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Chess Champs

Hunched over a chessboard, Solomon Hayes, 10, issues a challenge to his opponent: "Bring your king. Bring it on." One move later, the match is over. "Checkmate!" Solomon triumphantly declares.

Solomon polishes his moves at the Harlem Chess Center in New York City. The new center is just one example of the children's chess boom that is sweeping the Harlem area. The neighborhood, troubled by violence and poverty, can be a tough place for kids to grow up. Chess is giving more of those kids a chance to be champs.

National champions, in fact. Last year the Dark Knights team from Mott Hall middle school in Harlem won the U.S. national chess championship. Their win was especially sweet because the Dark Knights couldn't afford to compete in as many practice tournaments as some of their opponents.

Of course, playing chess isn't just about winning championships. It's also about developing problem-solving skills and concentration. "I call chess intellectual karate," says Maurice Ashley, a chess grand master and the highest-ranked African-American player in history. He established Mott Hall's chess program 10 years ago.

Studies in New York show that kids who play chess perform better on national standardized reading tests. Today chess is a required class at Mott for all kids in Grades 4 through 6.

Sixth-grader Anthony Hidalgo, 11, the New York City champion for his age group, falls asleep reading a chess book almost every night. He's not the only Mott Hall student who lives and breathes the game. "We've created a whole chess culture here," says Jerald Times, who directs Mott's chess program. "The kids can't get enough."

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