Joel Benjamin American chess player, grandmaster Date of Birth: 11.03.1964 Country: USA

1. Biography of Joel Benjamin
2. Early Life and Education
3. Chess Achievements
4. Other Contributions to Chess
5. Personal Life

Biography of Joel Benjamin

Joel Benjamin is an American chess player and a Grandmaster. He was named the Grandmaster of the Year by the United States Chess Federation (USCF) in 1998. As of October 2012, his Elo rating is 2530, making Benjamin the 37th best player in the United States and the 620th best player in the world.

Early Life and Education

Joel Benjamin was born in Brooklyn, New York and grew up in the Marine Park neighborhood. He attended a school for gifted children and graduated from Yale University in 1985.

Chess Achievements

At the age of 13, Benjamin broke Bobby Fischer's record and became the youngest chess master in the United States. This title was later surpassed by Stuart Rachels and then Awonder Liang on August 5, 2011, at the age of 8 years and 118 days.

As a junior player, Benjamin won multiple national championships. He became the national champion among elementary school students in 1976, among students aged 12-14 in 1978, and among high school students in 1980-1981. In 1980, Benjamin earned the title of International Master (IM). He won the U.S. Junior Chess Championship in 1982 and the U.S. Open Chess Championship in 1985. A year later, Benjamin achieved the Grandmaster title. He became the co-champion of the U.S. Chess Championship in 1987, sharing the title with Nick De Firmian. Benjamin went on to win the championship again in 1997 and 2000. He also won the Saint John Open I tournament in 1988 and the Canadian Open Chess Championship in 2000. In 1999, he secured first place at the QVB Chess Festival in Sydney. Benjamin was inducted into the World Chess Hall of Fame in Miami on May 2, 2008.

Other Contributions to Chess

In the chess world, Joel Benjamin is known for his unconventional style of starting games. He is capable of utilizing even the slightest advantage to finish a match on his own terms and secure a victory. Benjamin co-authored "Unorthodox Openings" with Eric Schiller, which was published by Batsford in 1987. His written works are frequently published in "Chess Life" magazine and other chess periodicals. Benjamin is a regular commentator on the commercial chess server, the Internet Chess Club. From 1991 to 1994, he was the chief editor and founder of the now-defunct magazine, "Chess Chow." His latest book is titled "American Grandmaster: Four Decades of Chess Adventures."

Personal Life

Joel Benjamin appeared in the 1993 film "Searching for Bobby Fischer" and the 2003 documentary "Game Over: Kasparov and the Machine." He currently resides in New Jersey with his wife Deborah and is raising two children, five-year-old Aidan and three-year-old Amy.