Winning move: Over 3,000 chess players in 25 years

MADURAI: Tamil Nadu’s Mauel Aaron, the country’s first international chess master and the first chess player to have been conferred the Arjuna award, has been teaching the game for children in Chennai for the past 25 years. While he doesn’t identify himself as a teacher or a chess trainer, the 83-year-old has overseen the training of over 3,000 chess players till date and feels Chess can have a positive effect on children.
The nine-time national champion was the chief guest at a chess event as part of Children’s Day at Keren Schools in Madurai, where he shared his experiences of dealing with children.
"Recently, I had a problem at my academy in Chennai. A young boy was giving other kids a tough time-being rude to others and it was difficult managing him," Aaron said. Aaron shared the issue with his wife, Saroja Leelavathi, a retired nurse.
While Aaron might be the better chess player in the house, his wife had an advantage over him. Aaron does not watch television and his wife happened to catch up an interview of Norwegian Grandmaster Magnus Carlsen’s mother, who had mentioned that chess instilled discipline in her son. Aaron had the solution at his hand and taught the boy some moves and techniques. "Chess can make a child sit at a place for hours. Now, which parent wouldn’t want that?" the octogenarian chuckles. Earlier, I had another boy who was as troublesome, but unfortunately, I didn’t have the benefit of the Carlsen episode back then, Aaron says.
Chess, like any sport requires discipline and Aaron chose to share with students a story of Indian hockey legend Dhyan Chand to reiterate what a combination - passion and discipline can be. "To achieve ball control, Dhyan Chand used to put the ball on a railway track and push it with the stick without letting the ball fall off the track. Such was his dedication," Aaron said.
Like the colours of the game he was fond of, Aaron answers in black and white. He doesn’t shy away from accepting that he didn’t enjoy his time as an office bearer of the All-India Chess Federation or at times, even coaching children.
While the veteran is happy with the country producing prodigies in the sport every now and then, he has a reservation. "All these prodigies - many of them do not become world champions," he says and cites the example of Spain’s Arthuro Pomar.
"I think, it goes to their head," Aaron says and reflects on personal experiences. But, every kid is good and it is our responsibility to read their mind and address the issue, he adds.
India’s first FIDE (World Chess Federation) certified trainer, Ebenezer Joseph who was also present at the event, however had a different opinion. "Chess can be used to develop cognitive abilities of children and treat children with learning disorders. The game can be a therapy to improve the personality of a child and I think the game serves a larger purpose than creating world champions out of children," Ebenezer, who had done research on the subject, said.