John Saunders (chess player)
Encyclopedia
John Cameron Saunders is a British chess
player, writer and magazine editor.
(1963-70). He went on to Selwyn College, Cambridge
where he obtained a degree in Law and Classics.
As a winner of domestic open tournaments, he reached a peak Elo rating of 2255 (in January 1993) and played internationally for his country Wales
, when selected as 'first reserve' board for the 1997 European Team Championship.
Becoming less active as a player, Saunders has since made a career from chess writing and journalism, first as editor of British Chess Magazine
from 1999 to July 2010, then acting editor of CHESS Magazine
from September 2010, and by providing news coverage for BBC
Ceefax
. He is also the founder and archivist of 'Britbase', a chess game database that attempts to log the collected gamescores of every major tournament in British chess history.
He has written some instructive guides on the game, covering a broad range of levels of expertise.
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
player, writer and magazine editor.
Chess career
Saunders learned to play the game at the age of seven and has played competitively since attending the Royal Grammar School, High WycombeRoyal Grammar School, High Wycombe
See Royal Grammar School for the other schools with the name RGS.The Royal Grammar School High Wycombe is a selective grammar school situated in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. As a state school it does not charge fees for students to attend, but they must pass an entrance exam...
(1963-70). He went on to Selwyn College, Cambridge
Selwyn College, Cambridge
Selwyn College is a constituent college in the University of Cambridge in England, United Kingdom.The college was founded by the Selwyn Memorial Committee in memory of the Rt Reverend George Selwyn , who rowed on the Cambridge crew in the first Varsity Boat Race in 1829, and went on to become the...
where he obtained a degree in Law and Classics.
As a winner of domestic open tournaments, he reached a peak Elo rating of 2255 (in January 1993) and played internationally for his country Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, when selected as 'first reserve' board for the 1997 European Team Championship.
Becoming less active as a player, Saunders has since made a career from chess writing and journalism, first as editor of British Chess Magazine
British Chess Magazine
British Chess Magazine is the world's oldest chess magazine in continuous publication. First published in January 1881, it has appeared at monthly intervals ever since. It is frequently known in the chess world as BCM....
from 1999 to July 2010, then acting editor of CHESS Magazine
CHESS magazine
CHESS magazine , also called CHESS and previously called CHESS Monthly, is a chess magazine published monthly in the UK by Chess and Bridge Limited. CHESS was founded by Baruch Harold Wood in 1935 in Sutton Coldfield. Wood edited it until 1988, when it was taken over by Pergamon Press and changed...
from September 2010, and by providing news coverage for BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Ceefax
Ceefax
Ceefax is the BBC's teletext information service transmitted via the analogue signal, started in 1974 and will run until April 2012 for Pages from Ceefax, while the actual interactive service will run until 24 October 2012, in-line with the digital switchover.-History:During the late 60s, engineer...
. He is also the founder and archivist of 'Britbase', a chess game database that attempts to log the collected gamescores of every major tournament in British chess history.
He has written some instructive guides on the game, covering a broad range of levels of expertise.