Lincoln Elementary shines at state

Lincoln brings home chess championship
8:06 PM, Feb. 14, 2012

Iowa City elementary schools are celebrating a top finishes in the state chess championship.

Lincoln Elementary’s chess team beat out eight other Iowa schools to win the Iowa State Chess Association’s Elementary Team Championship on Saturday in Ames.

A total of 118 players from nine schools turned out for the event, including schools from Ames, Cedar Rapids, West Des Moines and Iowa City.

The win was the first state title for Lincoln, which beat Iowa City’s Weber Elementary by only one-half point to win the title. Weber originally was favored to win the tournament, with its top four players averaging 1,406 points. Before the tournament, Lincoln’s top four players averaged 1,030 points.

Lincoln’s chess club is relatively new, having started in 2007, and this was the first major win for the team. About 45 Lincoln students participate in the chess club and most attend two or three tournaments a year.

“Chess teaches them many excellent skills,” said Grazi Kalil, a Lincoln chess club parent. “It teaches them to focus and concentrate, and it teaches them to compete and gives them math and thinking skills that they can use in the future.”

She said that winning was a big achievement because larger schools usually win tournaments.

“It’s very exciting for them to see the club start and grow and now win,” Kalil said.

Michael Takahashi, a fourth-grader at Lincoln, said that he tries to go into every game feeling cool and calm. He added that he reminds himself to play the board, not the opponent.

“I think it felt pretty good (to win) because the team did a really nice job, and I think trophies make me feel happy,” Michael said.

A trophy ceremony was Tuesday at Lincoln Elementary.

Weber won the title for the top kindergarten through third-grade finishes.

Source: http://www.press-citizen.com