August 1, 2024
GEORGETOWN – Weeks after realising his dream of becoming an international master (IM) at chess, a 15-year-old Penang boy has now set his sights on becoming Malaysia’s first chess grandmaster.
On July 21, Poh Yu Tian proved his mettle at the 8th East Asian Youth Chess Championship (EAYCC) here and became the country’s youngest IM. Prior to that, he had already been ranked as the most active player in the country.
He is the 10th Malaysian, and the third in Penang, to ever rise to the rank of an IM.
“My ultimate aim is to work hard and become Malaysia’s first chess grandmaster,” said Poh.
“I am willing to put in the necessary effort and dedication to achieve this goal.”
Becoming a chess grandmaster will place Poh among the global chess community’s elite, in which only about 2,000 players have earned the title.
In pursuit of his goal, he plans to participate in more tournaments and continuously refine his strategies.
“I’ve been playing chess since I was seven and I enjoy it very much. I play online with players from all over the world daily, for up to four hours on weekdays and six hours on weekends.
“Usually, before a tournament, I will play even more and study the moves of grandmasters I admire such as Jose Raul Capablanca, Bobby Fischer and 17-time World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen,” he said in an interview.
Other than bagging the Under-18 title at the EAYCC, Poh was also the champion of the rapid event and came in second in the blitz event, enabling him to become the first recipient of the PMX Cup trophy.
His father Poh Leong Pat, 51, who also has a daughter aged 17, expressed his full support for Poh’s ambitions, acknowledging his son’s discipline.
“I will do everything I can to help Yu Tian, who is also our state chess player, achieve his aim.
“Yu Tian completed three ‘norms’ and achieved a rating of 2,429 for the IM title.
“The next focus is obtaining the grandmaster title.
“To accomplish this, he needs to complete three more ‘norms’ and I am confident he can do it.
“He has competed in tournaments in India, Thailand and Vietnam, and represented Penang in the National School Sports Council programme.”
A total of 358 participants from 17 countries took part in the tournament from July 12-21, jointly organised by the Penang Chess Association and the Malaysian Chess Association.
Malaysia sent a contingent of 74 players who competed across six categories and secured an impressive second place overall, earning two gold, two silver and one bronze.
China claimed first place in the tournament, taking home five gold, three silver and five bronze medals, while Vietnam took third place with two gold and two silver.