ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Belmont Correctional Institution recently held its third annual Bishops of Belmont Chess Tournament.

Twenty-one incarcerated adults in the chess club faced 21 nationally ranked chess players for a tournament officially sanctioned by the U.S. Chess Federation. Family members of the incarcerated adults also got to visit, cheer on and eat lunch with the chess players during the tournament.

According to a press release from BCI, “the Bishops of Belmont Chess Club promotes diversity, inclusion, respect, civility to all, and encourages a sense of community. It also teaches leadership skills, creates a sense of belonging, and offers hope.”

John Nelson, a former incarcerated adult at Belmont Correctional Institution who previously competed in last year’s event, traveled from North Carolina to participate in the tournament for the Bishops of Belmont team.

“Thank you again for welcoming me back. You don’t know what an honor it was for me to be here. I’m still in seventh heaven. I don’t think you realize fully the impact that chess has had on my life and the lives of others. This tournament gave me hope. It gives them hope,” Nelson said.

According to the release, some of the professional chess players included Grant Neilley, a member of the U.S. Chess Federation and Associate National Tournament director; David Antonnucci, Ohio Blitz Chess champion and co-founder of Columbus Chess Club; Roy Dotson, president of Marysville Chess Club; Phil Krumm, president of Newark Chess Club; and Rosie Merkt, recovery services counselor at Warren Correctional Institution.

“Tournament founder and correction officer Dave Cannon is passionate about chess and the value learning to play chess brings to others. He has managed to put together a competitive event that includes nationally ranked chess players, staff and the incarcerated. His efforts to build bridges between our staff and our population as well as our population and the community is commendable,” BCI Warden David Gray said.

According to an article posted on the Ohio Chess Association website by Cannon, “The Bishops of Belmont Chess Club at Belmont Correctional Institution in St. Clairsville, Ohio, has been an oasis for the lost, the tired, the addicted, the locked away and the forgotten, the alone, the scared, and yes, the victimizers and the predators.

“The Bishops of Belmont are about the men who genuinely try to change their attitudes and their life through the lessons chess teaches. The story of the Bishops of Belmont cannot be told without telling the stories of the countless men who have been involved with and benefited from the club,” Cannon’s article said.