The traditional Wunderkind 2010 Children’s Chess Tournament started in Ulan-Ude at the city’s chess club on May 29. This year it is being held for the 13th time, and for the second time for the set of prizes of Bair Dashievich Tsyrenov. Mr. Tsyrenov is the president of the Shatar Chess Club and Deputy General Director of MBC Corporation, Metropol Group of companies.

It was MBC Corporation that sponsored the tournament, which is known to bring together very young chess masters. Keeping with tradition, the Wunderkind event consisted of two tournaments. The first one, called Wunderkind, is for preschool age children who will start school this year, and the second one, called First Former+, is for players who have completed the first form.

As usual, there were many participants this year, which is, of course, gratifying. It shows that chess is still very popular in Buryatia, particularly in Ulan-Ude. At the opening ceremony of the young players’ tournament, their mothers, fathers and grandparents were welcomed by Bator Tsyrenov, Deputy Director of MBC Corporation branch office; Vyacheslav Shomoyev, Director of Children’s and Youth Sports School (DYUSSH)-8; Yevgeny Bainov, a coach from DYUSSH-8 who is chief organizer of this tournament (who established it and has kept it going for many years); and chief tournament referee Hayan Garmazhapov.

Bator Tsyrenov, Deputy Branch Director of MBC Corporation said, “Our corporation has been supporting sports in Buryatia including chess for years. Everyone knows about the success achieved by Buryat players. The Shatar Metropol team has made a good showing in the Premier League of the Russian Club Championship, and a tournament veteran, Anzama Sharapova, won the Russian Speed Chess Championship. It is good to know that we had something to do with these successes”.

METROPOL Group of companies, and MBC Corporation in particular, consider chess an intelectual game that develops the ability to think strategically, to think over one’s actions several moves ahead. A person who knows how to play chess shows promise not only in chess, but in other fields as well.