Grandmaster Eugene Perelshteyn is a former US Junior Champion whose competitive career and 20-plus years of teaching experience have made him one of the most respected chess educators in the country. Whether coaching a five-year-old learning the pieces for the first time or preparing a teenager for their first tournament, Eugene meets every student with patience, precision, and genuine enthusiasm for the game.
"I've watched chess transform shy, uncertain kids into confident, analytical thinkers. That transformation — that's why I teach."
— GM Eugene Perelshteyn
Eugene's competitive peak came when he won the US Junior Championship — one of the most coveted titles in American chess. He went on to earn the FIDE Grandmaster title, a designation awarded to fewer than 1,700 people in history worldwide. His opening books, written for serious chess players, demonstrate the depth and precision he brings to everything he does at the board.
In the classroom, Eugene is known for his ability to explain complex ideas in simple, memorable terms. His 20 years of teaching across all skill levels have given him an encyclopedic understanding of how students learn chess — where they get stuck, what motivates them, and how to turn frustration into breakthrough.
Alongside co-founder GM Leonid Kritz, Eugene built Four Knights Chess Academy from the ground up — designing the curriculum, training the teaching approach, and personally instructing classes. His instructors at Harvard, MIT, and other leading universities in the Boston area bring the same standard of excellence to every group they teach.
