over-the-board chess tournaments

​As we all know, the COVID-19 pandemic change all of our lives. Thus far, we have all done the best we can to cope with this and push forward. In chess, Minds and Visions of the Future players/team members were greatly affected. They were unable to reap the benefits of practicing in person. In-person tournaments, playing with a clock, hands-on experience, and seeing friends and their instructors' faces in person created an abnormal situation for us all. Even though all of this took place, we could find a solution that will continue to serve us greatly. The adaption to lessons conducted online has excellent benefits. We can work with students in different states. We currently provide chess lessons to students in five states! We can explore other platforms that allow us to create exercises and lesson plans to help players develop their skill set and practice. Lastly, we can continue to compete in online tournaments! Since March of 2020, Minds and VIsions of the Future players/ team members have competed in over 25 online tournaments and have competed and fared well in the process. There are pros and cons to competing in both online and over-the-board tournaments. The online tournaments complete much faster than over-the-board tournaments. Online events help save time for families on Saturday and allow them to enjoy the rest of their Saturday. The benefits of over-the-board tournaments further prevent the prospects of cheating and can help provide peace of mind when it comes to fair play. It also allows for genuine, meaningful, and pure chess, in a sense where chess clocks, notation, and having your opponent in front of you are all present. So the question remains, which do you prefer, over-the-board chess tournaments or online chess tournaments?