Announcing the launch of my professional chess career Josh Case - Blog

Announcing the launch of my professional chess career

After 17 years of online chess, I've been invited to my first professional over-the-board tournament

Josh Case April 1st, 2024 ยท 3 min read
Fabiano Caruana, the world's number 2 ranked chess player, has been a huge inspiration to me.

Some two decades ago, in the library at St Thomas the Apostle primary school in Melbourne, I delivered my first checkmate during a chess lesson.

The rush I got was like nothing I had ever experienced. I was hooked. I was 6 years old.

I spent the next 24 years honing my skills - solving chess puzzles, watching YouTube tutorials, and studying books on the games of great world champions of years gone by.

Desperate to feel that rush again.

Despite my love for the game, I never thought seriously about taking chess further. I was always too busy with my studies, with hospital work and tinkering with software.

That's why today, I'm very excited to announce the launch of my professional chess career.

After a decades-long climb through the online rankings, I've been invited to my first professional over-the-board tournament, the 2024 Visa Chess Classic, to be held in Reykjavik, Iceland in August.

The tournament is a 9-round Swiss event, with a prize pool of $100,000USD. The winner will take home $30,000.

Given this is my first professional tournament, I'm not expecting to win, especially given the quality of the field. But I'm excited to test myself against some of the best players in the world including former world champion Magnus Carlsen.

Given the extensive costs of travel and accommodation, I will also soon be releasing my second non-fiction title Code Black & White: An Introduction to Chess for Doctors and Medical Students. The book will be available for purchase on Amazon and other major online retailers on July 1st, and all proceeds will go towards funding my trip to the tournament.

Given I will be proudly representing Australia, I'm also seeking personal and corporate sponsorship to help me get to the tournament. If you're interested in making a contribution, please get in touch via this link.

I am so grateful to everyone who has already contributed. The total we have already raised is absolutely staggering!

I'm looking forward to sharing more updates with you as I prepare for the tournament.

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Written By Josh Case Medical doctor & software developer. Chief Technical Officer (CTO) at Go Locum. Author of Code Blue: An Introduction to Programming for Doctors and Medical Students.
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