USCF President
Wanting to make a difference, Maxim ran for the Presidency of the United States Chess Federation in 1990. Maxim won a landslide victory and became the youngest President in the history of the federation.
During Maxim’s three year tenure the United States Chess Federation staged the first World Chess Championship match on American soil since the 1907 Lasker vs Marshall match.
Maxim launched New York City’s massive Chess-a-thon, an annual event in which a corps of elite Grandmasters battled thousands of members of the public. The event was an immediate success and attracted considerable national media exposure.
In addition to events, Maxim made notable improvements to both of the Federation’s flagship publications including securing World Chess Champion, Garry Kasparov as a regular contributor to Chess Life magazine. He also got Garry Kasparov to appear for free at the 1992 US Open boosting the popularity of one of America’s oldest traditional events.
Numerous new policies were implemented which led to a substantial increase in revenues to the Federation. Each year during Maxim’s tenure the Federation was profitable.
As a result of the combined initiatives, adult memberships to the federation grew at an impressive rate and scholastic memberships exploded.
