Kassa Korley

Kassa Korley
Korley staring at chessboard, with sign labelling the board or player as "47"
Korley in 2019
CountryUnited States (until 2014)
Denmark (since 2014)
Born (1993-05-20) 20 May 1993 (age 31)
Harlem, New York
TitleInternational Master (2014)
FIDE rating2407 (November 2024)
Peak rating2468 (May 2019)

Kassa Korley (born 20 May 1993) is an American-born Danish chess player who holds the title of International Master (IM).

Biography

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At age 15, he became the youngest African American to earn the US Chess Federation (USCF) title of National Master (NM), a record since surpassed by Justus Williams and then Joshua Colas.[1][2] Korley switched federations from the United States to Denmark in 2014 and has triple citizenship through Ghana as well.[3] He began playing chess at age five and never had a formal instructor.[4] Korley became a FIDE Master (FM) in 2010 and an International Master in 2014.[5] He has two Grandmaster (GM) norms, which he earned in 2018 at the Charlotte Chess Festival and in 2019 at the Xtracon Open in Copenhagen.[6][7] Korley resides primarily in New York City, but also splits his time living with family in Denmark.[8] He attended Duke University and worked at Codecademy after graduating, ultimately leaving in 2019 to focus on becoming a Grandmaster.[9][10]

Korley currently works for Chess.com as a match commentator.[11]

References

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  1. ^ Shabazz, Daaim (21 August 2008). "Kassa Korley makes Master!". The Chess Drum. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  2. ^ Shabazz, Daaim (17 December 2010). "Record falls... Colas makes Master!". The Chess Drum. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  3. ^ Shabazz, Daaim (22 June 2008). "2008 World Open (Philadelphia, USA)". The Chess Drum. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  4. ^ "About Kassa Korley". Kassa Korley. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Kassa Korley". FIDE. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  6. ^ Shabazz, Daaim (22 June 2018). "Kassa Korley earns first GM norm!". The Chess Drum. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  7. ^ Shabazz, Daaim (28 July 2019). "Korley bags 2nd GM norm @ Xtracon Open". The Chess Drum. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  8. ^ Nørgaard, Malte (9 July 2019). "Kulturkombi skal hjælpe dansk-amerikansk skakspiller til at skrive sportshistorie" [Kulturkombi will help Danish-American chess players to write sports history]. Danish Broadcasting Company. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  9. ^ Piotrowski, Anne. "Senior Competes for Chess Ranking". Duke Today. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  10. ^ Interview with IM Kassa Korley about chess in NYC and Denmark, chess improvement, Kramnik, Carlsen. Perpetual Chess Podcast. 2 May 2018. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  11. ^ "IM Kassa Korley (kassablanca) - Chess Profile". Chess.com. Retrieved 2024-03-08.