Mumbai: Mount Litera School International (MLSI), in a bid to nurture the children’s talent in chess, joined hands with the South Mumbai Chess Academy (SMCA) who conducted a simultaneous chess session in the school premises on Wednesday.
A school, passionate about chess as a developmental sport, Mount Litera International has gone one step ahead in fulfilling the same, as they feel that the game is very much required for the overall growth of a child.
“The school realises the importance of chess for children’s holistic development and hence actively support such initiatives. It is a pleasure to see children challenge themselves and flourish in an activity that inculcates focus, concentration and intelligence,” said MLSI’s advisor, Navyata Goenka.
A total of 40 chessboards were set up in a circular pattern at the basement gymnasium of the school where the event took place. FIDE Master Balaji Guttula of the SMCA explained the rules of the competition to the children as he moved from board to board taking on all 40 candidates one by one. The students in turn, could make their moves only when the Grandmaster arrived at their board.
After a gruelling two-hour session of simultaneous chess, Balaji expectedly got the better of all his opponents and was optimistic about the growth of the sport in India.
“Chess is rapidly growing in India..it is an essential sport for increasing patience and focus among such young kids,” he said.
The final five students were awarded medals by the SMCA and it was learnt that few may be further trained to take on the legendary Vishwanathan Anand, one of the greats of the game.