Illinois Youth Invitational Selects Illinois Representatives to Denker, Barber, Girls and SPF Girls Invitationals

Thirty-two of Illinois top scholastic players participated in the Illinois Youth Invitational Tournament on May 4-6 in Schaumburg. This 3-section tournament determined which players will have the honor of representing the state of Illinois in 4 prestigious invitational tournaments to be held this summer.

Twelve high school players competed in the Denker section to select the player for the Arnold Denker Tournament of High School Champions. Warren Junior Scholar David Peng, a Sophomore at New Trier High School was the first place winner, with 4.5 of 5 points. Warren Junior Scholar Zhaozhi George Li, a Senior at Illinois Math and Science Academy, took second place, with a score of 3.5 of 5 points. David and George both recently returned from the National High School Tournament where they also took 1st and 2nd place in the championship section.

Twelve K-8 players competed in the Barber section to select the player for the Dewain Barber Tournament of K-8 Champions. This was a hard-fought section and in the end, there was a 5-way tie for first place between Dimitar Mardov, Si Roger Li, Shreyas Reddy, Aydin Turgut and Nicholas Ladan, all with 3.5 out of 5 points. A blitz tournament was held to determine the winner and runner-up. In the end, Warren Junior Scholar Dimitar Mardov, a 4th grader from Anne Sullivan Elementary, was the winner. Warren Junior Scholar Shreyas Reddy, an 8th grader from Barrington Middle School Prairie Campus was the runner up in the blitz.

Eight girls competed in the Girls section. This section determines the representatives for both the The National Girls’ tournament of Champions and the The Susan Polgar Foundation Girls’ Invitational. Warren Junior Scholar and WCM Marissa Li, a Sophomore at Naperville North High School, was the first place winner, with 4.0 out of 5 points. Warren Junior Scholar Shreya Mangalam, a Freshman at Barrington High School, was the second place winner, with 3.5 out of 5 points. Marissa will be representing Illinois at The National Girls’ tournament of Champions and Shreya will represent Illinois at The Susan Polgar Foundation Girls’ Invitational.

All of the first place winners will represent Illinois at their respective tournaments during the 2018 U.S. Open, from July 28-30, 2018 in Madison, WI. They will receive a $500 travel stipend to attend.  Additionally, the first and second place winner in all three sections will receive $250 towards chess lessons, payable to a mutually agreed upon instructor. The second place girls winner will represent Illinois at the Susan Polgar Foundation Girls’ Invitational Tournament. The Susan Polgar Foundation has generously pledged a $200 travel stipend to the player who attends the SPF Girls’ tournament this year.  The Susan Polgar Foundation Girls’ Invitational will be held in St. Louis on July 21-26, 2018. 

The Illinois Chess Association and the Warren Junior Scholar program would like to take this opportunity to recognize and thank the Walter Mander Foundation -- and the Stevens family -- for their continuing commitment to and generous support of the Warren Junior Scholar program, particularly with respect to the Youth Invitational Tournament. Matthew Stevens, a Junior at Whitney Young High School, has been a Warren Junior Scholar since the 5th grade. The Mander Foundation’s continuing support through the Stevens family has made a significant impact on the Illinois chess community for many years.

Complete tournament standings can be found here.