One man against 88 chess players

CHESS master Collin Madhavan set a new Malaysian record in Seremban recently by playing against 88 contenders at the same time in what is known as a simultaneous chess match.

Madhavan broke his own record in the Malaysia Book of Records of previously playing against 71 participants at a similar event in Kuala Lumpur in December.

A simultaneous chess match is when a player (usually an expert) takes on the challenge of playing against a certain number of players at the same time. Not only a display of chess skills, the match also is a test of memory as the main player has to keep track of all on-going games.

No time to rest: Madhavan contemplating his next move against one of his 88 contenders.

Hosted by property developer RB Land and co-sponsored by www.quantum.88.com, the RB Land Simultaneous Chess Challenge 2008 saw participants, young and old attempting to outmanouvre Madhavan during the eight-hour long match.

Madhavan who was up against formidable contenders including two FIDE (World Chess Federation) rated players and 36 students from the state MSSM team won the match with a final score of 67 over 21.

Madhavan won 54 games, agreed to 26 draws and lost eight games, with a 76% playing record.

Madhavan said he expected to do better in the match but time constraints had caused him to offer more draws than usual.

“It was an exciting challenge - a test of my own mental and physical strength. Maintaining a high winning tally is essential for a chess master but more important is the game itself.

“I wanted the participants, especially the children to walk away from the game feeling proud of their achievement. It's not everyday they get to play, let alone win or draw in a game against a chess master,” he said.

Midway through the game, eight-year-old S. Nithya Lakshmi from SJK (T) Convent, Seremban, was confident of a win as she felt she had an advantage over Madhavan.

Contenders of all ages: Lecturer Abu Bakar Mahat, 52, strategising his next move as eight-year-old Yap Ying Hui eagerly awaits her turn during the game.

“This is my second simultaneous chess match. I lost the last time but this time I'm back to win,” said Nithya who called it a day hours later only after offering a draw to Madhavan.

Abu Bakar Mahat, 52, one of the oldest players during the match hoped that more chess matches would be organised as it was a great way to keep the mind active.

“It’s a stimulating brain game ideal for people of all ages from all walks of life,” said the engineering lecturer.

Fifteen-year-old Yang Yu Kang who represented his school in chess at the district level said chess has improved his memory power and helped him focus.

“Strategising my moves on the chess board has helped me tremendously. Thanks to chess, I’m also more focused in everything I do,” he said.

Madhavan finds comments like these heartening as he knows he's a step closer in encouraging more people to take up the game he loves.

“I want to see chess played everywhere - at the tea stalls, in the park, in schools, everywhere. More people should learn the game,” he said.

Inspired by World Record holder Grandmaster Susan Polgar of the United States who played against 326 participants in a 16-and-a-half hour match in 2005, Madhavan is aiming to blaze a trail in the local chess scene to increase awareness of the game.

Simultaneous chess matches are a great way to start judging from the excited faces and sentiments of the participants during the match. In stark contrast to the other players who had time to walk around and ponder over their moves, Madhavan did not have a break or anything to eat in between moves relying only on orange juice for sustenance.

Madhavan said he was not tired at the end of the match and could have gone on playing for a few more hours.

“Walking 5km a day, I had prepared myself for the event. I estimated taking a total of 7,900 steps during the match on my rounds with the players whilst spending an average of 5.45 minutes per game,” said the math tutor.

Seremban-born Madhavan who represented Malaysia in chess tournaments from 1989-1994 is an experienced chess coach who has trained students since 1978. From 1990-1996, he trained under the late chess grandmaster Eduard Gufeld from Georgia.

All participants left the event with smiles on their faces, certificates of their participation and door gifts to remember the game by. Madhavan also gave away books on chess to deserving players.

Sumber - StarMetro