Coach – Petar Benković
International Master (IM), FIDE Trainer (FT) and National Arbiter (NA). Founder of the Benko Chess online chess club and chess school, with more than two decades of experience working with children and young players.
Petar Benković
Petar Benković is an International Master (IM), FIDE Trainer (FT) and National Arbiter (NA) from Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia.
He has been active in chess for more than 25 years and has worked as a coach and educator of young players for more than two decades. His work is especially focused on children, young players and the development of chess culture.
Chess is more than a game – it is a school of thinking, concentration, patience and sportsmanship.
Competitive Experience
He earned the International Master title in 2001. His peak FIDE rating, reached in July 2002, was 2490.He has played for clubs and in leagues in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, Hungary, Switzerland and Germany.
Selected Achievements
- International Master (IM) since 2001
- FIDE Trainer (FT)
- National Arbiter (NA)
- Peak FIDE rating: 2490
- FR Yugoslavia U18 Champion
- Two-time FR Yugoslavia U20 Champion
- Participant in European and World Championships
- 8th place at the World Youth U18 Championship, Spain 1998
- Winner of numerous international tournaments in Serbia and abroad
Petar Benković’s Tournament Archive
A dedicated page with Petar Benković’s tournament results, from junior championships to international tournaments and IM/GM-level events.
Certificates and Licences
Official diplomas, licences and certificates reflect continued professional development and many years of work in chess, coaching and the education of young players.
Professional Development
Petar Benković attended a professional training program for the German Chess Coach C qualification (Trainer C Breitensport / Leistungssport Schach) during 2018/2019 at the sports centre Landessportschule Ruit in Ostfildern, Germany, on the recommendation of the chess club Stuttgarter Schachfreunde.
The program, organized by the Württemberg Chess Federation (Schachverband Württemberg), included 120 teaching hours of theoretical and practical instruction from October 2018 to May 2019. It covered methods of working with children and young people, pedagogy and sports organization, as well as planning and conducting chess training.
In the final examination part, Benković successfully passed the written examination in the chess specialist area and the oral examination through a prepared professional presentation. The entire course and examination process were conducted in German.
The C-coach licence was not obtained because of an insufficient score in the written examination in sports medicine and general sports theory, but the months-long training brought significant additional knowledge and experience in work with children, chess training, pedagogy and sports organization.
In the field of chess officiating, he passed the club chess arbiter examination at a seminar organized by the Belgrade Chess Association in 2010. He is registered with FIDE as a National Arbiter (NA), with an active licence since 19 August 2019.
From 3 to 6 July 2026, he attended the FIDE Arbiters’ Seminar in Novi Sad, organized by the Chess Association of Vojvodina and the Chess Federation of Serbia under the auspices of FIDE. The seminar was conducted in English, with IA/IO Dominique Dervieux as lecturer and IA Zoran Stanimirović as local assistant lecturer. Petar Benković successfully passed the final examination and earned the seminar norm required for an application for the FIDE Arbiter (FA) title.
Under the current FIDE regulations, a complete FA title application also requires three valid tournament FA norms. The plan is to complete the required tournament norms by the end of 2026.
Coaching
- Individual Training
- Group Training
- Online Training
- Training Games
- Game Analysis
- Preparation for School Competitions
- Preparation for National and International Tournaments
- Work with Beginners and Youth Players
Benko Chess
Benko Chess was founded on January 27, 2023, with the aim of bringing chess closer to children and young people through modern teaching methods, educational materials, tournaments and online lessons.