When basketball star Victor Wembanyama (Wemby) says that it’s time for a game, chess players show up! It happened last December in New York, and again on Sunday in his hometown of Le Chesnay, France. Just last week, Wemby announced the Hoop Gambit tournament. The event paired a chess tournament with one-on-one and three-on-three basketball competitions on courts that Wemby had designed for the community.
The chess tournament featured dozens of competitors, ranging in age from five to 91 years old! Well-known visitors in and out of the world of chess included another French NBA star, Rudy Gobert, and chess streamer IM Julien Song. After seven hard-fought rounds, IM Yovann Gatineau emerged victorious with 6.5/7.
He confidently earned the top spot by winning his first six games, only conceding a 13-move draw in the final round to secure the title. The most critical game was Gatineau’s battle with the other IM in the field, Aarav Dengla, who won the rest of his games to tie for second place with WFM Isabelle Malassagne.
Wemby plays Center for the San Antonio Spurs and has had chess as a passion for many years. Wemby spoke about his chess background in a recent interview with Song in Las Vegas, telling him: “There was a long period in my life while I did not play much, but I learned chess when I was around 10 years old and played for half a year in a chess club.” Wemby explained what the game means for him. He said, “I like chess because it challenges the brain big time.” Look out for more chess from Wemby to come.
