Kanata girls prepare to compete in Canadian chess competition in British Columbia

Six young girls from Kanata have been invited to compete in the 2025 Canadian Youth Chess Championships. CTV’s Camille Wilson reports.

Six young Kanata girls are heading to British Columbia to play at the 2025 Canadian Youth Chess Championships and represent their city.

“I’m really excited to go across the country to play in B.C.,” says Anvi.

Anvi says even though she knew how to play the game when she was seven years old, she wasn’t really interested in playing. She started falling in love with the game at nine and is competing at age 11.

After a year and a half of training every weekend, the girls are ready to head to the west coast to compete.

“My dad got me into it. His friend told him about chess and then he told me about it, and I wanted to try it,” says Lillian, a nine-year-old chess player. “Chess is really fun, and I really enjoy it.”

Anya is 11 years old and has been playing chess for about two years. She says she’s excited to go to the championships to play and learn.

“I really want to win. I’ve been practicing really hard for this moment,” says Anya.

Each girl has won medals and trophies in smaller local competitions.

Katie is seven years old and started playing chess at age five. She says chess is fun.

Adhyata says she got into the game after playing with her dad at age six. She is now 11 years old and says her favourite part is the strategy and thinking involved in chess.

“I’m kind of nervous because I came here a little later, I just want to give my best shot at it,” says 11-year-old Adhyata.

The competition will be held July 7 to 12.

“People say it’s not a sport but, actually, this is a mental sport. Lots of sports are physical but this is a mental sport,” says Anvi.

The Kanata Chess Academy was founded by 17-year-old Ankita Jain, a professional chess player. She says she knows how much of a male dominated game it is.

“I always dreamed of hosting competitions here and especially in Ottawa. Just a year ago, there was not a single competition, but I decided that we would found Canada Chess Academy to create a thriving chess community,” says Jain. “I’m working on getting more girls into the game so that they can explore it and play it more.”

Jain says after competing for the last three years, she will not be competing at this year’s championships, but it means a lot to bring these young girls.

“It’s the highest level a youth can attend at a chess competition,” says Jain, “Six girls from Kanata going to the national competition is something that’s incredible.”

The academy has mentored over 200 students and is now Ottawa’s largest youth chess association.

“I’m really excited to prepare and hopefully win,” says Anvi.

Raissa, is proud of her accomplishments in playing chess for just under two years. She says her dad loves chess and taught her how to play. She says once she started playing more and winning, she started liking it more and now she’s come this far.

“I think if I play chess, I will get smarter,” says Raissa, “I am really, really excited. But I’m also a little nervous,” says Raissa.

As the young girls prepare for the competition, they’ve been training for five to six hours a day.

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