TAMPA, Fla. — It’s not uncommon to see kids playing chess during lunch at a prep school in Tampa. Eduardo Suarez began playing chess at age five thanks to his cousin, who also attended Academy Prep in Tampa.
“He taught me how to move the pieces. That’s how I got started,” said Suarez, 12.
Some players are more experienced than others but each player takes the game seriously. Games routinely take place during lunch hours. Many students opt for the board battles over games of basketball or kickball on the playground.
“Very competitive,” said Angel Luva, 13, when asked to describe the chess matches on campus. “It has helped me concentrate better.”
Luva has been playing for four years and Coach Young sees him as an anchor to the eighth-grade group that will compete against other top schools at the upcoming national tournament in Orlando.
It will be the first nationwide competition for Academy Prep since the COVID-19 pandemic shut down their travel opportunities nearly two years ago.
“Literally every day I hear, ‘Coach, I never beat my dad before, but I beat him for the first time,'” said Young, who has been the chess instructor at the school for eight years.
The expectations are high. In their last three appearances at national events, Academy Prep finished fifth. The hope is to finish even higher in 2021.
“This year is going to be extremely tough but, yes, I do feel it’s possible,” said Young. “We know it will be a tough challenge, but we are up to it. We are up to it. And we are excited about this year’s team.”
The team will be made up of eighth and seventh graders.
“I think I’ll learn from it and get better,” said Suarez.
At Academy Prep, chess is part curriculum, part competition.
“You have to think of something before you do it,” said Nathaniel George. “Here, (chess) is part of your grade pretty much.”
The national tournament will be held in Orlando from December 3-5.