Maurice Ashley
Chess Grandmaster
In 1999 Maurice Ashley became the first African-American to achieve the exalted chess rank of international grandmaster. He has been a chess commentator on ESPN and is the author of the book "Chess for Success: Using an Old Game to Build New Strengths in Children and Teens."
The first African-American grandmaster traces his obsession with chess to a high school friend who kept crushing him at the game.
▸
3 min
—
with
The game trains you to focus on what your opponent is thinking and planning—a discipline that is useful on the chessboard and in the boardroom.
▸
2 min
—
with
“It’s a discipline that you practice,” says the Jamaican-born grandmaster, “and you can’t help but develop your mental powers.”
▸
5 min
—
with
The top African-American chess player defied the conventional wisdom that you need to learn the game in preschool to become a grandmaster.
▸
11 min
—
with
Players from Brooklyn want “to rip your heart out, cook it, and eat it later.”
▸
2 min
—
with
