A local child chess prodigy has provided some stiff competition at the Alberta championships in Edmonton this weekend.
Richard Wang is only 13-years-old, but the complexity of his moves has stumped his much older opponents. The teen claimed first place on Sunday and is now off to the Canadian championships, this August, in Montreal.
The avid player first learned the game of chess at the tender age of three.
"[It's] the complexity of the game and the millions of different ways you can play." Richard said during a four hour match against a 23-year-old man. "No two games are the same and there are always tactics and strategy."
The top six chess players in Alberta were doing battle at this tournament. When asked about young Richard, the tournament director Bradley Willis said he has never seen a kid that strong at that age.
Being gifted tends to run in Richard's family. His older brother, Harris, was only 10-years-old when he played piano for the Queen. The piano prodigy even appeared on the Jay Leno show when he was just seven. Both brothers say they want to be doctors when they're older.
The weekend "Checkmate!" for Richard has now moved him one step closer to his goal of becoming a Grand Master in chess. That's a level only four others in Canada have achieved.
With files from Jeannette Labrie
