Maurice Ashley: The World’s First Black Grandmaster

• Ashley, a former World boxing and kickboxing champion, shares his journey as a chess grandmaster.

• He began his love for chess at a young age and taught himself chess at 21.

• He met the Black Bear School, a group of chess players, and they became his sparring partners.

• Ashley achieved the Grandmaster title at 33, a long journey that taught him significant lessons.

• He emphasized the importance of giving free lessons to young prodigies with potential and established the Maurice Ashley Chess Fellowship in the US.

• He convinced the Jamaican government to give a quarter million dollars to developing chess annually.

• Ashley is also working with kids in Africa, aiming to reproduce himself in terms of Black players and girls who are completely invisible in chess.

• He was discovered by Bob Rice, the commissioner of the Professional Chess Association, who sponsored the World Chess Championship.