On September 24th 2023, a non-profit organization, Canadian Chess Society hosted the first ever Learn N’Play chess tournament series at Royal Canadian Legion Branch 8. The idea of the Learn N’Play chess tournament series is to introduce amateur chess players to competitive chess tournaments. The Canadian Chess Society wants to offer a smooth transition from an amateur chess player to a competitive chess player as over the years, they have noticed that there are a lot of people who know how to play chess but not a lot who actively play in tournaments. The overwhelming reason for these players to not compete in tournaments is because they feel apprehensive and they don’t know what to expect at a tournament. Therefore the Learn N'Play chess tournament series tries to encourage more chess enthusiasts to take the next step and join the competitive chess community.
Non profit organization members about to start the tournament
For the players, as it was their first time playing in a professional manner, they were nervous but at the same time they were excited to show off their chess knowledge over the board.
Players trying to battle it out in round 4
“The most memorable moment for me today was during the “try to beat a chess expert” side event. The players were nervous during the actual games because they all wanted to win but when they were playing in this side event, they were laughing and they were very excited to play. It occurred to me that chess, for these kids, is a way to interact with each other and to have fun. When I was their age, I did not get to have this much fun at chess tournaments. The tournaments I went to were all very serious and where winning and losing is everything so I didn’t get to experience this fun atmosphere that chess offers.” Andrew Qiu, founder of Canadian Chess Society
Canadian Chess Society and the winners!
Photo credits to Team Doknjas
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