Champ’s Time Runs Out at World Tournament : Chess: Faster clock hinders Harry Akopyan, but his father’s surprise attendance offsets his disappointing finish.
HUNTINGTON BEACH — Harry Akopyan, the 14-year-old chess champion who trains in Huntington Beach, finished a disappointing 16th among 52 players in the world junior championship in Brazil but was buoyed by the surprise appearance of his father during his final two games last week.
“I’m proud of my play but not very much of my score,” Harry said Monday after the two-week World Youth Championships sponsored by the World Chess Federation.
Harry’s family, which is on welfare, came from Armenia seven years ago. They saved money so he could take lessons from national master Robert M. Snyder at the Chess for Juniors club in Huntington Beach.
The youth’s trip to Sao Lourenco, Brazil, was paid for by Irvine resident David Huff, the father of Alexander Huff, who twice placed second to Harry in national championships.
Harry’s parents are unemployed and speak little English. They had not seen their son win six consecutive national junior championships because they could not afford the travel expense from their Hollywood apartment.
After a story on Harry appeared in The Times, a donor offered to send his parents to the Brazil tournament. His father, Onik Akopyan, 55, got a last-minute visa and passport renewal and was able to catch the end of the tournament, which started Oct. 17 and ended Saturday.
But the boy’s mother, Emush Akopyan, 45, asked the donor if the money for her trip could instead be used for travel expenses so Harry could defend his U.S. title in the national junior championship in New York in December.
The donor, Rouben Kandilian, agreed.
Kandilian, president of Zakaroff Services in Industry, wanted to donate money “just for support so his father could be with him,” said Fernando Guerra, controller of the waste disposal company. “It’s hard for the little boy to try to win without his parents there.”
Harry said “it was great” to have his father at the tournament.
“He had a good time watching,” Harry said.
Harry finished with five wins, four losses and two draws. He said he was thrown off by the time limitations. At U.S. tournaments, he was allowed two hours for 40 moves; in Brazil, he had to make 50 moves in two hours.
At the international tournament, Harry was among five U.S. junior players in different age categories. U.S. team coach Jeremy Silman, who represents the U.S. Chess Federation, said that in a few cases, Harry “was winning games easily and lost at the last second because he’d run out of time.”
If Harry had won his last game, he would have tied for fifth place in the 14-and-under category.
Harry Akopyan will appear Saturday from noon to 2:30 p.m. at a Chess for Juniors tournament, which is open to the public, at 15081 Golden West St., (714) 531-5238. Also, the nonprofit Armenian General Athletic Union, with 200 members, has set up a fund for Harry at 17330 Newhope St., Suite A-2, Fountain Valley 92708, (714) 444-4313.
