Chess Prodigy Checks Out With 10th Crown

Harry Akopyan, a 16-year-old chess champion who trains in Huntington Beach, has won his 10th national junior championship, a U.S. record, his chess coach said Tuesday.

Akopyan won the Super Nationals Scholastic Chess Championship in Knoxville, Tenn., on Sunday, said his coach, Robert M. Snyder of the Chess for Juniors Club in Huntington Beach. More than 4,000 students competed in the three-day championship.

Akopyan, a Los Angeles high school freshman, represented the United States at the 1995 World Youth Championship in Sao Lourenco, Brazil, after an Irvine man volunteered to pay for his trip. Akopyan’s family, which came from Armenia in 1988, keeps trying to save money so he can continue to take chess lessons and play in tournaments.

Chess for Juniors also helps with his expenses.