Ludwig Can Make Moves Beyond The Race
The international chess master is focusing his sights on the Mountain West Championships this week
Oct. 26, 2011
By Tori Cummings, Media Relations Student Intern
To most people, chess is a way to pass the time or wait out a storm. But for junior cross country runner Daniel Ludwig, chess was more than a rainy day activity; it was a way of life.
Ludwig of Ocoee, Florida, discovered the game of chess when he was seven years old. In Orlando, just thirteen miles from Ococee, the U.S. Open Chess Championship was the talk of the town. Ludwig decided to check out the big chess tournament.
“I just kind of picked up and ran with it when I first discovered it,” said Ludwig. “I just walked into the U.S. Open when I was seven years old, no idea what it was or anything like that, but fell in love with it right away.”
The love blossomed into a career that took Ludwig all over the world. He competed close to home at the University of Florida and as far away as Libya and Greece.
Greece was the site of Ludwig’s most memorable chess victory. He was competing at the U-14 World Championships, representing the United States. His goal was to medal in the tournament. He came extremely close but lost at the end and finished fourth.
“It was painful, but it was exciting at the same time, because I surpassed other people’s expectations for me,” said Ludwig. “That was very exciting being able to represent the country.”
Through various tournaments, Ludwig compiled a record of 36 wins, 16 losses and 34 draws. Competing at such a high level meant Ludwig faced other chess players of higher international standing. He won enough games to claim the title of International Master.
Even though Ludwig is no longer playing chess, he will always be an International Master, a ranking that is one step away from the ultimate crown of Grandmaster.
“I had won one tournament and I needed two similar performances and then I would have had the title,” said Ludwig. “So I clearly showed I had the ability to get it and I was perhaps, at that point, even the strength of a Grandmaster.”
Ludwig invested a lot of time and energy into chess but found an additional way to expend his energy in high school. When Ludwig was a sophomore, he decided to join the school’s first cross country team. It served as a four month break from chess. When the season was over, Ludwig went back to the chess board.
“I would say cross country in a lot of ways was the death of my chess playing career,” said Ludwig. “We didn’t have track at the time, so I still had a good amount of time to play chess. Slowly, but surely, I devoted more time to running than I did chess.”
…Ludwig has been an integral part of the cross country team since his arrival on campus this fall. He has paced the Frogs in all but one meet and will look to do the same thing at the upcoming Mountain West Championships in Fort Collins, Colo., Saturday.
“I like to start rather conservatively and work from there,” said Ludwig. “I feel like it helps my team and it also gives me a boost. That’s sort of my approach to racing. For me, it starts with the team. That’s one of the big things I wanted with coming here was working together with a team and really just building that.”
Source: http://gofrogs.cstv.com
Good luck Daniel!