Young VSMPO-AVISMA chess prodigies set for international stage

SVERDLOVSK REGION

 

Candidate Master of Sports Maria Kleshcheva and FIDE Master Alexey Prokhorov, VSMPO-AVISMA's Debut corporate chess club members, will compete in international chess tournaments. They earned this right due to their stellar performance at the Russian Championship in Sochi, which concluded on February 14.

 

Maria Kleshcheva clinched a spot in the World Youth Chess Championship in Italy after triumphing in the Girls Under-15 category. The athlete from Verkhnyaya Salda (Sverdlovsk Region) outshined 50 elite players representing 40 regions of Russia. Her impressive run included six victories over opponents from Moscow, the Primorsky Territory, and the Kaliningrad, Novosibirsk, and Tomsk regions, along with two draws against chess players from the Orenburg Region and Bashkortostan. According to the Chess Federation of Russia, Maria currently holds a rating of 1,780 in classic chess, 1,930 in rapid, and 1,762 in blitz.

The World Youth Chess Championship in the Boys and Girls Under-14, 16, and 18 age categories will be held from June 14 to 27 in Montesilvano, Italy, VSMPO-AVISMA Corporation Press Service reported to RusBusinessNews.

 

FIDE Master Alexey Prokhorov took the third place at the Russian Championship in the Boys Under-17 category and qualified for the Asian Chess Championship, which he had previously won in 2024. He holds a rating of 2,252 in classical chess, 2,366 in rapid, and 2,274 in blitz. Aleksey's upcoming international tournament will take place in China this July.