holding a plaque as an honor for being selected to be a member of the All American Chess Team.
At the age of 13, winning the Arizona State Governor’s Cup Championship.
At the age of 14, winning the Arizona State Governor’s Cup Championship.
At the age of 15, helped organize and competed in a fund-raising tournament.
At the age of 16, this was the 2021 Arizona High School Team State Championship, where my high school (Arizona College Prep) finished 2nd place in Division 1.
At the age of 16, Arizona High School Team State Trophy.
Volunteering my time and knowledge as a Tournament Director at a local chess club.
Volunteering my time and knowledge as a Tournament Director at a local chess club.
Volunteering my time and knowledge as a Tournament Director at a local chess club.
Using a computer software to help with pairing and reporting scores to the U.S. Chess Federation.
