SCHOOLBOY CHAMPION

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31239, 10 December 1966, Page 11

SCHOOLBOY CHAMPION

'ALTHOUGH he has been the New Zealand schoolboy champion for the last three years B. R. Anderson is not one of those who has been playing from infancy. He learned to play chess in the third form at Shirley Boys’ High School five years

ago, when he was taught by a school friend, and began playing at the school’s chess club. Later, Bruce Anderson heard of the Canterbury Chess Club and was interested enough to join. His results improved with experience. Anderson’s first tournament was the Canterbury Secondary Schools’ championship of 1962 and he was unplaced. The following year his results improved and since 1964 the now-18-

year-old Anderson has been the leading schoolboy player in New Zealand. He won the Canterbury, South Island, and New Zealand championships for schoolboys in 1964-65-66, sharing the national title in 1964, and the South Island championship in 1964 and 1966. Anderson is dedicated to chess and spends most of his time playing, reading about the game, or experimenting with moves. He says that one of his most interesting games was played with an opponent 2500 miles away—at McMurdo Sound. Canterbury club members formed a team which went to Operation Deep Freeze headquarters in Christchurch to play the match over teleprinter communications and Anderson won his game. Although short in moves it took six hours to complete through the difficulty in maintaining contact with McMurdo because of weather conditions. He has also played cricket for the school’s first XI as an all-rounder who bowls at medium-pace. He is in the school golf team and is a fair player. Anderson has represented Shirley Boys’ High School in inter school chess tournaments and won all his games.

Thia is the fifth in a series of profiles on plover/ who will be taking part in the Canterbury Chess Club's centennial tournament starting on December 26.