Meet Mpumalanga No.1 chess player

MBOMBELA – Meet Mpumalanga’s number-one chess player as certified by Chess South Africa, Dumisa Nkosi.

Nkosi has been playing chess since 1998 when he was in grade 11 and has never stopped putting his mind to the game. He is also currently in the top 100 chess players in the country, according to the World Chess Federation.

Nkosi said his teacher, Moses Mlombo, introduced him to the “game of the intellects” as he describe chess but stopped in 2000 since there were no local competitions he could compete in. “The sport is associated with analysis because you always have to up your game when playing,” said Nkosi.

The benefits of playing chess, according to him, are that one is always ahead when it comes to reasoning. “Chess keeps your brain active because with every move you make while playing you need to think of what move to make next to outdo your opponent,” he said.

Nkosi also added that chess plays a critical role in strategic and management situations. “The president and most politicians play it and that tells you why they are good with manipulating people,” he added.

“When I enrolled for my studies at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2001 I joined a team and we did very well in local and national competitions,” he said. He added that the team of ten players he was part of went on to win national and provincial titles in the South African Student Sports Union. But after competing his studies at the university Nkosi stopped playing chess again as he took a job in Waterval Boven.

However, mastering the game takes a lot of sacrifices and commitment. “You have to practise alone to get into the elementary stages of the game. At times you can look like you are crazy to people,” he said. Nkosi has also been to Botswana and other parts of South Africa to compete in competitions.

According to Nkosi, when you work with people there are situations were you feel cornered and need to find a way out and if you play chess you are bound to discover a way out.

With two friends, Nkosi has started an academy to train young kids who are interested in the sport. Two of those will be going overseas to participate in the Common-wealth Games in July.

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