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BELONG. ON THE PITCH.AND IN LIFE.Football training, chess lessons and cultural gatherings in Ashdod with Tsameret Hashivyon. See class locations and schedules, join through WhatsApp or support our community.
ActivitiesChoose where to start: a training session, a game of chess or a conversation in Ashdod.
Before the first moveFrom unloading boxes at the port to a child’s first move at Duna. A four-panel comic about Shabtai and archive photographs of the shipment.
The shipment in photographsFrom the club archive. Boxes of chess equipment wrapped together on a pallet.
NewsReports and photographs from our activities in Ashdod.
The Ashdod Open chess tournament at Duna Community CentreChess players met at Duna Community Centre in Ashdod on 23 October 2026. The tournament album follows the games from the opening handshakes to the presentation of certificates.
The association’s opening at DunaWe opened the doors of Tsameret Hashivyon at Duna and invited families to meet the people behind our programmes. Young players from our football school took to the stage, and we shared our plans for the chess and philosophy clubs.
Opening of the Tsameret–Duna chess clubAbout 70 people came to the opening at Duna. Children and adults took seats along the rows of chessboards to play international master Boris Maryasin and national master Anton Rakhmilevich in simultaneous exhibitions.
Tournament and awards at the City residenceThe residents’ hall hosted the last event in our series, an unrated chess tournament. The players recorded their moves and gathered for the presentation of cups and medals. Duna Community Centre helped us buy the awards.
The kit at our Ashdod football schoolA photo album from our football school in Ashdod shows the school crest, the embroidered jacket and the names and numbers on the players’ shirts.
How head coach Nikita teaches children ball controlNikita, head coach of the Tsameret football school in Ashdod, has spent 15 years coaching everyone from five-year-old beginners to goalkeepers at Maccabi Ashdod Panthers.
Become a TsameretMedia correspondent in your cityTsameretMedia invites volunteer correspondents to cover major international chess tournaments, championships and festivals. We’re looking for exclusive interviews, funny stories from the tournament hall and short comedy sketches.
Chess for children in Ashdod at Duna Community CentreBeginner and advanced chess classes meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays in room 6 at Duna Community Centre, 90 KKL Street, Ashdod. Book a free trial lesson.
Chess beyond the tabletopGiant pieces, sets for players with low vision and the equipment that travels with the club.
Head coach MichaelMichael is head coach of the Tsameret-Duna chess school in Ashdod. His pupils include children playing their first local tournament and players who have competed at European and world championships.
People behind the boardsWho teaches, referees and develops chess education in Ashdod.
Shabtai IshmailovVice president of the Tsameret-Duna Chess Club. Raises funds for the club’s projects.
The club in the newsReports from Ashdod, from the launch of the club to its autumn tournaments.
A season in Ashdod · 2026By 24 October 2026, Tsameret-Duna had held 10 tournaments. With Ashdod’s municipal chess club, we organised the Shavuot events on 21 and 22 May and the 6 summer tournaments. We submitted results from the rated competitions to the Israel Chess Federation. The kindergarten tournament and the tournament for residents of City were unrated.
Mind Without Borders, a community programme for dementia risk reductionSupport 24 chess and maths sessions for older residents of the City complex in Ashdod. The three-month programme costs ₪10,800. Read about the pilot tournament.
Spring and summer chess tournamentsTogether with Ashdod’s municipal chess club, we organised the Shavuot chess events on 21 and 22 May and a summer series of six Friday tournaments at Duna. The summer results below cover the rated section of each event.
Next chess tournamentSpring and summer chess tournaments
Community life in AshdodClub openings, gatherings and chess at the City residence, in date order.
Contact usAsk us about joining an activity in Ashdod.
A cup for MagnusShabtai unpacks a trophy at Duna and imagines presenting it to Magnus Carlsen. A young player brings him back to the board.
EventsA date for the diary and a tournament still taking shape. Each entry tells you what’s confirmed and who to contact.
Evgenia CohenWhen Tsameret Hashivyon was being established in 2025, Evgenia took on work with older residents. This strand of the association’s work brings people together for cultural meetings and conversations in Ashdod. An economist by training, Evgenia worked as a camp counsellor and volunteered with children in care in Ukraine. In Israel she continued to support children undergoing treatment and their families.
Football for children in AshdodChildren train on Sundays and Thursdays at the Amirim pitch in Ashdod. Find the times for both groups, the gate at 90 KKL Street and how to book a trial.
Support the Tsameret football school in AshdodHelp equip 20 to 25 children and teenagers at Tsameret in Ashdod. The 2026/27 goal is ₪10,000 for team kit and training equipment. See last season’s report.
For foundations and corporate partnersIn Ashdod, Tsameret Football School is looking for kit and training equipment for 2026/27. Tsameret-Duna Chess Club is seeking partners for its children’s chess school and for Mind Without Borders, its maths and chess programme for older residents at City.
In picturesA move, a conversation, a roomful of neighbours. Photographs from the association’s own archive.
With Beit Halochem in AshdodThe entrance to Beit Halochem in Ashdod in the evening.
Our team kitFront and back of the shirts, with yellow-striped socks.
Photos of ShabtaiShabtai in dark glasses at the board during a club tournament.
Inna in the Ashdod pressOn the cover of issue 223, 1 May 2008, Inna wears her medals beside Israel’s boxing champion. Photograph by Avi Rokah.
Meetings at the KnessetOur delegation with other participants in the civil society forum at the Knesset, 16 September 2025.
Meetings in AshdodWith Tatiana Mazarsky in Ashdod on 15 September 2025.
A public meeting at Duna · 4 May 2026A contribution from the floor during the discussion at Duna.
Ashdod Open · 23 October 2026The playing hall at Duna Community Centre during the Ashdod Open, 23 October 2026.
Opening of the chess club · 25 February 2026Children watch as an adult demonstrates a move on the chessboard.
Readers meet Rubén Gallego at DunaThe audience at Duna during the meeting with Rubén Gallego.
ChessAnton Rakhmilevich gives a simultaneous exhibition at the opening of the Tsameret–Duna Chess Club. He and Boris Maryasin both played multiple opponents at the event.
Community lifeTogether after the gathering
History clubWe’re developing a history club. Contact us to hear about upcoming plans, suggest a topic or take part.
Igor VayznerIgor Vayzner helped found Tsameret Hashivyon and serves on its board as treasurer. His work with nonprofit organisations spans more than twenty years, from community projects in the Urals to volunteering in Israel.
Inna MashkovskiInna represented Israel in wheelchair sport before helping to establish Tsameret Hashivyon. As secretary and a member of the board, she brings her experience as a player to the association’s adaptive sport programme.
Irina BezmanIrina Bezman is one of the association’s founders. She graduated in sociology from the Higher School of Economics and completed professional retraining in psychology at the Russian Christian Academy for the Humanities in Saint Petersburg.
Support the children’s chess school in AshdodTsameret-Duna in Ashdod seeks ₪10,000 for junior chess kit and 10 tournament sets. A separate DGT electronic board package is estimated at ₪5,345.40 including VAT.
Meet Oleg KatorginMeet polar explorer and artist Oleg Katorgin at Rubén Gallego’s club on 1 December 2026 at 19:30, Duna Community Centre, 90 KKL Street, Ashdod. Admission ₪20.
Nikita BezmanNikita Bezman is a founding member and chair of Tsameret Hashivyon. Before moving to Israel, he took part in the Jewish community of Saint Petersburg. In Ashdod, he represents the association in its dealings with community and municipal partners.
Activity update, November 2026Our chess season through 24 October and the football groups training in November.
In the cityFrom the Duna Community Centre to meetings at the Knesset: how the association works with the city and its partners.
Philosophy clubA philosophy club led by Ruben Gallego. We discuss important questions, listen to different perspectives and meet in person.
Meetings in Ashdod and at the KnessetPhotographs and accounts of our meetings with Tatiana Mazarsky, the Civic Initiatives Forum at the Knesset and our work with the city of Ashdod.
Results and documentsRead the first annual activity report, check our registration and follow the programmes in Ashdod through their event records.
Rubén GallegoPhilosopher and writer Rubén David González Gallego leads our philosophy club at Duna Community Centre in Ashdod.
Weekly timetableTraining and club meetings in Ashdod. All times are local.
Sergey YusufovSergey helped establish Tsameret Hashivyon. The association’s 2025 minutes assigned him responsibility for its Jerusalem branch. In August 2026 he joined the members’ meeting by video to take part in the discussion and voting.
Support our workHelp fund a training session, a community meeting or a tournament. Donate through IsraelGives or use the association’s bank details below.
Tatiana PopovaTatiana proposed a programme that takes local history out into the streets of Ashdod. She and Boris Feldman are developing it with professional guides. Their plans include walks through the city, museum visits and talks on the history of Israel. As a community organiser at Rotem, she encourages neighbours to take part in the city’s cultural life.
Founders & teamMeet the people who helped establish Tsameret Hashivyon and the team behind its work in Ashdod.
Shavuot for young playersAbout 70 children came to Duna for the Shavuot tournament we organised with Ashdod’s municipal chess club. Schoolchildren played five rounds in age groups, with a separate section for beginners rated up to 1350. The children also tried the giant chessboard.
A tournament for kindergarten playersMikhail Tsygankov organised and refereed an unrated tournament for children finishing kindergarten. Around forty children sat down to play. At the end, Shabtai Ishmailov presented their medals.
Shavuot rated tournamentWe organised the rated rapid tournament with Ashdod’s municipal chess club. Arkady Ryabukhin was the chief arbiter. Each player had fifteen minutes plus five seconds per move. Boris Maryasin scored 4½ points in six rounds, with four wins, one draw and one loss.
Summer series · event 111 players took part in the under-1500 group and played five rounds. We ran this first event with the city chess club. Cups and medals were presented after the games.
Summer series · event 217 players took part in the under-1500 group and played five rounds.
Summer series · event 313 players played five rounds in this rating group. Uri David Dagan won all five games.
Summer series · event 412 players played five rounds in this rating group.
Summer series · event 516 players played five rounds in this rating group.
Summer series · event 6The final Friday had thirteen players in the main group and six in the under-1350 group. Both groups played five rounds. Boris Maryasin and Sofia Ilizarov also worked together at the final, bringing maths games into the chess programme.
Women’s chess festivalThe Tsameret-Duna Chess Club is planning a national festival for women and girls in Ashdod for summer 2027. The programme and budget are pending approval.