Coach and Educator

Bella Belegradek is a transformative figure in the history of Georgia scholastic chess, primarily through her long and highly successful tenure as a coach, most notably at East Side Elementary School in Cobb County.  Her record of success is exceptional:

●     Scholastic Team Success:  Bella has coached East Side Elementary teams to approximately 15 Georgia Scholastic Team Championship titles across various grade categories. She notes that there have been only two years where an East Side team did not win at least one championship title since she has been leading the program. By continuing to bring teams to these events over the years, she has shown unwavering commitment to the GCA.

●     Dedication:  She began coaching at Kid Chess, a metro Atlanta company founded in 1998, a few years after moving to Georgia in 2003, having first volunteered as a chess teacher for 2-3 years at a private school. Her motivation for coaching is deeply rooted: "I love to teach people the kids, particularly how to think, and chess is a very good field to teach people how to think, how to plan, and how to make decisions."

●     Community Builder:  She also contributed to other successful programs, including her work at Mount Bethel.

●     Women’s Chess:  For nearly two decades, she has been the exclusive tournament director for all Kid Chess women’s and girls’ events. Her leadership spans 10 rated tournaments and dozens of unrated events, fostering a dedicated community for female players in the state of Georgia.(See Appendix B)

 

Chess Roots and Personal Achievements

Bella's passion for chess originates from her upbringing in the then Soviet Union, where she was born in Novosibirsk, Siberia in 1969.

●     Early Education: She was taught to play by her father and started formal, academically oriented chess training at the age of six. She notes the Soviet chess system provided an intensive learning environment for children, with two two-hour training sessions per week and tournament play.

●     Best Individual Result: Her most significant playing achievement was winning the women’s individual section of an Inter-Collegiate Team Championship in the Soviet Union.

●     Best Individual Result in Georgia: Her most significant playing achievement in the state of Georgia was as co-champion of the 2011 Georgia Women’s Open, tying for first with 2024 HOF member WIM Carolina Blanco.

●     Top Rated Player: She is the second highest-rated female player in Georgia history, with a peak rating of 2107. (See Appendix A)

●     Georgia Tournament Director: Beyond coaching, Bella is an active member of the chess community as a Local Tournament Director. (See Appendix B)

●     Chess Mom: She taught her son Ilyusha, whose peak rating is 1761 and who participated in the Castle Chess Camp in Atlanta.

Conclusion

Bella Belegradek's legacy is defined by her dedication to teaching children not just chess, but the fundamental life skills of critical thinking and planning. Her coaching record is one of the most impressive in Georgia scholastic chess history. For her significant contributions as a coach, educator, and tournament director, Bella Belegradek is highly deserving of a Georgia Chess Association Outstanding Career Achievement Award.

 

 

APPENDIX A

 

Top players by rating in the state of Georgia, compiled by Mike Nolan at the US Chess Federation

 

Member I         Name                        Current   Peak

-------- -----------------------------------  ------ -------

16346630 SIVASANKARI SATHISHKUMAR              2165    2188

16766022 ANDREA HENDERSON DE LA FUENTE         2067    2067

12622365 BELLA BELEGRADEK                      2027    2107

17125210 JWALANTHI RAM                         2008    2019

14299428 SAITHANUSRI AVIRNENI                  1987    2000

16808430 ALISA SCHERBAKOVA                     1969    1993

16026633 EVELYN QIAO                           1938    1979

32363724 KATERINA MORGAENKO                    1938    1938

11071911 ALISON BERT                           1917    1917

12777021 MARIA CAROLINA BLANCO                 1912    2061

13283813 AVIVA B SMITH                         1906    1941

15194158 ADRIANA PACHON                        1899    1900

16867525 LAKSHMI M MORGAN                      1873    1943

12556442 VIRGINIA VANDENBURG                   1870    2022

13547567 EVELYN CHEN                           1849    1850

13993883 ROSEMARY AMADASUN                     1836    1837

12800537 EMILY FRANCIS                         1826    1827

12416366 DIANE THOMSON                         1817    1817

12921220 ANANYA ROY                            1796    1802

30276676 QUYNH HUONG VUONG                     1782    1821

 

APPENDIX B

 From data available here: https://www.uschess.org/msa/MbrDtlTnmtDir.php?12622365.5

 From January 2012 through October 2025 in the state of Georgia, Belegradek has worked, as a Local TD:

 

Tournaments Worked	71
Sections Directed	149
Other Events Worked	4
Total Sections Worked	221