Chess enthusiasts have advised parents on the need to encourage their kids to learn and be involved in the sport. This was the message at a chess tournament organised by Rupetta Academy to celebrate World Chess Day in Abuja on Thursday with kids as participants.
Event organiser, Katmaan Senlong, in an interview with Tribune Sports, said the importance of engaging in chess cannot be overemphasised adding that there is the need to create more awareness about the game in the country.
According to Senlong, the game needs to be introduced into the curriculum of schools and parents should be encouraged to enroll their kids into chess clubs in order to teach them unique and transferable skills of chess.
“We are here to celebrate International World Chess Day. This is a tournament to celebrate everyone that plays chess in Nigeria. I cannot overemphasise the unique skills you learn by playing chess; reasoning, logical thinking, strategic organisational skills, attention to detail and most importantly thinking outside the box. I am sure these are familiar words in curriculum vitae nowadays when one is applying for a new job.
“We are here to teach these children this skills because I am a firm believer in the notion that practice makes perfect. We are here today not just to celebrate the International World Chess Day but also to encourage youths to embrace this noble game. They say it is a game for geniuses but it is actually for everyone because today we are celebrating the fact that we are family,” she said.
The chairman, Technical, Nigeria Chess Federation (NCF), Bode Durotoye, also emphasised the need for children to learn the game at a very young age.
“Chess is life generally and as you develop in life, you develop in the game too. I met a 10 year old girl here. She was crying after I defeated her but I had to pet and encourage her that the game of chess was a continuous process. You win today, you lose tomorrow. These are the kind of values which the game of chess builds in the lives of children.”
Ivie Urieto, an 8-year-old prodigy, who looks forward to becoming a grand master of the game in the next five years, said playing the game has made her imbibe the values of discipline, timeliness, politeness and obedience.
While the general and female categories both had prize money of N100,000 each spread across different winners, the children category had a N100,000 cash donation with exercise books, mathematics sets and other learning materials.
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