The Chess Society is a chess club for members of the University to play friendly games, improve their chess, or play competitively! We welcome students and staff at the University to join and participate, and we are the country's largest University chess society. The Society are the holders of the ECF 2019 Club of the Year Award, as well as 3-time British Universities' Chess Champions (2018, 2017, 2002).
What we offer?
1. Weekly Clubnights
Our weekly clubnights are for all members to play friendly games and enjoy a relaxed evening once a week, where anything from standard chess to exchange chess tournaments take place. Clubnights run during all three undergraduate terms of the year and are held every Thursday from 7.30pm to 10.00pm in the Oculus building in OC0.02. Please check our Facebook page, sign up, or email us to double check! If you've never been before, you can show up anytime during the year!
Clubnights are followed by an optional social at 10pm, where we play pool and have drinks at the Pool Tables in the Student Union.
2. Learning and Improving
If you are a complete beginner, the Society offers a FREE Beginners' Course. The sessions are held in OC0.02 every Thursday from 8pm to 9pm (concurrent with Clubnights). This course will last through term 1 and will be given by various members of the exec of strong playing ability.
For those who already know some chess, or are profficient, the experienced members, Captains and Exec are always happy to give Chess advice and guidance.
3. Competitive Chess
The Society offer a wide range of competitive chess opportunities for members.
Each Tuesday evening in Term 1 and 2, the Society plays in the Coventry & District Chess League. The Society fields five teams across three Divisions, catering for players of all abilities, from beginners to masters level.
Look out for our Term 1 Trip to the Birmingham Rapidplay in October, followed by our own Warwick Uni Rapidplay in November, and then, the Coventry Rapidplay in December!
We also play in major national competitions. Our most important event of the year is the annual British Universities Chess Team Championships (BUCA). In the last few years Warwick have sent in more teams than any other university (a record 9 teams), with a huge amount of success! Warwick have been the British Champions in 2002, 2017 and 2018, leading to our qualification for the European Universities Chess Championship in 2017, and 2019! Warwick were 10th in Europe in 2017, and then, in 2019, we came 13th.
In addition to BUCA, we also regularly have players competing in major events around the country, including the London Chess Classic, and the Bristol Congress, with several of our members even arbiting at these events.
4. The Annual Uni Rapidplay
The annual Warwick University Rapidplay is our very own FIDE and ECF rated event, held at the University - open to both University players and members of public. It was first launched in 2017 and attracting players from all across England, and even international players from as far as Australia!
5. Online Chess
We run a monthly online Blitz tournament, on Lichess. To play, join our Lichess group: https://lichess.org/team/university-of-warwick-chess-society
6. Social Events
Apart from a light social after weekly clubnights, we have several drinking and non-drinking socials each term, catering for eveyone.
There have been several Laser Quest socials, pub crawls, ventures to Kasbah and Skool Dayz, and club meals.
7. Warwick Chess in Schools
The Society has a long-standing relationship with the Coventry Chess Academy, one of the most successful junior chess clubs for under-teens in the Midlands. Many of our current and former members volunteer at the Academy.
On Friday lunchtimes we also send a team to teach chess to children at Grange Farm Primary School. Recently, we have taken chess to Templars Primary School too. Our outreach events are great to earn teaching experience, clock up volunteering hours for your HEAR report, and also just to have great fun!
We are delighted to be funded and supported by Warwick Volunteers.
8. Chess Masters - at Warwick!
For the past few years the Society has invited Super GM Anish Giri to give a Simultaneous Display to our members, as well as British GM Keith Arkell. These events have attracted a huge amount of success and been a great experience for all members involved!
Dan King is coming this year on the 7th of November 7.15pm-10.15pm
We have also had Simultaneous Displays in the past from IM Ameet Ghasi (British Blitz Champion), FM Peter Batchelor, CM Peter Williams, and Dimiter Daskalov. The Society has also hosted several Chess Talks, inviting both internal and external speakers.
9. Football Team
The Chess 5-a-side Football team was set up in 2018, to compete in the termly, intra-university Sunday sports league. All players welcome!
10. Our Sponsor
We are currently sponsored by Optiver - a world leading, multi-national, securities trading firm. Optiver has sponsored us since 2016, which we are very proud of this relationship. Within chess, Optiver is also known to sponsor super Grandmaster Anish Giri. Look out for their career and graduate opportunities, as well as when they are on campus!
For More Information about us
Please feel free to join our Facebook group here, or visit and like our Facebook page here.
If you have any questions, please contact the society by messaging our Facebook Page or by emailing us at su276@warwicksu.com.
Contacts
Executive Committee 2019-2020
President: James Munns
Vice President (Casual Chess/ Internal Affairs): Siti Anwar
Vice President (Competitive Chess): Ben Lee
Treasurer: Vickie Sit
Secretary: Tom Richardson
Social Secretaries: Taran Jina, & James March
Outreach Officer: Rares Chiriac
Marketing and Publicity Officer: Dylan Sayers
Training and Development Officer: Nur Izzah
Tournament Director: Simeon Bott
Captains:
Div 1: James Harrison
Div 2: Daniel Muir
Div 3: Toby Shephard
5-a-side Football: Andy Pollock
Society Constitution:
(Read here)