The game of chess has taken 16-year-old Grant Oen to many places: Nevada, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania. But this summer, his passion for the game has him playing in his own backyard, and this time, it’s for the better of the community.
The Peddie School student and West Windsor native is holding a series of classes throughout the summer at the West Windsor Library to teach younger kids the rules of the game and how to become better at it. Not only is he giving back to the community, he is hoping it will inspire the creation of a pool of young players who can share in his interest.
“I approached the library because I thought it was another opportunity to bring chess into the community,” said Oen. “There would be more people at the chess tournaments, and we could potentially create a chess club or send more students to the tournaments.”
Oen has lived in West Windsor since he was born. His father is the founder of Optimal Portfolio LLC in Princeton, a registered investment advisory. Prior to that, he was in investment banking on Wall Street. Later his parents ran a consumers goods company, which was sold in 2007. His mother previously worked at IBM and now runs an ecologically friendly gift company.
Oen attended first and second grade at the Village School before transferring to the Chapin School in Princeton. From there, he moved on to Peddie. While chess is his biggest extracurricular, the teenager enjoys playing soccer and ultimate Frisbee as well.
His first encounter with chess occurred when he was eight years old, when his father introduced him to the game. “The goal was to be better than him, and eventually I beat him,” he said.
But the family competition turned into more than just a hobby for Oen. “It piqued my interest — the different possibilities with the different variations it can go into,” he said. “It’s not just an average board game.”
He began competing and found success in his first competition at the Princeton Day School. From there he started playing in state events and then eventually went all over the country.
Among his accolades is his most recent, and most prestigious award — the 2009 New Jersey State Championship for the 10th Grade at a state event sponsored by the NJ State Chess Federation. Oen was also successful in winning at the U1600 Northeast Open.
While chess is a big part of Oen’s life, he will not choose a college based on its chess program, but for its academics. “But if it has a chess team, I would play, and after college I hope to pursue chess,” he said. In college, he hopes to pursue Spanish or math.
“In seventh grade, I started feeling that Spanish was going to be one of my more natural subjects,” he said, adding that when he was in seventh grade, he took a national test that placed him ninth in the nation in the subject for his grade level. He placed second in the state.
Oen’s ultimate goal outside of academics is to become an international master, which is the second highest title the Word Chess Federation has created.
But in the meantime, he has spent his time generating interest at the local level. He participated in Princeton’s Communiversity, where he first began his efforts to spread an interest for chess by holding a free exhibition. He and his coach, Jairo Moirera, an International World Chess Federation Master, set up tables and chess boards and took turns playing six opponents at a time. “We would go around and play one move on each board,” he explained. “Once the game is over, whoever is in line would play next. It’s called a simultaneous exhibition.”
“Grant contacted Princeton Communiversity, which gave him and his chess teacher a prime spot at Palmer Square to hold a chess simultaneous exhibition in April,” explained his father, Yu Oen. “The two played against 50 or so players — 12 at a time — that day.”
“He has always mentioned that he wishes there are even more kids playing chess in our area and how much fun it is,” his father said. “He is grateful for all the lessons he has received through the years from adults who are more advanced than he is.”
Coming from Communiversity, Oen saw the interests among the kids and contacted Susan Flacks of the West Windsor Library to discuss a regular chess lessons for kids who want to improve their games. His brother, who is 12, is also a chess player and has been helping Grant set up the lessons at the library.
In addition to the weekly chess lessons at the library, Grant and his coach are setting up a chess tournament for children in grades kindergarten through eight to be held monthly starting Sunday, August 8 at the Hyatt Place on Route 1.
At the West Windsor Library this summer, the classes are open to residents ages six to 12 years old. “In the beginning, I go over basic moves, since some of them aren’t quite sure how the pieces move and what the goal of the game is,” he said.
Once the beginning principles are taught, he gets into more specifics. “I hope to keep them focused on the game and keep coming back to play,” he said. “I just want the game to spread.”
— Cara Latham
Classes are held every Tuesday at the library from 6 to 7:30 p.m. through Tuesday, August 3.
