Alexandre Lesiège

Alexandre Le Siège (born 18 August 1975 in Montreal), also known as Alexandre Lesiège, is a Canadian chess player who holds the FIDE title of Grandmaster. He has won three Canadian championships and represented Canada in world championship qualifying events and Olympiads.[1]

Alexandre Le Siège
Country Canada
Born (1975-08-18) 18 August 1975
Montreal, Quebec
TitleGrandmaster (1999)
FIDE rating2510 (October 2023)
Peak rating2589 (October 2001)

Biography

Le Siège was first introduced to chess at age six. He began playing in local events organized by Chess 'N Math, and had a candidate master rating by age 11. His first important success was winning the Canadian Junior Championship in 1989, at 14, with a score of +10, =1.[2] He followed up by winning the 1991 Quebec Invitational Championship.[3]

Le Siège, at 16, won the 1992 Canadian Chess Championship at Kingston, Ontario, defeating Kevin Spraggett in the key game. This made him the second-youngest Canadian champion ever, after Abe Yanofsky, who also was 16 when he won in 1941.[4] Awarded the International Master title, Le Siège qualified for the 1993 Interzonal Tournament at Biel, Switzerland.[5]In 1997 he won The Quebec Open.[6]

He won the Canadian title again in 1999 at Brantford and in 2001 at Montreal after winning a tie-break playoff against Spraggett.[7][8][9] He earned the grandmaster title at the 1999 Quebec Open in Montreal with his third and final required title norm, thus becoming the first Canadian francophone to earn the highest title in chess.[10] He represented Canada in Olympiad team chess events, twice on top board, with success.[11][12][13]

Le Siège virtually retired from competitive chess from 2004 to 2015, when he resumed by defeating Evgeny Bareev in a rapid match 1.5-0.5.[14][15] He subsequently was a member of the Canadian Olympiad team and won the Quebec and Canadian International opens.[16][17]

In 2022, Le Siège was elected to the Canadian Chess Hall of Fame.[17]

References
  1. Cohen, David (13 January 2019). "Alexandre Lesiège". Canadian Chess Biographies. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  2. "21st Canadian Junior Championship:Toronto, 27 December 1991 - 2 January 1992". British Columbia Chess History. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  3. Bevand, Larry (29 June 1991). "Lesiège outclasses Quebec field". The Gazette (Montreal). p. 103. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  4. Day, Lawrence (6 February 2006). "Chess". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  5. "Interzonal: Biel 1993". OlimpBase: The Encyclopedia of Team Chess. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
  6. "The Week in Chess 144". theweekinchess.com. Retrieved 5 September 2023.
  7. Ficzere, Tony. "The 1999 Canadian Chess Championships". En Passant December 1999: 30-39
  8. Hergott, Dean. "Spraggett vs. Lesiege: Canadian Championship Playoff Match". En Passant December 2001: 16-21
  9. "WCN Exclusive Interview with Alexandre Lesiege". Chess Siberia. 2001. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  10. Block, Irwin (14 August 1997). "He's chairman of the chess board". Gazette (Montreal). p. 3. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  11. "Lesiege, Alexandre". OlimpBase: The Encyclopedia of Team Chess. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  12. Yoos, Jack (2001). "The 34th Chess Olympiad, Istanbul, 2000" (PDF). En Passant (166): 9–23.
  13. Teplitsky, Jan. "35th Chess Olympiad, Bled, Slovenia" (PDF). En Passant (179): 9–43.
  14. "Retour d'Alexandre Lesiège". Fédération québecoise des échecs (in French). 2015. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  15. Boisvert, Yves (29 November 2020). "Le romantisme retrouvé des échecs". La Presse (in French). Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  16. Plotkin, Victor (2016). "2016 Olympiad - Men's Team" (PDF). Chess Canada. pp. 10–82. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  17. McKim, Fred (30 May 2022). "2022 Canadian Chess Hall of Fame - Alexandre Lesiege". Chesstalk. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
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