ChessFest – 6,000 chess fans on Trafalgar Square

The UK’s biggest-ever outdoor chess festival, ChessFest, attracted a total of 6,000 visitors over seven hours for a day of sun, chess and fun at Trafalgar Square in central London on Sunday 18th July.

Among the various activities enjoyed by casual and competitive players were live chess games performed by actors; grandmaster simuls; free lessons from professional chess tutors; a live match between London and Liverpool schoolchildren; and a ‘Battle of the Prodigies’ between London’s Shreyas Royal and New York’s Tani Adewumi.

Also part of the festival were the Decode Chess Rapidplay for 150 players on Saturday 17th July and a day of chess lessons and educational activities for 200 schoolchildren on Friday 16th July.

Chess in Schools and Communities, which organised the outdoor festival with the support of XTX Markets, says it hopes to make ChessFest an annual event.

For a full, illustrated report, please see this blog on Chess.com – https://www.chess.com/blog/timpeterwall/chess-in-wonderland-london-chessfest-attracts-6-000-visitors

Picture by Andrew Moss