Monday, July 27, 2009

CLAUDIA DRAWS THE OHIO HIGH SCHOOL SCHOLASTIC CHAMPION - REBECCA LELKO AT THE SPNI 2009

Once I found out last night that Claudia would be facing Rebecca Lelko from Ohio, I quickly sumerged myself in the internet attempting to learn who she was.


I was extremely impressed by her chess biography, which included:


1. Ohio High School Scholastic Chess Champion, two years in a row.
2. 2007 Susan Polgar World Open winner with a $75,000 scholarship to Texas Tech.


Regardless of her age, 18-years old, compared to Claudia's 11 years of age, this was not a concern being that she has always played with adult men since she was six years old. The 200-point plus rating difference over Claudia did not bother me either.

It was simply her experience.


After a positive coaching sesion with my daughter, I felt she was ready emotionally and mentally.

AFTER A 4-HOUR GAME, the longest in Claudia's chess career, both agreed upon a draw after they had one pawn and rook each in the 64th move.

Upon speaking with my daughter, she told me she had lost a pawn early in the game only to get it back in the endgame.


Only 5-boards were still playing after the 4-hour game. We thank Rebecca for such an important experience for our daughter.

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