We have some fantastic chess news to share: Congratulations to Olivia and Lucas!

Last month, two Beaverton students competed at the 34th Annual North American Open in Las Vegas and we’ve got some amazing news to share! Lucas and Olivia Maokhampio just had an incredible run, winning sizable cash prizes.

Lucas is an 11-year-old 5th grader at Vose School. He studies chess 2-3 hour every day, playing in as many tournaments as he can at Puddletown, Rose City Chess and the Portland Chess club. Thursday nights he hangs out at the Beaverton chess Club beating most of the members there.

At the tournament, Lucas took 1st place in the U1500 section with an incredible score of 6.5/7! He walked away with $5000 in prize money and a whopping 174 rating points. Way to go, Lucas!

Olivia is a 12-year-old 7th grader at Beaverton Academy of Science and Engineering. She also goes to a number of tournaments and plays at the Beaverton Chess Club.

Olivia also did an awesome job at the tournament, scoring 5/7 in the U1000 section. And to top it off, both Lucas and Olivia teamed up to win the Mixed Doubles Prize, bringing home an additional $1500!

Huge congratulations to both of them for these amazing achievements. You’ve made all of us at Puddletown so proud!

Keep up the great work, Lucas and Olivia!

Why learn chess? Simple:

It’s a great mental workout that helps children perform well in the classroom. Chess is a logical game where kids have to plan ahead and adjust to new situations. But most of all, it’s fun!

Larry Ball (Coach Larry) teaches students of all ages at the Steinitz Chess Academy in Beaverton. For more information, email Larry at larryball48@yahoo.com.