The article discusses the practice and analyzes the results of organizing the admission of chess students to sports schools in the Ural Federal District.Legal and methodological documents on this issue are being studied. The necessity of conducting research to improve the effectiveness of teaching chess in childhood is substantiated.The aim of the study was to study the influence of the preliminary selection of children on the results of the students mastering the sports training program.The study was conducted by the method of questioning coaches in two stages during the academic year. The obtained data were processed by statistical methods.The results of the study allow us to consider preliminary selection as one of the factors of the effectiveness of the initial training stage and recommend its use to all sports schools.The positive impact of pre-selection, as in all sports, increases with increasing mass viewing.