HE LEARNED GAME AT AGE 8
Chess champ, 12, knows how to get around on squares
Samuel Xin is now ranked in nation’s top 50 for his age group
VERONICA THOMAS
Samuel Xin, a nationally ranked state champion chess player, sits perched on the edge of his chair, hands on the table, ready to make his next move.
He and his coach, Chris Mabe, are playing a speedy five-minute “blitz” round of chess.
Samuel, 12, moves his knight so fast that he knocks over his bishop. Each move, he slams a piece onto a new square.
“I have two problems,” Samuel said. “One, I play too fast. Two, I get bored if the move is easy.”
At chess tournaments, though, he focuses hard on each move. With three minutes to plan and execute a move, games can last up to two hours.
At this year’s State Scholastic Championship in February, Samuel, an eighth-grader at Harris Road Middle School, won his age division. But he really wanted to play in the high school division and plans to do so next year.
Here is the full story.
Samuel is a good, well mannered kid. I’ve played him a couple times at Wendy’s on Wednesday night and most recently was crushed by him this past Saturday. His dad is a likeable guy and Chris Mabe is one of the top talents in NC. These are good people that make going to tournaments enjoyable.
“Three minutes to plan and execute a move”?!
Why does scholastic chess coverage invariably have to come from such lazy journalists?