Editing Maurice Ashley

{{Short description|American chess grandmaster (born 1966)}}
{{other people}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Maurice Ashley
| image              = Maurice_Ashley_playing_chess.jpg
| alt                = Maurice Ashley playing a Chess game in 2015
| caption            = Ashley in 2015
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|1966|03|06}}
| birth_place        = [[Saint Andrew Parish, Jamaica]]
| citizenship        = United States
| spouse             = {{marriage|Michele Ashley-Johnson|1993|2014|end=div}}
| children           = 2
| module             = '''Chess career'''
{{Infobox chess biography
  | child      = yes
  | image      = <!-- leave blank to suppress wikidata image -->
  | title      = [[Grandmaster (chess)|Grandmaster]] (2000)
  | country    = United States
  | rating     = <!-- automatically displayed via FideID parameter for ratings of 2400+ -->
  | peakrating = 2504 (July 2001)
  | FideID     = 2001012
  }}
| website            = {{URL|mauriceashley.com}}
}}

'''Maurice Ashley''' (born March 6, 1966) is a Jamaican and American chess player, author, and commentator.<ref name=NPR-AskMeAnother-2013>{{cite news |last1=Eisenberg |first1=Ophira |title=Ask Me Another - Maurice Ashley: Chessmen At Work |url=https://www.npr.org/2013/08/09/175476130/maurice-ashley-chessmen-at-work |access-date=19 February 2016 |work=[[NPR]] |date=29 March 2013}}</ref><ref name=OpenCulture-Ashley-2016>{{cite news |last1=Marshall |first1=Colin |title=The Wisdom & Advice of Maurice Ashley, the Jamaican Chess Grandmaster |url=http://www.openculture.com/2016/02/the-wisdom-advice-of-maurice-ashley-the-first-african-american-chess-grandmaster.html |access-date=18 February 2016 |work=Open Culture |date=4 February 2016}}</ref> In 1999, he earned the [[FIDE title]] of [[Grandmaster (chess)|Grandmaster]] (GM).<ref name=FIDE-Profile>{{cite web |title=FIDE Chess Profile: Ashley, Maurice |url=https://ratings.fide.com/card.phtml?event=2001012 |website=[[FIDE]] |access-date=18 February 2016}}</ref>

Ashley is well known as a commentator for high-profile chess events.<ref name=NYTimes-HarlemChessCenter-1999>{{cite news |last1=Stewart |first1=Barbara |title=In Harlem, a Chess Champion Passes On His Moves and Enthusiasm |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/29/nyregion/in-harlem-a-chess-champion-passes-on-his-moves-and-enthusiasm.html |access-date=18 February 2016 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=29 December 1999}}</ref> He also spent many years teaching chess.<ref name=SportIllustrated-HarlemRagingRooks-1991>{{cite magazine |last1=Lidz |first1=Franz |title=The Harlem Gambit |url=https://www.si.com/vault/1991/11/11/125383/the-harlem-gambit-the-raging-rooks-had-what-it-took-at-the-national-junior-high-school-chess-championships |access-date=19 February 2016 |magazine=[[Sports Illustrated]] |date=11 November 1991}}</ref><ref name=BmoreSun-CarsonScholars-2007>{{cite news |last1=Jones |first1=Brent |title=Grandmaster Maurice Ashley comes to Baltimore, playing chess - and teacher |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/2007/10/03/grandmaster-maurice-ashley-comes-to-baltimore-playing-chess-and-teacher/ |access-date=19 February 2016 |work=[[The Baltimore Sun]] |date=3 October 2007 |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303222424/http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2007-10-03/news/0710030152_1_maurice-ashley-playing-chess-grandmaster-maurice |url-status=live }}</ref> On April 13, 2016, Ashley was inducted into the [[World Chess Hall of Fame#U.S. Chess Hall of Fame inductees|US Chess Hall of Fame]].

== Early life ==
Ashley was born in [[Saint Andrew Parish, Jamaica|St. Andrew]], [[Jamaica]]. He attended [[Wolmer's Schools|Wolmer's Boys School]] in Jamaica, and then moved to the United States when he was 12.<ref name=JamaicaStar-Pitterson-2007>{{cite news |last1=Pitterson |first1=Jomo |title=Pitterson defeats Grandmaster to take Cameron Open |url=http://old.jamaica-star.com/thestar/20071219/sports/sports6.html |access-date=18 February 2016 |newspaper=[[The Jamaica Star]] |date=19 December 2007}}</ref>

He went to [[Brooklyn Technical High School]].<ref name=MashableDoc-Ashley-2015>{{cite news |last1=Larson |first1=Eric |title=Chess' First African American Grandmaster. The World Is A Chessboard: The Infectious Wisdom of Maurice Ashley |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGUhbmne7Vw |access-date=18 February 2016 |work=[[Mashable]] |date=24 April 2015}}</ref> Ashley graduated from [[City College of New York]] (CCNY) with a B.A. in Creative Writing. While at City College, he represented the school in intercollegiate team competition.

Ashley said he discovered chess in Jamaica, where his brother played chess with his friends. He got more serious about chess during high school, where he grew up in [[Brownsville, Brooklyn]], and played in parks and clubs throughout [[New York City]].<ref name=MashableDoc-Ashley-2015 />

Ashley coached the Raging Rooks of Harlem, and the Dark Knights (also from Harlem), both of which won national championships under his guidance.<ref name=SportIllustrated-HarlemRagingRooks-1991 /><ref name=ChessClubStLouis-FootballPlayers-2014>{{cite web |last1=Ashley |first1=Maurice |title=Demetrious Johnson Charitable Foundation Lecture with GM Maurice Ashley: Chess for Football Players |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8ppOFLpSYM |website=Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis. |access-date=18 February 2016 |date=13 August 2014}}</ref>

== Career ==
[[File:Maurice Ashley.jpg|thumb|Ashley in 2005]]
In 1992, Ashley shared the United States Game/10 chess championship with [[Maxim Dlugy]].<ref name=ChessLife-Yearbook-2006>{{cite journal |title=Our Heritage: 2006 U.S. Chess Federation Yearbook |journal=[[Chess Life]] |date=April 2007 |pages=50–57 |url=http://archive.uschess.org/CL_2006_Yearbook.pdf |access-date=18 February 2016 |publisher=[[United States Chess Federation]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160804072603/http://archive.uschess.org/CL_2006_Yearbook.pdf |archive-date=4 August 2016}}</ref>

On March 14, 1999, Ashley beat [[Adrian Negulescu]] to complete the requirements for the Grandmaster title. This made him the first Black chess [[Grandmaster (chess)|Grandmaster]].<ref name=AP>Hajela, Deepti  [https://apnews.com/article/afa475649a7443c2a2fcb49a36a1cb83 "Correction: Black Chessmaster story"], ''The Associated Press'', 18 April 2016</ref>

In September 1999, Ashley founded the Harlem Chess Center,<ref name=NYTimes-HarlemChessCenter-1999 /> which has attracted such celebrities as [[Larry Johnson (basketball, born 1969)|Larry Johnson]]<ref name=NYTimes-ChessLarryJohnson-2001>{{cite news |last1=Leland |first1=John |title=Playing Chess with: Larry Johnson; Fierce Competition, From a Seated Position |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/01/style/playing-chess-with-larry-johnson-fierce-competition-from-a-seated-position.html |access-date=18 February 2016 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=1 April 2001}}</ref> and [[Wynton Marsalis]].

Along with GM [[Susan Polgar]], Ashley was named 2003 Grandmaster of the Year by the U.S. Chess Federation.

In 2003, Ashley wrote an essay ''The End of the Draw Offer?'', which raised discussion about ways to avoid quick agreed draws in chess tournaments.

In 2005, he wrote the book ''Chess for Success,'' relating his experiences and the positive aspects of chess. He was the main organizer for the 2005 HB Global Chess Challenge, with the biggest cash prize in history for an open chess tournament.

In 2007, Ashley returned to his birth country of Jamaica and became the first GM to ever participate in a tournament there, the Frederick Cameron Open. After sweeping a field consisting of several of Jamaica's top players, Ashley was upset in the final round by Jamaican National Master [[Jomo Pitterson]].<ref name=JamaicaStar-Pitterson-2007 />

In 2008, Ashley was featured in an interview for the [[CNN]] documentary [[Black in America]]. He was shown during one scene in the film ''[[Brooklyn Castle]]'' mentoring a young chess player. He was mentioned in the chess movie ''[[Life of a King]]'' starring [[Cuba Gooding, Jr]].

Starting in the Fall of 2012, Ashley was a Director's Fellow at the [[MIT Media Lab]] and, between 2013 and 2015, Maurice was also a Fellow at [[Harvard University]]'s [[Berkman Center for Internet & Society]] in a joint fellowship at both Harvard's Berkman Center and the Media Lab at MIT. Currently, Maurice is a Research affiliate at the Media Lab at MIT.<ref name=MITMediaLab-Bio>{{cite web |title=Maurice Ashley Biography |url=http://www.media.mit.edu/people/mashley |website=[[MIT Media Lab]] |access-date=18 February 2016}}</ref><ref name=MITMediaLab-DirectorsFellow-Bio>{{cite web |title=About Maurice |url=http://directorsfellows.media.mit.edu/fellow-profiles/maurice-ashley/ |website=[[MIT Media Lab]] Director's Fellow Program |access-date=18 February 2016}}</ref><ref name=Harvard-Berkman-Bio>{{cite web |title=Maurice Ashley |url=https://cyber.law.harvard.edu/people/mashley |website=[[Harvard University]] [[Berkman Center for Internet & Society]] |access-date=18 February 2016}}</ref>

In 2013, Ashley announced he was planning the highest-stakes open chess tournament in history, [[Millionaire Chess|Millionaire Chess Open]]. Its first edition took place October 9–13, 2014 in Las Vegas.

In 2015, Maurice announced a partnership with the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis and Ascension, Your Move Chess. This program supports after school chess in the Florissant-Ferguson School District alongside other schools in the Saint Louis area. Longer term, the goal is to expand the program on a national level.<ref name="chess.com 3-18-16">{{cite news |url=https://www.chess.com/news/kamsky-ashleyhellip-2016-hall-of-fame-inductees-3275 |title=Maurice Ashley 2016 Hall of Fame Inductee! |work=[[Chess.com]] |publisher=[[Chess.com]] |date=March 18, 2016 |access-date=2016-03-26 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160419055254/https://www.chess.com/news/kamsky-ashleyhellip-2016-hall-of-fame-inductees-3275 |archive-date=April 19, 2016}}</ref>

In February 2016, a video of Ashley defeating a "trash-talking" amateur chess player in [[Washington Square Park]] went viral.<ref name=Time-Mashable-2016>{{Cite magazine |last1=Waxman |first1=Olivia B. |title=Watch a Trash-Talking Chess Player Realize He Is Playing a Grandmaster |url=https://time.com/4228077/chess-grandmaster-hustler-trash-talking/ |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |access-date=18 February 2016 |date=17 February 2016}}</ref><ref name=SBNation-Mashable-2016>{{Cite web |last1=Dator |first1=James |title=Chess grandmaster schools trash-talking, cheating old man in New York |url=https://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2016/2/16/11020494/central-park-chess-game-maurice-ashley-grandmaster-video |website=[[SBNation]] |access-date=18 February 2016 |date=17 February 2016}}</ref> The incident was referenced in an episode of [[Billions (TV series)|Billions]] where Ashley portrayed the chess hustler.

On April 13, 2016, Ashley was inducted into the [[US Chess Hall of Fame]] along with Chess Grandmaster [[Gata Kamsky]].<ref name="Chessdom Mar 2, 2016">{{cite news |url=http://www.chessdom.com/2016-inductees-to-u-s-and-world-chess-halls-of-fame-announced/ |title=2016 Inductees to U.S and World Chess Halls of Fame Announced |work=[[Chessdom.com]] |publisher=[[Chessdom.com]] |date=Mar 2, 2016 |access-date=2016-03-26}}</ref>

=== Commentator ===
[[File:Today in chess.jpg|thumb|Ashley during Today in Chess program]]
Ashley has worked, and currently is working, as a chess commentator covering many events, including those of the [[Grand Chess Tour]]. He was one of the commentators of the two matches between world champion Garry Kasparov and IBM's Deep Blue that took place in 1996 and 1997. He provided commentary for the Kasparov vs. Anand World Championship match in 1995. In 2003, Ashley hosted [[ESPN]]'s broadcast of Kasparov's match against X3D Fritz. He has also served as a commentator for the 2013–19 Sinquefield Cups, several US Chess Championships, and many other chess events.

== Personal life ==
In 1993, Ashley married Michele Ashley-Johnson. Their daughter Nia was born the following year, and their son Jayden in 2002. The couple divorced in 2014.

Maurice's sister is former world boxing champion [[Alicia Ashley]], and his brother is former world kickboxing champion Devon Ashley.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2013/03/29/175409267/chess-for-success |title=Chess For Success |website=NPR.org}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://en.chessbase.com/post/ashley-che-is-intellectual-karate- |title=Ashley: 'Chess is intellectual karate!' |date=16 November 2010}}</ref>
He once stated
"African[-]continent GMs do exist; but, according to the system of racial classification, I am the first Black GM in history... it matters, and doesn't matter, all at the same time."<ref name=USChess-GMProfile>{{cite web |title=Players and Ratings: GM Maurice Ashley |url=http://www.uschess.org/content/view/142/195 |website=[[United States Chess Federation]] |access-date=18 February 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The United States Chess Federation - GM Maurice Ashley |url=http://www.uschess.org/index.php/Men/GM-Maurice-Ashley.html |access-date=2022-08-24 |website=www.uschess.org}}</ref>

== Works and publications ==
=== Monographs ===
* Ashley, Maurice. "[http://www.thechessdrum.net/65thSquare/DrawOffer/DrawOffer3.html The End of the Draw Offer?]" ''The 65th Square.''
* Ashley, Maurice. ''[https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/56793604 Chess for Success: Using an Old Game to Build New Strengths in Children and Teens.]'' New York: Broadway Books, 2005. {{ISBN|978-0-767-91568-7}} {{OCLC|56793604}}
* Ashley, Maurice, and Graham Burgess. ''The Most Valuable Skills in Chess.'' London: Gambit, 2009. {{ISBN|978-1-904-60087-9}} {{OCLC|907184357}}
* Ashley, Maurice. "[http://www.jetmag.com/life/ferguson-and-the-chess-game-of-life Ferguson and The Chess Game of Life.]" ''[[Jet (magazine)|Jet]].'' October 15, 2015.
* Ashley, Maurice.  ''Move by move: life lessons on and off the chessboard''.  Chronicle Prism: San Francisco, 2024.  {{ISBN|978-1-7972-2365-0}}.

=== Multimedia ===
* Ashley, Maurice. ''[https://archive.org/details/maurice-ashley-teaches-chess Maurice Ashley Teaches Chess For Beginning and Intermediate Players]''. Torrance, CA: Davidson & Associates, 1997. [[CD-ROM]]. {{ISBN|978-0-671-31579-5}} {{OCLC|39350977}}
* "Maurice Ashley: Chess Grandmaster." [[Henry Louis Gates, Jr.|Gates, Jr. Henry Louis]]. ''America Beyond the Color Line: Ebony Towers.'' New York, N.Y.: Films Media Group, 2009. Starts at 2:19. {{OCLC|695008134}}
* Ashley, Maurice. ''[http://ed.ted.com/lessons/working-backward-to-solve-problems-maurice-ashley Working backward to solve problems.]'' TEDYouth 2012.
* Ashley, Maurice and Mobile MATCH, LLC. ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20120628080506/http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/learn-chess!-maurice-ashley/id410953137 Learn Chess! with Maurice Ashley.]'' [[Mobile phone app]]. 2012.
* Ashley, Maurice. ''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8ppOFLpSYM Demetrious Johnson Charitable Foundation Lecture with GM Maurice Ashley: Chess for Football Players.]'' Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis. August 13, 2014.
* Ashley, Maurice. "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5vnpOp0U_g Grandmaster Maurice Ashley plays trash talking guy in Washington Square Park.]" Outtake. ''[[Tim Ferriss|The Tim Ferriss Experiment]].'' February 16, 2016. The video went viral and has 1.4&nbsp;million views on Maurice's YouTube channel.
* Ashley, Maurice. "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaTzDbzqMYo Maurice Ashley 2016 US Chess Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.]"

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* ''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UnWvYBVNdM OnePeople: The Celebration.]'' 2012. Documentary.
* ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20141025054251/http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=11694550 The Man vs. The Machine.]'' [[ESPN Films]]: 2014. Documentary.
* ''[http://www.worldchesshof.org/exhibitions/exhibit/living-like-kings Living Like Kings: The Unexpected Collision of Chess and Hip Hop Culture.]'' [[World Chess Hall of Fame]]: 2014. Exhibition and documentary ([https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9p49EahAQAI trailer]).
* Shen, S.M. Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]. Thesis/dissertation. ''[http://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/93054/899983875-MIT.pdf?sequence=2 Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of a Social Learning Network for Chess.]'' [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]], 2015. [http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/93054 URI] {{OCLC|902850276}}
* Larson, Eric. "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGUhbmne7Vw Chess' First African American Grandmaster. The World Is A Chessboard: The Infectious Wisdom of Maurice Ashley.]" ''[[Mashable]].'' April 24, 2015.

== External links ==
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Commons category|Maurice Ashley}}
* {{Official website|https://mauriceashley.com/}}
* {{FIDE|name=Maurice Ashley}}
* {{USCF|name=Maurice A. Ashley}}
* {{Chessgames player|21714|Maurice Ashley}}
* {{IMDb name|5238706|Maurice Ashley}}
* [http://www.anusha.com/ashley.htm From Kings County, First Black Grandmaster]
* [http://www.thechessdrum.net/drummajors/M_Ashley.html Maurice Ashley profile, The Chess Drum]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20181115133254/http://www.cc.com/video-clips/zzfmli/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-maurice-ashley---reveling-in-the-ultimate-thinker-s-game-as-a-chess-grandmaster Maurice Ashley] at [[Trevor Noah]]'s ''[[The Daily Show]]''

{{American chess grandmasters}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashley, Maurice}}
[[Category:1966 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:African-American chess players]]
[[Category:American chess players]]
[[Category:Chess Grandmasters]]
[[Category:City College of New York alumni]]
[[Category:Jamaican emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:American chess writers]]
[[Category:American male non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:People from Saint Andrew Parish, Jamaica]]
[[Category:Writers from Brooklyn]]
[[Category:Berkman Fellows]]
[[Category:American Twitch (service) streamers]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American writers]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American writers]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American sportsmen]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]
[[Category:Wolmer's Schools alumni]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American sportsmen]]
[[Category:21st-century American sportsmen]]