It is clear that chess is a family affair for the Kapoors.
Brothers Satvik and Tanush both play the game, their mother Shomita is a chess coach and the family of four often travel together for overseas tournaments.
So it was no surprise to see Shomita and her husband Rishi seated in the stands at Our Tampines Hub on Nov 28, cheering on their sons as they collected their trophies at the National Age Group Chess Championships.
Satvik, 16, claimed the Under-20 title, while Tanush, 13, finished eighth in the U-14 category. The tournament is part of the Singapore Chess Festival, held in conjunction with the ongoing Fide World Championship.
The national championships featured 692 participants, including 566 from Singapore and players from India and China, among others.
“It really means a lot because it’s the national championships,” said Satvik, who won seven and drew two of his games at the tournament.
“I was the runner-up last year, so there was definitely more motivation to win this year so I just practised harder.”
Chess is not just a passion in the Kapoor household – the game has also been a source of comfort as the family weathered some tough times.
A decade ago, Satvik, who was then six, was diagnosed with leukaemia.
Rishi, an IT professional, said: “It was completely shocking and devastating for us because we never had a cancer history in our family. The journey taught us a lot of lessons like to never give up and that there’s always hope.”
The couple learnt of his condition after they discovered bruises on his body while he was nursing a fever. They initially thought he had suffered them during a fall, but checks at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital revealed that his platelet count was very low and his white blood cells were multiplying abnormally fast.
Satvik began chemotherapy and was eventually cleared of cancer two years later. It was during his treatment that a trip to India inadvertently kick-started the Kapoors’ obsession with chess.
During that visit, Satvik played chess with his cousins. When the family returned to Singapore, his parents approached the Singapore Chess Federation to seek proper training for him.
Within his first year, he was beating more experienced players.
His enthusiasm for chess spread to his family members, with his younger brother Tanush also picking it up, while Shomita went into coaching.
Rishi, 48, said: “It became a passion for us. We travel the world, and wherever the chess tournaments would happen we would take him. So that diverted his mind more into the sport.”
Aside from Satvik’s U-20 title, Singapore’s chess players also emerged triumphant in eight other categories at the five-day age group championships.
India claimed the girls’ U-12 and U-14 trophies, while China was first in the girls’ U-8.
The Straits Times
