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29 | The IFP -H alton H ills | T hursday,M ay 2,2019 theifp.ca Cell: 416-989-7809 Dave LoDuca QUALITY BATHROOM RENOVATIONS C C T I L EE RAM I Gold 2018 Halton Hills CONTRACTOR - 7 years! Thanks for your support! coupon We are Diesel Vehicle Specialists! Fleet Maintenance/ Programs Available JuSt ASk! Best Pricing on All Products 20 Armstrong Avenue, Georgetown ✃ ✃ Certified Mechanics on Duty 905-877-1237 TIRES! All Sizes All Brands Silver 2018 Halton Hills Auto, Truck & Trailer Service and Certification We have Anco All Season Wiper Blades! only $7.49/ea installed. TIRES! Most Vehicles + TAX Most Vehicles $3995 only • Oil & Filter Change • Antifreeze Check • Lubrication • 52 point inspection • Battery & Wiper Blade Check • FREE FLUID TOP UPS Special!* MAinTenAnce * Up to 6 Ltr. Limited time offer • Upgrade to synthetic from $15 extra. DEKA BATTERIES • HIGH QUALITY • LOW COST All Sizes Available ~ Auto & Commercial Car & Truck, ATV, RV, Motorcycles, Snowmobiles & More! Car & T RV In March, Shamoun Ah- mad, 13, placed first in a Hal- ton District School Board chess tournament held at McKenzie-Smith Bennett Public School in Acton among 30 Grade 8 students from across Halton. Ahmad was introduced to the game by his cousin five years ago, when he was eight years old. "When I first started play- ing, I didn't really know how to play," Ahmad said. "With chess, practice makes per- fect. You need to play a lot to get good at the game." Ahmad said he plays ev- ery day of the school week now against classmates and his Grade 8 teacher, Roshan Canagasaby, at Hawthorne Village Public School in Mil- ton. Outside of chess, Ahmad said he enjoys playing soc- cer and card games, but the real draw toward chess was strategy. "Card games are luck- based," Ahmad said, "and there aren't a lot of board games that are purely strat- egy." While 189 students from across Halton Region com- peted, Ahmad competed with 30 other students in his grade. On the day of the tourna- ment, 90 chess boards were set up in the school's gymna- sium. Ahmad played five games, clinching four of the games with the checkmate, and ending one game in a stalemate. "I was surprised," Ahmad said. "I was just going for fun." Still, Ahmad went into each game with a strategy. "I try to get a four-move checkmate," Ahmad said. "People who like chess prob- ably know it, but beginners probably don't." Regardless of skill level, ending the game in four moves isn't likely. Typically, games last a maximum of 40 minutes but usually end in 20 or 30 min- utes. Even though Ahmad brought home a gold medal from the tournament, his parents said chess mastery doesn't run in the family. "We didn't know he played chess," Aliya Rafay, Ahmad's mother, said. "We don't have a chess board in our house." Rafay Ahmad, Ahmad's father, said a chess board at home is a distinct possibility. "Now we know there's a hidden talent there," Rafay said. "It's his hobby, he likes it, he should be doing it more." Ahmad said he plans to continue competing. NEWS CHECKMATE FOR MILTON TEEN AT HALTON-WIDE CHESS TOURNEY BRYAN MYERS bmyers@metroland.com Shamoun Ahmad, a grade 8 student at Hawthorne Public School, started playing five years ago at school and recently brought home a first place prize at a Halton District School Board chess championship at McKenzie-Smith Bennett Public School in Acton. Bryan Myers/Metroland