Thiruvananthapuram:

“Chess is everything; art, science and sport.” So said Russian grandmaster Anatoly Karpov once, and the Capablanca Chess School, the new centre in the city offering professional training in the game of chess, will base its tutoring upon this theory.

“Though there are several coaching centres across the country for chess, ours is the first-of-its-kind which attempts to promote chess at grassroots level. Incorporating yoga, meditation and counselling into the professional training programme, we aim at overall cognitive and psychological development of every student,” says Vijin Babu, one of the three founders of the chess school. Mayor V K Prasanth inaugurated the school on Wednesday.

Though the founders expect a major chunk of their students to be children, adults are also welcome. The two-hour classes will be split into an hour for teaching chess skills followed by an hour of game to put the newly acquired skills to practice.

“Chess is like mathematics. If you learn the right tricks in an interesting way, you can master it. Every great chess player has in some way received professional training which has helped him approach the game scientifically. We, here, will help the students in understanding the notations, theory and the language of the game,” Babu, who is also a district level champion and national player, said. As a part of the curriculum, the school will conduct regular tournaments where students will face players from across the state, he added.

Two-time state champion Sreekumar P will be the principal, and the school will have three permanent faculty members and several guest lecturers. “I have an experience of over 20 years in teaching chess. Studies have revealed that a well-trained chess player will have better memory retention and cognitive ability,” he said. Chess players are eligible for grace-marks at school and PSC examinations, which makes it an even more worthwhile game to pursue, he added.

There will be regular weekday and weekend batches at the school, which is situated Kochulloor.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Thiruvananthapuram / TNN / April 01dt, 2016