Eighteen middle-school kids from Williamsburg’s IS 318 went to Minneapolis last weekend to compete in the national high-school chess championship against experienced kids who are years older.
It wasn’t a fair fight: The old fogeys in high school never stood a chance.
The Brooklynites became the only middle school in history to triumph in the national high-school tourney, organizers said.
“This is the greatest achievement we’ve ever had, and probably ever will have,” added John Galvin, a chess coach and assistant principal at the school.
IS 318 is beyond rare: About half of its 1,600 students take chess classes, and two of its star competitors, Justus Williams and James Black Jr., are already nationally ranked as chess masters — both achieving the astonishing feat by the age of 12.
If it sounds like the stuff of movies, it is: Right after their victory, the kids headed to a screening of “Brooklyn Castle,” a documentary about their team. Next up: the national middle-school finals in San Diego.
There’s only word for all this: Wow!