Mission San Jose Elementary: a chess dynasty?
By Rob Dennis
Oakland Tribune
01/23/2011 02:12:49 PM PST
FREMONT — Talk of local sports dynasties usually starts with the Raiders and 49ers of yesteryear. But away from the gridiron, the past two decades have belonged to the Mission San Jose Elementary School chess team.
The team last month dominated five of the six categories in the elementary school section at the Northern California Grade Level Championships in Stockton — and finished second in the sixth.
This followed its victory in the overall elementary section of the National Championships in 2009. The team also took home the national title in 1993, and has raked in 10 Northern California championships (there isn’t a statewide event) since then, including the past five in a row.
Forty-five team members traveled to the University of the Pacific on Dec. 4 and 5 to compete in the championships against players in their own grade.
Trophies were awarded to the top five teams in each grade, with Mission San Jose taking first place in grades one, two, three, five and six — and second place in grade four.
“Smart kids is really the main thing,” coach Joe Lonsdale said when asked for the key to the team’s success.
“You’ve got to have not just four great kids, but four super-genius kids. “… It became cool. Mission became a chess-playing school.”
Every dynasty needs a rival, and for Mission San Jose, that position is filled by another Fremont school, Weibel Elementary, which won the fourth-grade section in Stockton.
Full article here.
That’s impressive.