By Kami Nguyen
Town Crier Editorial Intern
At the age of 7, Ankit Gupta began learning chess from his father. Two months later, he was winning every game.
“(My dad) was OK at the game,” said the now 13-year-old, who just graduated from Blach Intermediate School. “He gave me a good start as an amateur chess player, but then I needed a coach.”
He became interested in the game after watching his father and grandfather play.
Last month, Gupta placed second in the National Junior High School Champions of Chess Tournament in Milwaukee. He scored six-and-a-half points out of a possible seven.
His father, Devendra Kumar Gupta, said Ankit’s final opponent was a man “32 years his senior.”
“He mostly plays (chess) with adults, but he does play with some children,” said Devendra. “He always wants to play at a higher level.”
Mike Arne, his chess coach, said he first saw Ankit play at a tournament nine months ago and recognized the potential in the young player. Arne said Ankit is the first child he has worked with.
“I don’t coach much, and if I do, it’s usually with adults,” Arne said. “There was a certain something (about Ankit). He has a good eye for chess … his tactics, poise at the board - he didn’t fidget. He seemed pretty serious and mature.”
At the Milwaukee tournament, Arne said, over 3,000 contestants from around the United States competed, 500 in the junior high division.
Ankit began competing in tournaments after getting a recommendation from a tutor who had seen him play. At his first tournament, he placed sixth. He has continued to compete throughout California and the United States, where he is ranked third in the nation.
“It’s just fun,” he said. “It’s so interesting. Games last four to five hours and keeping your patience is the hardest part. You need good tactics and the ability to see things far ahead - at least 10 moves.”
Devendra said he has never had to push his son to play chess. Ankit schedules at least 30 percent to 40 percent of his time learning new chess moves and tactics.
“He’s a regular kid,” Devendra said. “He goes to school, comes home and works on his academics. He studies … and then spends time with his family. In the late hours, he plays chess and pushes as much as he can until 11 at night - sometimes even 12.”
Devendra said his son plays weekly at the Burlingame Chess Club and tries to meet with his coach at least once a week. He has seen his son progress not only in his chess playing abilities, but as a person.
“When he was younger, he didn’t know how to (handle a loss),” he said. “Now he learns from it and works on where his flaws are. He will find out why he lost and learn what to do next time.”
Ankit plans to attend St. Francis High School this fall and join the chess team there.
Arne feels Ankit will be prepared to “step up to the really big players.” “He’ll be able to more than hold his own,” Arne said. “He’s getting a lot better. I’m happy with his progress.”
As for Ankit, he said although he loves chess and will continue to play for the rest of his life, he doesn’t think he will play professionally.
“I probably want to be a doctor,” he said. “I will play chess all the time, but it’s not what I want to do as a career, but I do want to become a grand master.”
