From students to families, the tournament was filled with novice and professional players battling for the titles they sought or held dearly. And like in many chess tournaments, older players enlivened the scene in the “veterans” category, some bringing their mobility aids along with them.

“My body might be weak, but don’t doubt my brain and eyes,” said 82-year-old Fabianus Lumentut of North Sulawesi on Wednesday.

Fabianus, who proudly declared that he was born in 1940, was competing in the veteran category and was brimming with cheerful energy.

“I can walk well, it just so happens that I hurt my leg today,” he said, referring to the fact that he was in a wheelchair.

Fabianus, who began playing in the ninth grade, said he had won a number of tournaments back in the day. But these days, his objective was a bit different.

“Seeing all these 10-year-olds here makes me want to impart my knowledge to them,” he said. “I’m not here for the prize money. I just want to share everything with the younger generation so that Indonesia can have more quality players.”

For 56-year-old competitor Tirto from Surakarta, who was also a gold medalist at the ASEAN Para Games, playing chess helps stimulate the mind.

“The medicine for sick people is thinking. That way, we forget the pain,” he told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday. “I joined JAPFA just for fun. My goal is actually the next ASEAN Para Games in Cambodia.”

Using a walking stick to help him during the tournament, Tirto said he was still able to travel independently.

“I can take [car and motorcycle taxi service] Grab easily, though I can’t take the bus because the door steps are so high,” he said.

The veteran chess players conversed with each other during the competition, talking about life or chess moves. At this year’s JAPFA Chess Festival, players had to be over the age of 55 to compete in the veteran category.

“My passion for chess will never go away,” 67-year-old Sudung Tampubolon of Depok told the Post on Wednesday. “It has been so ingrained in my soul. Any game that gets in your soul is always hard to let go of.”

Sudung said the veteran chess players had their own WhatsApp messaging group to update each other on new tournaments.

“As long as I still have the stamina, I will keep participating in chess competitions,” Sudung said.

Some players felt the game itself was a health-booster.

“Playing chess can help you live longer,” Fabianus said. “It’s like yoga for the brain.”

Tournament results

The final day of 12^th JAPFA Chess Festival crowned woman grand master Gong Qianyun the women’s champion. She had been the underdog at more than 100 Elo points below her opponent – a system used to rank chess players.

Three games of the match between Qianyun and international master Medina Warda Aulia ended in draws, but Qianyun managed to turn the tide after losing game three with two consecutive wins in games four and five, finishing the match one point ahead.

The classical-time-format match for the men's grand master board, on the other hand, ended in a tie. Each player won one game with the other four ending in draws.

The two players then had to play two 3-minute-plus-2-second-increment blitz games as a tiebreaker, and grand master Darwin Laylo came out on top by winning both games against international master Mohammad Ervan.

Deni Ghifari contributed to this story.