More than 200 IPS students compete in district's chess tournament

By: Taj Simmons

INDIANAPOLIS — Chess is a hard game of patience and strategy, but hundreds of Indianapolis Public Schools students proved they were up for the challenge.

IPS hosted its 3rd annual district-wide chess tournament at Northwest Middle School on Tuesday. More than 200 students from kindergarten to high school participated, where they competed in teams representing their schools and in groups based on their grade.

The competition has grown from its first iteration in 2022, when only 70 students participated.

This year's field included Michael Akinseye, an eighth-grader at Northwest Middle School.

"It's a skill not everyone knows, and it's special to me," Akinseye said. "It's a little nerve-racking not knowing what the other players could do, but I just know what I can do, and I do my best."

Akinseye said he was inspired to join his school's chess club after a chess grandmaster visited his class in sixth grade. He is now excited for every chance he has to compete.

"A couple moves before you get a checkmate, you know you're going to get a checkmate," Akinseye said. "It's like, I finally got what I wanted."