Sunil Weeramantry, born on September 11, 1951, in Sri Lanka, is a prominent figure in the chess world, known for his contributions as a player, coach, author, and educator.
Sunil is a FIDE Master who twice won the New York State Chess Champion (1975 and 2001). In 1978, 2004, and 2006 he represented Sri Lanka in Chess Olympiads.
In the 1978 Olympiad, the first time Sri Lanka competed in a FIDE event, he played on Board 1 and scored 10/14, finishing fourth behind Korchnoi, Orestes Rodriguez and Ulf Andersson, and ahead of the likes of Portisch, Spassky, Kavalek, and Hubner. Had Andersson not defeated Pomar in the last round, he would have won bronze.
Sunil was named "Chess Educator of the Year" by the University of Texas at Dallas. He co-authored "Best Lessons of a Chess Coach", originally published in 1993 and later expanded in 2020. He also co-wrote "Great Moves: Learning Chess Through History" in 2017.
Currently Sunil is an Officer of the US Chess Trust, and the liaison from the Trust to the US and World Chess Hall of Fame. He has been an active volunteer for US Chess and has served as Chair of its Chess-in-Education committee as well as Chair of the Scholastic Council. He has received many awards from US Chess over his career, such as the Scholastic Service Award and the Meritorious Service Award, culminating in the Distinguished Service Award in 2020. Previously he had been inducted into the NY State Chess Hall of Fame in 1997.
But he is mainly known for being one of the most successful chess coaches in the United States. He has trained over 200 individual and team champions in national and international youth competitions.
This picture shows Sunil conferring with his student before a game at the Zürich Masters in 2015. Both of the above photos were taken at the time by Frederic Friedel.
Of course, Sunil is particularly known for bringing up his stepson, Hikaru Nakamura, who became a top-ranked grandmaster. He was Hikaru's first chess coach, and played a crucial role in developing his chess skills. He used had an unconventional approach – he allowed young Hikaru to play a lot of blitz chess, which was criticized at the time but ultimately contributed to Nakamura's success. Sunil had recognized his stepson's unique approach to learning chess and adapted his teaching methods accordingly, focusing on what motivated Hikaru rather than imposing a traditional system.
Celebration of Vision:
Honouring Sunil Weeramantry
On March 11, 2025, friends and supporters from the chess community gathered at the historic Harvard Club of New York to honour Sunil Weeramantry, Founder of the National Scholastic Chess Foundation (NSCF). This elegant evening brought together Asuka & Hikaru Nakamura, the NSCF Board of Directors, and many longtime friends, making it a truly memorable occasion.
To honour Sunil's vision and decades of impact, the NSCF Board of Directors has established the Sunil Weeramantry Legacy Fund. This endowment will ensure the sustainability of critical chess education programs that:
You can support the program for underserved youth.
Sunil today, with teen players and his most successful student [pictures courtesy NSCF]
Sunil with his coach colleague Bruce Pandolfini
Legendary chess educator Bruce Pandolfini reflected on his five decades of friendship with Sunil, highlighting his successes as a coach and teacher. He commented that the NSCF's teacher training programs have amplified Sunil's influence from thousands of students to potentially millions. He writes:
"What is his secret? Sunil simply understands the didactic process and loves teaching. Sunil has a sixth (and seventh) sense of what is truly relevant. He is a scientist who realizes that asking a good question practically gives the solution. He is a teacher who knows when to turn a student's mistake into a learning experience.… In the world of chess, he is one of the few teachers whose acumen astonishes me."
You may remember how Bruce, the trainer of young Josh Waitzkin, was played by Ben Kingsley in the movie Searching for Bobby Fischer.
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