In the past, people learned chess by studying books, analyzing games, learning from mentors, playing in clubs, and participating in tournaments.
For Isaac Babu and his friends they were taught how to play chess by missionaries in the 1980s.
Growing up in Eastlands, they were exposed to different vices such as drugs and alcoholism, chess offered them with a different kind of addiction.
“I was a young guy when I started playing chess at Eastlands in a school where there were some missionaries who came start a church. That is where we got missionary by the name Miss Jabs who taught us chess those days,” said Babu.
What started as a hobby grew into a career when Babu discovered he was good in the game.
“After learning how to play chess and being at the game we came to Nairobi where the chess was being played at French cultural center and now joined the Chess fraternity.”
“The Chess Federation Chairman Mr. Clement Miheso was the one who encouraged us to form a team, called Eastlands chess club where we started going for competitions,” said Babu.
To improve his Chess skills in the 2000s, Babu relied on books.
In the digital age, he notes that online chess games and AI are a great help to people who want to learn the game.
Technology has dramatically transformed chess, from enhancing how humans play and learn to developing powerful AI opponents and analysis tools.
Online platforms, AI-powered engines, and electronic chessboards have made the game more accessible, engaging, and complex than ever before.
Despite the increasing online games, playing physical games keeps everyone honest.
“Physical chess is the best because online chess there’s a tool that can assist you. In online games, there are so many cheats, for physical you cant cheat,” said Babu.
Having played chess for over 40 years, Babu still reckons that physical chess is king.
“We encourage people to do learn on physical and then we teach them how to to train online like that. Online is there, but we normally, we believe in physical chess,” he said.
Watch the video below to see how technology has evolved how people learn and play chess.
