Chess featured on HBO's "Real Sports"

by ChessBase
10/22/2018 – HBO's "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel" explores the grassroots movement to reenergize chess in America when a new edition of the show debuts on Tuesday, October 23rd. Soledad O’Brien (pictured) interviews Saint Louis Chess Club founder and patron, Rex Sinquefield who confesses to being a "passionate addict" who has sunk nearly $50 million dollars into the sport.
The Open Games begin after the moves 1.e4 e5. The name results from the fact that the position often opens quickly which might lead to an early clash of the enemy pieces. Typical examples are the Scotch Opening, the Two Knights Defence or the venerable King’s Gambit. But the most important openings after 1.e4 e5 are the Italian Game and the Ruy Lopez, and here the game often develops more slowly. On this DVD the International Master Georgios Souleidis presents these and all other relevant openings arising after 1.e4 e5 in 36 videos.

Press Release

"Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel" TV’s most-honoured sports journalism series, with a record 18 Sports Emmy® Awards for Outstanding Sports Journalism, returns for more enterprising features and reporting when the show’s 259th edition debuts Tuesday, October 23rd (10:00-11:00 p.m. EDT/PDT), exclusively on HBO.

Segments include: The Gateway to Chess. In the heart of St. Louis is one of the largest chess clubs in the world, across the street from the memorabilia-filled Chess Hall of Fame. Both initiatives have been spearheaded by uber-wealthy, local philanthropist Rex Sinquefield, who, armed with unimaginable wealth and relentless drive, has a vision to make his favourite game into America’s too. The nation’s “Gateway to the West,” best known for baseball and beer, is falling hard for the game, due in large to Sinquefield’s grassroots movement that includes more than one hundred public schools that have introduced chess into their curricula. REAL SPORTS correspondent Soledad O’Brien travels to the newly-touted chess capital of the world and meets Rex Sinquefield to learn more about his vision to make the classic game of strategy the modern American favourite.

Producer: Tim Walker.

The executive producers of REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL are Rick Bernstein and Joe Perskie.

About the Saint Louis Chess Club

The Saint Louis Chess Club is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization that is committed to making chess an important part of our community. In addition to providing a forum for the community to play tournaments and casual games, the club also offers chess improvement classes, beginner lessons and special lectures.

Recognizing the cognitive and behavioural benefits of chess, the Saint Louis Chess Club is committed to supporting those chess programs that already exist in area schools while encouraging the development of new in-school and after-school programs. For more information, visit saintlouischessclub.org.

Reports about chess: tournaments, championships, portraits, interviews, World Championships, product launches and more.

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Babysplitz Babysplitz 10/24/2018 07:39
I watched the show last night.
Very good but nothing new if you've watched the Sinquefield broadcasts on Youtube.
Bryant Gumbel is very well respected by US sports fans. This was aimed at the casual chessplayers or the person that just knows the moves and might be interested to learn more. For that purpose the show was a success.
Harry Pillsbury Harry Pillsbury 10/24/2018 04:25
I met Mr. Sinquefield at the First Sinquefield Cup. You would never know that he was a billionaire. He was humble and polite. The resurgence of American Chess in the 21st Century is due in large part to this wonderful man.
fons3 fons3 10/24/2018 12:51
@ Babysplitz: That was not my point.

I don't mind philanthropists sponsoring chess tournaments.

But in case you think philanthropists are the solution to everything, let me remind you that Kirsan Ilyumzhinov was a chess philanthropist.
Babysplitz Babysplitz 10/23/2018 07:41
Philanthropist have always organized and supported chess palyers since the game was invented.
It works a lot better than governaments getting involved.
fons3 fons3 10/22/2018 11:14
When a certain initiative is started, organized and funded by a philanthropist with unimaginable wealth, it's not really a grassroots movement imo. But whatever.
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