Close to 1000 primary, intermediate, and college students have gathered in Rotorua for the 2022 New Zealand Chess Team National Tournament in the school hall of Lynmoore Primary School.
The two-day tournament is showcasing the country’s top young chess players.
Tournament newcomers, Te Wharekura o Te Kaokaoroa o Patetere from Putāruru brought a team of six student players.
Within the Wharekura team were three brothers - Nuka, Liucien, and Duane James August-Wheki who were eager to show off their skills.
The three brothers have grown up with the game at home, on the marae, and in the sheds of their elders “but this tournament is on another level,” they say.
“It is going to be challenging but we need to use our brains in order to win,” Nuka says.
Three brothers give their all to call checkmate.
Backed by kaungāako
And Liucien says the game is fun: “However, it is not fun when I am beaten.”
The brothers are also excited by the support they are getting from their kaungāako who have been cheering them on with their teachers.
Jodie Mason, a teacher and the chess coach at Te Wharekura o Te Kaokaoroa o Patatere, says her school’s players had been feeling overwhelmed leading up to the tournament as this is the first time the school has competed at this level."
Te Wharekura o Te Kaokaoroa o Patetere's chess team
They are nervous but they will give it their best shot,” Mason says.
Mason continues to encourage the wharekura students, especially the kōtiro as none represented the kura this year.
Mason’s vision is to see more Māori playing chess.
Chess organisation keen
“I want to see all those tables inside covered with Māori players,” she says.
Chess Power New Zealand chief executive Paul McDonald says the tournament is open to all cultures and backgrounds as chess is a diverse game. “It can be played by anyone, no matter their economic prosperity.
“Anyone can succeed in chess, and I am happy to see Māori language schools being a part of this tournament. I hope they do well.”
The tournament is divided into primary, intermediate and secondary sections and schools had to win in their regions to qualify.
Ngāti Porou grandmaster
Te Wharekura o Te Kaokaoroa o Patetere is now no longer a newcomer to the tournament and is eager to compete again in the following year’s chess tournament. Chess Power New Zealand also hopes more wharekura join.
Discussions about the possibility of holding the next tournament in Putaruru are soon to be underway.
Young players can look to a famous Māori chess player, the late Genesis Wayne Potini of Ngāti Porou, who was a renowned chess speed player.
Together with two friends, he formed a chess club (The Eastern Knights) where underprivileged children found a home base – and learned to play chess in the process. The chess club was also involved with the Ngāti Porou heritage.
Potini had bipolar disorder but still made a strong contribution to his community until his death in 2011.
A movie about his life, Dark Horse, proved popular. with Cliff Curtis playing the chess grandmaster.