Story of a Visually Impaired Chess Player

The famous saying of the great Albert Einstein: “In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity”, indeed, was the saying that inspired me to focus on my abilities, not on my disability.

Chess is one of the best gifts God gave me. When I had normal vision, I didn’t have time to play or learn Chess because I concentrated more on my studies. However, after I became visually impaired due to an eye disease called “Retinitis Pigmentosa”, I got to play and learn Chess.

When I joined a rehabilitation program for the visually impaired, I met Chess players who were blind or partially sighted. From them, I learned how to play Chess with an adaptive Chess board. As soon as I learned the game, I got an opportunity to play in the national visually impaired Chess championship. At that time, was my chess knowledge sufficient to compete in a national event immediately after completing an introductory course? But I managed to become runner-up in this tournament. That was the first time I participated in an All Island competition. This was in the year 2013. The result of this tournament was the first indication that I had some talent for playing Chess.

I followed an online Chess course conducted by the Hadley School for the Blind. I completed both studies conducted by this institute with a grade of A+. I wanted to improve my knowledge of Chess. I tried to learn Chess from the internet, but most of the lessons were not accessible for visually impaired students. Then I tried to find a Chess mentor who could help me to improve my game. Still, even though people like to teach me, due to their busy schedules, it is hard to commit their time to preparing lessons accessible to a visually impaired person. I was so disappointed at that time because I thirsted for knowledge of Chess, but there was no way for me to continue my training. I almost gave up Chess and took swimming and Cricket. My dream was. To represent my country in a sports event at the highest level and to bring glory to my country.

In 2017, I represented my country in the Asian Pacific Chess Championship for the visually impaired. The tournament was an excellent experience for me. During the tournament, I attended a meeting where they presented how Chess in India for the visually impaired developed during the last 2 decades. After that tournament, I realized that I must play in tournaments regularly to improve my Chess. Unfortunately, since 2013 there was not a single tournament organized for the visually impaired in my country. So I decided to play in open international-rated Chess tournaments scheduled for sighted players. F.I.D.E. rules allow visually impaired players to play against sighted players.

I wrote a request message to the admin of Chess life.lk Facebook fan page requesting tournament organizers to allow visually impaired players to play in Chess tournaments organized for sighted players. After my message was published on the fan page, the Negambo Chess Festival organizers allowed visually impaired players to play in tournaments.

Chess for the visually impaired in Sri Lanka started in the mid-1990s. In 2017 I became the first visually impaired chess player to compete in an open international-rated Chess tournament organized for sighted players. In the same year, I became the first visually impaired Chess player to get F.I.D.E. international ratings in my country. Now in most Chess tournaments organized for sighted Chess players, the tournament organizers have named a separate category prize called “Differently-abled Category” for players with a disability. As a result, chess Players with disabilities in my country regularly play in open international-rated Chess tournaments. That is a tremendous positive change for persons with disabilities who love to play Chess. I can still remember the first game I played in a Chess tournament with a sighted player. Other players, their parents and kids surrounded me to see how I played by touching Chess pieces because it was a new experience for them. During intervals between matches, kids come near me to play friendly games. They like to try my specially-made Chessboard for the blind.

The same year, I got to work as a translator on a project where a Chess syllabus was created for Chess coaches and students in the local language. After I got married in 2017, my wife helped me with Chess studies by reading Chess books and describing Chess diagrams. But, Without a Chess coach, it is challenging for me to reach another level in Chess. I have trained myself to play Chess blindfold. It means to play Chess without a Chess board or Chess pieces. It is a great skill to develop, especially when you are a visually impaired Chess player. I now play many tournaments via Skype with other visually impaired Chess players worldwide. I’m also a member of the United States Braille Chess association.

Chess is now a sport included in the Para games, starting from the 2018 Asian Para games held in Indonesia. I was selected to represent my country in the Asian Para games 2018. I was placed 13th in Asia with a performance rating of 1502, which is my highest performance rating in a Chess tournament.

My goal is to become a member of the I.B.C.A. (visually impaired Chess team), which participates in the Chess Olympiad. I can achieve my goal with proper training, guidance, and hard work. Even though my vision is gradually deteriorating, Chess has enlightened my mind’s eye. However, I wish I had a Chess coach who could guide me toward my goals.