Utah chess prodigy wins world title, shares his Mormon beliefs
By Wendy Leonard, Deseret News
Published: Friday, Nov. 23 2012 5:23 p.m. MST
WEST JORDAN — At age 5, Kayden Troff memorized multiplication tables in about an hour. He recognized a pattern and it helped him succeed.
Now, at 14, he’s still recognizing patterns, as well as complex strategies, and it is earning him a top seat at world chess championships around the globe.
Monday, he and his mother returned from Slovenia, where Kayden was crowned the best chess player in the world in his age group, after winning nine of 11 games during a two-week tournament with the most highly skilled players in the world.
He’s earned all kinds of titles, trophies and financial awards, but the most exciting part of traveling across the country and world, Kayden said, is his opportunity to talk about his religion.
“In the chess world, there’s not a lot of Mormons,” he said. “A lot of people are very interested in that, so I sit down and talk about it with them.”
Kayden said his competitor friends often joke with him about enjoying a “celebratory drink” of orange juice after each win. For the most part, however, they respect his choices, and he’s known in many circles as the favorite or only “Mormon chess player.”
Kayden’s Facebook page, Twitter account and website, kaydentroff.blogspot.com, all openly display his beliefs in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“He believes this gift was given to him by God,” said his mother, Kim Troff.
She said it isn’t cheap to send Kayden all over to play in tournaments, which is his only chance to earn a higher rating. She estimates the family spends about $20,000 to $30,000 each year just for Kayden’s endeavors, but they continue to see “incredible miracles” in the lives of others because of his abilities and the desire to reach out.
“It’s been a wonderful opportunity for us to share the gospel with people,” Kim Troff said. “And for him to do something that he truly just loves.”
Kayden wakes up early every morning to practice chess moves. Then he’ll complete his school work and go back to playing chess.
He plays about eight hours each day and competes in training games with other high-rated players around the country every week. Tournaments come around about every six weeks, and Kayden has gone as far as Mexico, Greece, Austria and recently Slovenia to play.
The International Master-elect player, with a World Chess Federation rating of 2,365, said he learns a lot about other cultures while visiting various cities for chess tournaments. He’s hoping to become a chess Grandmaster, but also play chess for a living. If that doesn’t work out, he said, he’ll teach it to kids.
Kayden said that while he knows he has a gift, or rather a penchant for memorizing things, he couldn’t have achieved so much in the chess world without valuing hard work and commitment.
Source: http://www.deseretnews.com
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
Congrats!
He’s done a good job, but please keep in mind, that the major favorite Jan Krzysztof Duda(real prodigy) of Poland played U18 scoring 4th place and loosing 3th on tiebreak.