Chess


Chess1Believed to have originated in ancient India, chess made its way to Persia in the 6th century. By the year 1000 it had spread throughout Europe. Initially enjoyed by nobility and the educated upper class. By the 19th Century chess clubs started treating the game as a Mind Sport. The first world championships took place in the 1880s, won by an Austrian player, Wilhelm Steinitz.

Chess is a two-player game played on a board with 64 squares, also known as a chessboard. Each player has sixteen pieces in the beginning of the game. Each of the six piece types has different moving patterns. The goal of the game is to capture the opponent's king piece or to force the opponent to resign.

Chess is arguably the most popular Mind Sport in the world, enjoyed by millions of players. Live opponents can be found in numerous chess clubs. Chess is actively played online and even by correspondence, sometimes taking months to finish one game. The World Championships attract considerable media attention and the highest ranking players in the world.