A city guide to chess life in Tyumen
Chess schools, clubs and chess lessons in Tyumen
A big guide to chess in Tyumen: where to learn, how to find a coach, a chess club, a tournament or simply somewhere to play. The A. E. Karpov Regional Sports School, the City Chess Club's three venues, children's schools and studios, the Tyumen grandmasters Yuffa, Chigaev and Prokopchuk, and the history of chess in the city - from Yuffa's birth in 1997 to the opening of a school and a club by Anatoly Karpov himself in 2021.
Useful for parents looking for a school for a child and for adults thinking about returning to the board.
The city of the Karpov school and three active grandmasters
Life over the board in Tyumen rests on the Tyumen Region's A. E. Karpov Regional Chess Sports School at Geologorazvedchikov Drive 7 - it has a permanent coaching staff and hosts the region's rated tournaments «Chess Tyumen», the Memorial of Yury Mikhailovich Novikov and the «Belaya Ladya» series. The City Club covers three parts of the city: Chervishevsky Trakt 72a/1; Olimpiyskaya St. 19/1; Osipenko St. 63/2. The private segment consists of the «e4 - e5» children's club on Moskovsky Trakt, the studio for children at Shirotnaya St. 96, plus the school at the Chess Studio children's centre in the Mys district and the club at the Aprel residential complex, both opened in February 2021 with the participation of Anatoly Karpov.
Tyumen is a city with a strong grandmaster school. Connected with it are the international grandmasters Daniil Yuffa (born in Tyumen in 1997, a grandmaster from 2016 and a participant in the 2019 World Cup), Maxim Chigaev (a grandmaster from 2016 who has represented Tyumen since 2017 and won the Russian championship Higher League in 2020) and Evgeny Prokopchuk (a grandmaster and a long-standing mentor at the Tyumen school). On 5-6 February 2021 the 12th world champion Anatoly Karpov visited Tyumen and personally opened the city's new venues.
Chess schools and clubs in Tyumen
Tyumen's addresses for playing and lessons: the state A. E. Karpov Regional Sports School, the City Chess Club's three venues, the «e4 - e5» children's club, the studio and the club at the Aprel residential complex, and the studio for children on Shirotnaya. Every card is a working organisation with public contact details.
Where there is chess near you
Tyumen consists of four administrative districts. Below are the addresses by district where there are chess venues.
- The A. E. Karpov Regional Chess School - Geologorazvedchikov Drive 7
- The City Chess Club - Olimpiyskaya St. 19/1
- The City Chess Club - Osipenko St. 63/2
- The «e4 - e5» children's chess club - Moskovsky Trakt 143, block 1
- A chess studio for children - Shirotnaya St. 96
- The City Chess Club - Chervishevsky Trakt 72a/1
- The Chess Studio (of the Karpov project) - the Mys district
When to start a child, and what to choose
In Tyumen you can send a child to chess from pre-school age: the chess studio for children at Shirotnaya St. 96 takes them from 3. The «e4 - e5» children's club (Moskovsky Trakt 143 block 1) and the Chess Studio in the Mys district, opened in 2021 with the participation of Anatoly Karpov, are the main private addresses. Admission to the A. E. Karpov Regional School follows the sports-training programme.
What parents should look at: the age and level of the group, the coach, the district, the timetable, whether there is tournament practice, how many children are in the group and what the atmosphere is like at the trial lesson.
What chess gives a child
- ConcentrationA game is thirty to sixty minutes in a single focus. That is a skill in its own right, and it pays off at school.
- Understanding consequencesIn chess nothing happens «by accident». A child learns to think a move ahead.
- Losing calmlyArguably more important than the wins. A child learns not to fall apart after a defeat and to try again.
- A communityThe child gets a circle of peers outside school and the courtyard, with an atmosphere of its own.
- Tournament experienceTravel, regulations, playing on the clock - all of it feeds a growing independence.
You can start from nothing. And nobody will laugh
The City Chess Club with its three venues (Chervishevsky Trakt 72a/1; Olimpiyskaya St. 19/1; Osipenko St. 63/2) provides Tyumen's main club addresses for casual games and city tournaments; the club's instructor is Vsevolod Vladimirovich Bessarab. The studio and the club at the Aprel residential complex work with adults too. The A. E. Karpov Regional School at Geologorazvedchikov Drive 7 is the venue for the region's rated tournaments. The city amateur format Vibe Chess is somewhere you can turn up knowing only the rules.
You do not need a rating or a rank. Nor do you have to join a group - you can work one-to-one, or simply come to club meetups and amateur tournaments. Competitive chess and the amateur format are two different worlds; in the amateur one what counts is not the result but the fact that you turned up.
Lessons at a club or a school
Regular lessons, a programme, a coach - if you want it systematic.
An individual coach
The fastest progress and a flexible timetable. It costs more.
Club meetings
Casual games, company, city tournaments rated and unrated.
Vibe Chess
City amateur tournaments in cafes and bars. No rating requirements.
Online lessons
If travelling is awkward, there are online schools not tied to a city.
Studying on your own
Books, lichess or chess.com, going over your games - alongside the lessons.
How to look for a coach in Tyumen
We deliberately do not compile a «top coaches in Tyumen». There is no objective data for a ranking, and subjective selections are often misleading. Criteria for choosing are more use.
The coaches work at the schools and clubs listed above and can be contacted directly through their websites. The A. E. Karpov Regional Sports School has a permanent coaching staff, and Tyumen grandmasters Evgeny Prokopchuk, Sergey Iskusnykh and Roman Ovechkin take part in the work. At the chess studio and the club at the Aprel residential complex, opened with Anatoly Karpov's support, the Tyumen grandmasters Daniil Yuffa and Maxim Chigaev have taught at various times.
Experience with children
A child needs not the strongest player but the one who can explain. Ask how many children of that age the coach has taught.
Sporting title
Candidate master, master, international master are a guide but not a guarantee. What matters is the title combined with teaching experience.
Experience preparing for tournaments
If the aim is to travel for norms, you need a coach who has taken pupils to tournaments and understands the regulations.
Reviews and recommendations
A live word from parents or adult pupils beats a rating on an aggregator site. Ask friends and the VK groups.
District and format
For a child the journey is a big factor. Sometimes a good coach «right across town» works out worse than an average one round the corner. The alternative is online lessons.
Price
Prices in Tyumen depend on the school and the format. The A. E. Karpov Regional School runs a state institution's sports-training programmes. The private schools publish their rates on request or on their websites.
An individual approach
At a trial lesson the coach should be asking questions about the pupil rather than switching straight into «the programme».
Communication with parents
With a sensible coach it is clear what you are doing, why, and how progress is going. Answers along the lines of «all fine» are a bad sign.
A trial lesson
Never buy a season ticket off a photo and a description. One or two trial lessons are standard.
A guide to chess tuition prices in Tyumen
The price depends on the school, the format and the coach's title. Below is a guide to the main formats of chess tuition in Tyumen for 2025-2026. Exact rates are on the schools' own sites.
The A. E. Karpov Regional School
A state institution at Geologorazvedchikov Drive 7, with subsidised sports-training programmes. To enrol, call +7 (3452) 51-72-69.
The City Chess Club
3 venues: Chervishevsky Trakt 72a/1; Olimpiyskaya St. 19/1; Osipenko St. 63/2. Club games, city tournaments and sections.
The «e4 - e5» children's club
Tyumen, Moskovsky Trakt 143 block 1. A children's chess school. Rates are available from the club directly.
The Chess Studio (in the Mys district)
Opened with the participation of Anatoly Karpov in 2021. Children from 4, on the Karpov project's programme.
The chess club at the Aprel residential complex
Opened with the participation of Anatoly Karpov in 2021. A club format for children and adults.
The chess studio (Shirotnaya 96)
Tyumen, Shirotnaya St. 96. Admission from the age of 3. Rates are available from the studio directly.
The Karpov school's regular tournaments
«Chess Tyumen», the Yu. M. Novikov Memorial and the regional stages of «Belaya Ladya». The schedule is at 72chess.ru.
A Vibe Chess amateur tournament
City chess evenings in cafes and bars. Registration in the Telegram bot.
The A. E. Karpov Regional Sports School and the federation
The state regional school at Geologorazvedchikov Drive 7 is the main chess address of the Tyumen Region. The region's playing and competitive life is concentrated here: training for competitive players, the regional calendar of rated tournaments, «Chess Tyumen», the Yu. M. Novikov Memorial and the «Belaya Ladya» series. The site is 72chess.ru.
Chess tournaments in Tyumen
The calendar of regional tournaments is kept by the A. E. Karpov Regional Sports School at 72chess.ru, with an additional resource at 72chess.com. The main regular events are «Chess Tyumen» (classical, rapid, blitz), the Memorial of Honoured Coach Yury Mikhailovich Novikov, the regional stages of «Belaya Ladya» and the Tyumen Region championships. All rated tournaments can be filtered in the ratings.ruchess.ru system by region 72 (the Tyumen Region).
What the formats are
Vibe chess in Tyumen
Vibe Chess runs city chess evenings in the cafes and bars of Tyumen. Short games, different opponents, real conversation between rounds. It suits anyone who wants to come back to chess without the atmosphere of an exam or the pressure of competition.
It is not a replacement for the classical schools but an addition to them. After a working week you do not want to sweat over the board - you want a good evening with a game and some interesting people. Vibe Chess has a page of its own for Tyumen with all the rules of the format.
What a «vibe tournament» means
- Short games: 3+2 or 5+3.
- Several rounds in an evening, with different opponents.
- The levels vary - nobody has to be strong.
- Between games you can talk and order a coffee or a drink.
- You can come on your own - that is the normal way of it.
- Registration and announcements are in the Telegram bot.
The history of chess in Tyumen
The key dates in Tyumen chess - from Daniil Yuffa's birth in 1997 to Maxim Chigaev's wins in the Russian championship Higher League in 2020 and Anatoly Karpov's personal opening of a new chess school and club in Tyumen in February 2021.
Daniil Yuffa is born in Tyumen - the future international grandmaster (2016) and a participant in the 2019 World Cup.
Tyumen has a Regional Chess Sports School bearing the name of the 12th world champion Anatoly Karpov. Its main address is Geologorazvedchikov Drive 7.
Daniil Yuffa and Maxim Chigaev complete the international grandmaster norm. In this period Chigaev moves to Tyumen and starts representing the city at tournaments.
The Tyumen grandmaster Maxim Chigaev marries the Tyumen player Anastasia Sazonova and officially begins competing for Tyumen.
Maxim Chigaev wins the Higher League of the Russian classical chess championship and qualifies for the Superfinal for the first time - the result of his Tyumen period of preparation.
Anatoly Karpov personally opens a new chess school in Tyumen at the Chess Studio children's centre in the Mys district and a chess club at the Aprel residential complex. The project bearing his name has already reached more than 17,000 people in the region.
The A. E. Karpov Regional School runs «Chess Tyumen - 2024», the Memorial of Honoured Coach Yury Mikhailovich Novikov and a series of regional stages of «Belaya Ladya».
Notable chess players connected with Tyumen
Names connected with Tyumen and the Tyumen Region. Every card links to the source of the biography.
A checklist for choosing a chess school
For parents
- The age and level of the group - will the child land somewhere interesting for them.
- The coach - do they have experience with children of that age, and do they ask about your child.
- The district - can you realistically make the journey regularly. If not, online is better.
- The group's level - is the average level even, or will the child be «the weakest of all».
- Tournament practice - is there a plan to enter local events.
- The atmosphere - after the trial lesson the child wants to go again.
- Price and package - what is included, what is not, and whether there is a trial lesson.
- The timetable - does it fit around school and other activities.
- Reviews - live ones are better, not only from an aggregator.
For adults
- Whether there are adult groups, not only children's.
- Whether you can come from scratch - literally knowing only the rules.
- Whether there is a casual-play format, not only lessons.
- An evening timetable - can you get there after work.
- Whether the competitive pressure is heavier than you want.
- Whether there are amateur tournaments - for your own motivation.
- Whether the format suits you: a group, one-to-one, online or a club.
School, club, coach or tournament - the differences
Frequently asked questions about chess in Tyumen
Where can you learn chess in Tyumen?›
The city's main address is the A. E. Karpov Regional Chess Sports School at Geologorazvedchikov Drive 7. The City Chess Club works at three venues: Chervishevsky Trakt 72a/1; Olimpiyskaya St. 19/1; Osipenko St. 63/2. The «e4 - e5» children's club is at Moskovsky Trakt 143 block 1. The Chess Studio and the club at the Aprel residential complex were opened with the participation of Anatoly Karpov in 2021. The regional site is 72chess.ru.
Which chess schools are there in Tyumen?›
On the state side there is the A. E. Karpov Regional Chess Sports School. On the city side, the City Chess Club's three venues. Private: the «e4 - e5» children's club on Moskovsky Trakt, the chess studio in the Mys district, the chess club at the Aprel residential complex and the chess studio for children at Shirotnaya St. 96.
Where can I find a chess club in Tyumen near home?›
In the Central district there is the A. E. Karpov school (Geologorazvedchikov 7) and the City Chess Club (Olimpiyskaya 19/1; Osipenko 63/2). In the Kalininsky district, the «e4 - e5» club (Moskovsky Trakt 143 block 1) and the chess studio for children (Shirotnaya 96). In the Leninsky district, the City Club (Chervishevsky Trakt 72a/1) and the chess studio in the Mys area.
Where should I send my child for chess in Tyumen?›
The chess studio for children at Shirotnaya St. 96 takes them from 3, and the «e4 - e5» children's club on Moskovsky Trakt works with pre-schoolers and school pupils. At most private and municipal schools the standard starting age is 4-5. Admission to the A. E. Karpov Regional Sports School follows the sports-training programme.
Can an adult start playing chess from scratch?›
Yes. The City Chess Club (Chervishevsky Trakt 72a/1; Olimpiyskaya 19/1; Osipenko 63/2) is the main club venue for casual games and city tournaments. The Chess Studio and the club at the Aprel residential complex work with adults too. Vibe Chess Tyumen runs city chess meetups with no rating requirements and no sporting pressure.
How much does a chess coach cost in Tyumen?›
The prices depend on the school and the format. At the A. E. Karpov Regional Sports School the lessons run within a state institution's sports-training programme. The schedules and rates of the private venues (the «e4 - e5» children's club, the chess studio in the Mys district, the club at the Aprel complex) are available from the schools directly.
Where can I see the tournament calendar for Tyumen?›
The main site is 72chess.ru, with an additional one at 72chess.com. The main regular events are «Chess Tyumen» (classical, rapid, blitz), the Memorial of Honoured Coach Yury Mikhailovich Novikov, the regional stages of «Belaya Ladya» and the Tyumen Region championships. The national calendar is at ruchess.ru.
Where are official chess competitions held in Tyumen?›
The main venue is the A. E. Karpov Regional Chess Sports School at Geologorazvedchikov Drive 7. This is where «Chess Tyumen», the Memorial of coach Yu. M. Novikov, «Belaya Ladya» and most of the region's rated tournaments take place.
What is the A. E. Karpov Regional Sports School?›
The Tyumen Region's A. E. Karpov Regional Chess Sports School. Address: Geologorazvedchikov Drive 7, Tyumen. The director's telephone is +7 (3452) 51-72-69. Email: kalistratovda@obl72.ru. Site: 72chess.ru. The school bears the name of the 12th world chess champion Anatoly Karpov.
Which grandmasters represent Tyumen?›
The Tyumen grandmasters are Daniil Yuffa (b. 1997, Tyumen), a grandmaster from 2016 and a participant in the 2019 World Cup; Maxim Chigaev (b. 1996), a grandmaster from 2016 and winner of the Russian championship Higher League in 2020; Evgeny Prokopchuk, a grandmaster and coach; and Sergey Iskusnykh and Roman Ovechkin, mentors at the Karpov school.
What has Anatoly Karpov to do with it?›
Tyumen's Regional Sports School bears the name of the 12th world chess champion Anatoly Karpov. On 5-6 February 2021 Karpov personally opened a new chess school in Tyumen at the Chess Studio children's centre in the Mys district and a chess club at the Aprel residential complex. More than 17,000 people in the region take part in the Karpov project.
What is the difference between a chess school and a chess club?›
A school is a system: a programme, a coach, regular lessons, an assessment and a route to tournaments. A club is a place to play, run into other amateurs and get to local tournaments. In Tyumen the school role is filled by the A. E. Karpov Regional School and the club role by the City Chess Club's three venues.
Do I need a rating to play in a tournament?›
Amateur meetups and Vibe Chess are unrated and you can turn up from scratch. Tournaments rated by the Russian federation require the player to be registered in the system, through a club or the Regional Sports School. Sporting events with rank norms need a confirmed rank or a permit.
Where can I play chess without the competitive pressure?›
Vibe Chess Tyumen runs city chess meetups in cafes and bars. The games are short (3+2 or 5+3), the levels vary, and nobody judges you after every mistake. Announcements and registration are in the Telegram bot.
Can I come to chess on my own?›
Yes, to all of the formats. Most people come to city chess meetups without company - the format connects you through the games. And coming to a school on your own is standard.
Solve a chess puzzle
Mate in one - a real position from a chess database. Solve it and see if you're a fit for us.
Three event formats in one app
The Vibe Chess app is built for an evening over the board, not for online play: it keeps the sign-up list, the pairings and the table while you deal with people and the venue. All of it free.
- 1Create the event and save the venue for next time
- 2Open sign-up, players arrive through the link
- 3Start the tournament and the app announces the pairings
- 4Keep entering results, then take the final table and the TRF file
- Swiss system. score groups, no rematches, no two byes in a row
- Round robin. everyone plays everyone, the app works out the number of rounds
- Free meetup. who is free and who is already at a board is shown under Now
More about chess in Tyumen and in other cities
Besides the schools and sections, Tyumen hosts the informal Vibe Chess evenings - short games and new acquaintances in cafes and bars, where you can turn up knowing only the rules. And below are guides to learning in neighbouring cities and a catalogue of openings for practice on your own.