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Make your move at Armed Forces Chess Open

The military’s elite chess players are in the last days of training before the Interservice Chess Tournament, an invitation-only competition to be held June 10-16 at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif.

This is no all-comers event — only the top players are stepping up to the board for tournament play. But if you’ve got the itch to compete, you can get in on the action later this year, at the Armed Forces Chess Open.

To be held Oct. 6-8 at the Marine Corps’ Henderson Hall in Arlington, Va., entry in the AFCO is free to all active duty members, reservists, retirees, service academy students and Reserve Officer Training Program members who are also members of the U.S. Chess Federation, according to Steven Rollins, a retired Marine and member of the USCF’s Military Chess Committee.

“Once the ‘official’ chess tournament of the services, the AFCO now serves as the country's largest military-oriented chess event and is run completely based on donations and volunteers interested in preserving the rich heritage of military chess competition,” Rollins said in an e-mail announcing the competition.

Click here to find out more information about the Armed Forces Chess Open online.