Minnesota Prison Holds First in the State Chess Tournament

The Minnesota Correctional Facility-Stillwater was hosted an official chess tournament in mid-April, taking what’s a pastime for many incarcerated persons, and allowing them to play the game in a formal competition. The top four players in the tournament were expected to compete against other incarcerated people living in facilities across the United States.

“We are going to be on the clock. It’s going to be 25 minutes with five-second delay,” said Ed Bourgeois, with the Minnesota State Chess Association, as he spoke to the gathered players. “We’re in a rated tournament, we really ask you to stay quiet, to respect the other players that are playing.” Bourgeois explained that he and others worked for two years to make the tournament a reality. And he told them: Don’t worry if you make a mistake; even the best players do. Just move on and try to stay focused.

The tournament was hosted in partnership with the nonprofit The Gift of Chess. Stillwater resident Lon Newman was among the people who made it possible. Newman is a big fan of chess, and said he’s convinced that the game can do much more than simply entertain. “There’s decision-making, you know — judgment, impulse control, some things you learn from the game,” he said.

MCF-Stillwater Warden William Bolin said all 40 available spots for the tournament were filled. “I’m not surprised at all. We’ve got quite a few of our incarcerated men that play chess, play checkers, things of that nature,” he said. “I was a former therapist prior to being a warden, and a lot of our evidence-based programming really is based on cognitive behavioral therapy, which is involved in critical thinking, making good choices based upon your thought process and thinking.”

Incarcerated chess players taking part in the tournament included 52-year-old Hannabal Shaddai, who’s in the 31st year of a prison sentence for felony murder. “I love chess. I’ve been playing chess since about 2009,” he said. “I’ve known how the pieces move since the sixth grade, because my sixth-grade teacher, he said. “‘Chess is like life.’ You should know every move you’re gonna make. You should know it, and have a reason to make the move; otherwise, don’t make the move.”

Shaddai said he spread the word about the chess tournament among other inmates at Stillwater. He agreed that the game offers many lessons. Shaddai said he spread the word about the chess tournament among other inmates at Stillwater. He agreed that the game offers many lessons.