Joshua Waitzkin
Encyclopedia
Joshua Waitzkin is an American chess
player, martial arts
competitor, and author
. As a child, he was recognized as a prodigy, and won the U.S. Junior Chess championship in 1993 and 1994. He is the only person to have won the National Primary, Elementary, Junior High School, High School, U.S. Cadet, and U.S. Junior Closed chess championships in his career. The movie Searching for Bobby Fischer
is based on his early life.
. He began playing the game at the age of six, having discovered it while wandering through Washington Square Park
in New York City. It was there, while playing blitz chess
with the hustlers, that he was "discovered" by Bruce Pandolfini
, a chess author and teacher, who later took Waitzkin under his wing for a number of years. During his years as a student at The Dalton School
in New York City
he led the school to win seven national team championships between the third and ninth grades in addition to his eight individual titles.
The first master he ever defeated was Edward Frumkin, in a game featuring a remarkable sacrifice
of Waitzkin's queen
and rook
in exchange for a checkmate
six moves later. Waitzkin was only ten years old at the time.
At age 11, he and fellow prodigy K. K. Karanja
were the only two children to draw
with World Champion Garry Kasparov
in an exhibition game where Kasparov played simultaneously
against 59 youngsters. Two years later, he earned the title of National Master, and at age 16 became an International Master.
Josh has not played in a US Chess Federation tournament since 1999 and his last FIDE tournament was before 2000. Nevertheless he remains a well-known and popular chess figure, largely owing to Paramount Pictures
' 1993 movie Searching for Bobby Fischer
, directed by Steven Zaillian
and produced by William Horberg
. The script for this film was based on a 1988 book by Joshua's father, Fred Waitzkin
: Searching for Bobby Fischer: The Father of a Prodigy Observes the World of Chess.
Josh announced the formation of The JW foundation on April 8, 2008.
The organization recently launched a new initiative and website, The Art of Learning Project. The site features resources for educators interested in developing a more engaged understanding of the learning process.
Joshua Waitzkin is the author of two books: Attacking Chess: Aggressive Strategies, Inside Moves from the U.S. Junior Chess Champion (1995) and The Art of Learning: An Inner Journey to Optimal Performance (2008). He is also the spokesperson for the Chessmaster
computer game series, and is featured in the game giving advice and game analysis.
In The Art of Learning, Waitzkin recounts the story of his years as a chess competitor from his own perspective. He describes how movie fame challenged his concentration on the game, how he took up Tai Chi as a form of relaxation, and then discovered that the same learning techniques he employed in chess enabled him to advance rapidly in martial arts as well. He subsequently studied eastern philosophies and psychology of learning. It also gives students and parents a way to discuss their "Art of Learning."
Waitzkin is active in the fight against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
. He does not have Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy; however, a close friend of his, Jonathan Wade, suffers from the medical condition.
As a young adult, Josh's focus shifted to the martial art T'ai chi ch'uan, in which he has won thirteen push hands National Championships and 2 World Championship titles.
Josh is also a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
under world champion and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu phenomenon Marcelo Garcia with a goal of becoming a world champion in that martial art by 2013. Josh is the co-founder of MGInAction.com and The Marcelo Garcia Academy, a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu school located in New York City.
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, martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
competitor, and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. As a child, he was recognized as a prodigy, and won the U.S. Junior Chess championship in 1993 and 1994. He is the only person to have won the National Primary, Elementary, Junior High School, High School, U.S. Cadet, and U.S. Junior Closed chess championships in his career. The movie Searching for Bobby Fischer
Searching for Bobby Fischer
Searching for Bobby Fischer is a 1993 film based on the life of prodigy chess player Joshua Waitzkin, played by Max Pomeranc. Adapted from the book of the same name by Joshua's father Fred, the film was written and directed by Steven Zaillian...
is based on his early life.
Life and career
Waitzkin was born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He began playing the game at the age of six, having discovered it while wandering through Washington Square Park
Washington Square Park
Washington Square Park is one of the best-known of New York City's 1,900 public parks. At 9.75 acres , it is a landmark in the Manhattan neighborhood of Greenwich Village, as well as a meeting place and center for cultural activity...
in New York City. It was there, while playing blitz chess
Blitz chess
Fast chess, also known as blitz chess, lightning chess, sudden death, speed chess, bullet chess and rapid chess, is a type of chess game in which each side is given less time to make their moves than under the normal tournament time controls of 60 to 180 minutes per player.-Overview:The different...
with the hustlers, that he was "discovered" by Bruce Pandolfini
Bruce Pandolfini
Bruce Pandolfini is a chess author, teacher and coach. He was famously portrayed by Ben Kingsley in the 1993 film Searching for Bobby Fischer, based on the book of the same name by Fred Waitzkin...
, a chess author and teacher, who later took Waitzkin under his wing for a number of years. During his years as a student at The Dalton School
The Dalton School
The Dalton School, originally called the Children's University School, is a private university-preparatory school on New York City's Upper East Side and a member of both the New York Interschooland the Ivy Preparatory School League...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
he led the school to win seven national team championships between the third and ninth grades in addition to his eight individual titles.
The first master he ever defeated was Edward Frumkin, in a game featuring a remarkable sacrifice
Sacrifice (chess)
In chess, a sacrifice is a move giving up a piece in the hopes of gaining tactical or positional compensation in other forms. A sacrifice could also be a deliberate exchange of a chess piece of higher value for an opponent's piece of lower value....
of Waitzkin's queen
Queen (chess)
The queen is the most powerful piece in the game of chess, able to move any number of squares vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. Each player starts the game with one queen, placed in the middle of the first rank next to the king. With the chessboard oriented correctly, the white queen starts...
and rook
Rook (chess)
A rook is a piece in the strategy board game of chess. Formerly the piece was called the castle, tower, marquess, rector, and comes...
in exchange for a checkmate
Checkmate
Checkmate is a situation in chess in which one player's king is threatened with capture and there is no way to meet that threat. Or, simply put, the king is under direct attack and cannot avoid being captured...
six moves later. Waitzkin was only ten years old at the time.
At age 11, he and fellow prodigy K. K. Karanja
K. K. Karanja
Kangugi "K. K." Karanja is a chess player regarded as the first African-American chess prodigy. He became a US Chess Federation Candidate Master at the age of 10, the youngest African-American to do so.- Championships and Awards :...
were the only two children to draw
Draw (chess)
In chess, a draw is when a game ends in a tie. It is one of the possible outcomes of a game, along with a win for White and a win for Black . Usually, in tournaments a draw is worth a half point to each player, while a win is worth one point to the victor and none to the loser.For the most part,...
with World Champion Garry Kasparov
Garry Kasparov
Garry Kimovich Kasparov is a Russian chess grandmaster, a former World Chess Champion, writer, political activist, and one of the greatest chess players of all time....
in an exhibition game where Kasparov played simultaneously
Simultaneous exhibition
A simultaneous exhibition or simultaneous display is a board game exhibition in which one player plays multiple games at a time with a number of other players. Such an exhibition is often referred to simply as a "simul".In a regular simul, no chess clocks are used...
against 59 youngsters. Two years later, he earned the title of National Master, and at age 16 became an International Master.
Josh has not played in a US Chess Federation tournament since 1999 and his last FIDE tournament was before 2000. Nevertheless he remains a well-known and popular chess figure, largely owing to Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
' 1993 movie Searching for Bobby Fischer
Searching for Bobby Fischer
Searching for Bobby Fischer is a 1993 film based on the life of prodigy chess player Joshua Waitzkin, played by Max Pomeranc. Adapted from the book of the same name by Joshua's father Fred, the film was written and directed by Steven Zaillian...
, directed by Steven Zaillian
Steven Zaillian
Steven Ernest Bernard Zaillian is an American screenwriter, film director, film editor, producer, and founder of Film Rites, a film production company. He won an Academy Award for his screenplay for Schindler's List and he has been nominated two times for Awakenings and Gangs of New York...
and produced by William Horberg
William Horberg
William Horberg is a noted Hollywood film producer and blogger. His films include Anthony Minghella's adaptations of the novels The Talented Mr. Ripley and Cold Mountain...
. The script for this film was based on a 1988 book by Joshua's father, Fred Waitzkin
Fred Waitzkin
Fred Waitzkin is an American novelist and writer for The New York Times Sunday Magazine, New York, and Esquire...
: Searching for Bobby Fischer: The Father of a Prodigy Observes the World of Chess.
Josh announced the formation of The JW foundation on April 8, 2008.
"The JW Foundation is dedicated to helping teachers, parents, and educational institutions nurture the unique potential of children and young adults. Our mission is to help students discover a creative, resilient passion for learning while embracing and overcoming challenges".
The organization recently launched a new initiative and website, The Art of Learning Project. The site features resources for educators interested in developing a more engaged understanding of the learning process.
Joshua Waitzkin is the author of two books: Attacking Chess: Aggressive Strategies, Inside Moves from the U.S. Junior Chess Champion (1995) and The Art of Learning: An Inner Journey to Optimal Performance (2008). He is also the spokesperson for the Chessmaster
Chessmaster
Chessmaster is a chess playing computer game series which is now owned and developed by Ubisoft. It is the best-selling chess franchise in history, with more than five million units sold .-Timeline:...
computer game series, and is featured in the game giving advice and game analysis.
In The Art of Learning, Waitzkin recounts the story of his years as a chess competitor from his own perspective. He describes how movie fame challenged his concentration on the game, how he took up Tai Chi as a form of relaxation, and then discovered that the same learning techniques he employed in chess enabled him to advance rapidly in martial arts as well. He subsequently studied eastern philosophies and psychology of learning. It also gives students and parents a way to discuss their "Art of Learning."
Waitzkin is active in the fight against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
Duchenne muscular dystrophy
Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a recessive X-linked form of muscular dystrophy, which results in muscle degeneration, difficulty walking, breathing, and death. The incidence is 1 in 3,000 boys. Females and males are affected, though females are rarely affected and are more often carriers...
. He does not have Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy; however, a close friend of his, Jonathan Wade, suffers from the medical condition.
As a young adult, Josh's focus shifted to the martial art T'ai chi ch'uan, in which he has won thirteen push hands National Championships and 2 World Championship titles.
Josh is also a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art, combat sport, and a self defense system that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting...
under world champion and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu phenomenon Marcelo Garcia with a goal of becoming a world champion in that martial art by 2013. Josh is the co-founder of MGInAction.com and The Marcelo Garcia Academy, a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu school located in New York City.
Further reading
- Fred Waitzkin, Searching for Bobby Fischer: The Father of a Prodigy Observes the World of Chess (1988), Random House hardcover: ISBN 0-394-54455-2, Penguin paperback: ISBN 978-0140230383
- Josh Waitzkin, Attacking Chess: Aggressive Strategies and Inside Moves from the U.S. Junior Chess Champion (1995), Fireside, ISBN 978-0684802503
- Josh Waitzkin, The Art of Learning: A Journey in the Pursuit of Excellence (2007), Free Press, ISBN 978-0743277457
External links
- "Chess Champion Offers Success Strategies for Life" audio interview by NPRNPRNPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
on May 14, 2007 about the book The Art of Learning - The Art of Learning Project
- Interviews with Josh Waitzkin
- JW Foundation
- Edward WinterEdward Winter (chess historian)Edward Winter is an English journalist, archivist, historian, collector and author about the game of chess. He writes a regular column on that subject, Chess Notes, and is also a regular columnist for ChessBase.-Chess Notes:...
, Searching for Bobby Fischer (Joshua Waitzkin) - MGInAction