Checkmates — Kalispell youths take on national chess competition

Three state chess champions hailing from Kalispell represented Montana at the national level competing in U.S. Chess Federation-sponsored tournaments in Norfolk, Virginia in July. 

David Wilson, who is a fifth grader at Edgerton Elementary this year, competed at the John D. Rockefeller III National Tournament of Elementary School State Champions where he placed 32nd.  

Homeschooled siblings, Tirien Bodonyi-Kovacs, placed 35th at the Ruth Haring National Girls’ Tournament of Champions and Eliel Bodonyi-Kovacs, 35th at the Dewain Barber Tournament of Middle School Champions. 

To compete nationally, the trio won the 2024 Montana Chess Association State Scholastic Championship in the elementary, middle school, and girls categories held April 27 in Butte. Each state champion won four games played in each section with David and Eliel surpassing their respective opponents by one point. Tirien advancement was determined by rating since there were not enough players to have a separate section, according to montanachess.org. A total of 32 students competed in the state tournament.  

“This is the first time that Kalispell has had a state scholastic chess champion, let alone three,” said Josh Wilson, David’s father. 

This was the first national competition for the two boys and Tirien’s second time. She was the state girl’s champion in 2022, which allowed her brother to attend and get a look at what competing was like at the national level. 

“We all played together in one room — separate tournaments — but in the same room. There were maybe about 300 people,” Eliel said. 

“It was huge,” David said. 

The three youths took a break between rounds at a Kalispell chess tournament on Aug. 31 to talk about competing and learning how to play the centuries-old game. 

Between them was a rolled-out vinyl chessboard composed of 64 squares arranged in eight vertical rows, called files, and eight horizontal rows, called ranks. On each side stood one king and queen; two rooks, bishops and knights; and eight pawns. 

While it may appear simple enough, chess is a game packed with enough strategies to fill multitudes of books and guides. 

“There are many different ways to study chess,” Tirien said. “You can play in tournaments. You can play against family members and friends. You can play online. There are many, many chess books that you can study; chess puzzles that you can work on; chess openings, chess end games, chess tactics — you can get a good chess coach. I could go on and on.”  

“The online community for chess is huge,” Eliel noted. 

“Covid has helped [that],” Tirien added. 

FOR THE Bodonyi-Kovacs’ and Wilsons, chess is a family affair. The three youths said they learned to play from their fathers. 

David said he asked his dad to teach him to play, drawn in by a Mario-themed chessboard, a popular video game character. 

“He taught me how the pieces moved and then I really started getting into chess, I was like 9 and that’s when I played my first tournament too,” David said.  

“It’s just one of those board games you have in the closet,” Josh said. “We started to play on the floor, which is just how my dad taught me.” 

That first tournament was a lesson that chess is not easily won, which is part of the appeal to the young players, aware that becoming skilled takes practice and perseverance. 

“I lost really badly and that’s why I started getting into chess more because I don’t like losing,” David said and took on the challenge to improve. 

When David became interested in competitive play Josh helped start an after-school chess club at Edgerton Elementary about two years ago, which now has about 70 members. 

Josh then obtained the proper credentials to become a certified chess tournament director to hold rated tournaments locally. And the interest is there, with people of different ages and skill levels competing at the Aug. 31 tournament. 

Tirien, who is a ninth grader, learned how to play as a young child, but didn’t pick it up as a hobby until she got older. 

“I've been playing chess as long as I can remember. My dad taught me the moves when I was little. However, I did not enjoy chess for a long time, until maybe about when I was 11 years old, I started taking chess more seriously, started studying and playing more, and I went to my first chess tournament when I was still 13, but almost 14,” she said. 

What changed her mind? 

“I think I just kept going at it,” she said. 

“The important thing is not if you lose, but if you keep going after you lose,” Eliel said.  

Eliel also recalled their father, Gabor, taught him to play at a young age, recounting his first major win at chess was against him. 

“My dad taught me how to move the pieces and how the game works, maybe when I was 4 or something, very young, and I first beat him when I was 6, which was a really big experience for me,” Eliel said, who went on to compete in his first tournament in 2022. 

"Since then I’ve gotten into the game much more,” he said. 

THERE ARE a multitude of openings in chess. A player may have a preferred opening depending on factors, such as whether they go first or what their opponent opens with, for example, Tirien said. 

"There are advantages to sticking to the same opening too because then you're more familiar with it; you know more opening traps and you can better play it than if it's an opening you hardly ever play,” Tirien said. 

The three agreed that all moves are important in chess. 

“Who said that chess quote, the person to win the game is the person who makes the next-to-last mistake?” she said, turning to her brother. “Because you will make mistakes, and your opponent will make mistakes. 

The quote she was thinking of is attributed to professional chess player and author Savielly Tartakower. 

And while a game of classical chess may appear to be a slow and methodical process lasting more than an hour, people may also play fast-paced matches of speed chess and other variations that last from five to one minute, the group said. 

“The really unique thing about chess is that, unlike other board games, there isn’t much luck involved,” Tirien said, but rather strategy and tactic.  

With that said, there are many directions the game can go. 

“I think one really interesting thing about a chess game is you never know exactly where things will end up,” she added. “There’s just so many possibilities, so many ways the game will turn out. What do you say Eliel or David?”  

“It’s not a predictable game,” David said. 

“Yes, it’s not predictable,” she nodded. 

“I enjoy playing other sports like soccer, but one thing that’s special about chess is it’s really easy to do by yourself,” Eliel said. 

THE VALLEY also has an active chess community with opportunities to learn, play a casual game or compete.  

The Flathead Valley Chess Club meets at 4 p.m. Thursdays at the Eagles Club bottom floor, offering classic chess games, education and tournament play to all ages and skill levels. People are welcome to attend a trial period prior to joining as a member. 

Casual community chess games, hosted by Steam Mountain Games, are also available from 4 and 7 p.m. Thursdays at Kalispell Center Mall (at the concourse near the center of the building). There is no cost to participate, and all ages and skill levels are welcome. 

“The Flathead Valley has a great chess community,” Eliel said.
For more information, visit the Montana Chess Association at https://www.montanachess.org or Flathead Valley Chess at https://flatheadvalleychess.org. 

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.