KAYLEE Grace Budhram, 11, of Phoenix, pushed past the heartache of losing her cousin to take second place at the 2024 African Youth Chess Championship (AYCC).
South Africa hosted the tournament at the Kopanong Hotel in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng, from June 15 to 23.
Kaylee had been selected to represent South Africa in the Under-12 girls category.
During the tournament, she received news of the passing of her cousin Tyler Theo David.
Her father Rishi Budhram said Tyler had encouraged and supported Kaylee in playing chess.
“Despite her broken heart, Kaylee pushed through and did not lose a single round.
“She drew for three games and went on to win second place and a silver medal for South Africa. She was one of the only two players who won a medal for South Africa from KwaZulu-Natal. She accepted this medal in honour and memory of Tyler,” Budhram said.
Kaylee told the POST that saying goodbye to her cousin was the “hardest thing” she had done so far in life.
“My training had to pick up. In this tournament players meant business when playing chess. They came prepared to play their best chess with their coaches and grand masters training them. I just had myself and my father by my side. Focus and a strong mind kept me going. I never gave up. Not even when I faced the ultimate challenge of saying goodbye to Tyler in the middle of my tournament. That was the hardest thing ever,” Kaylee said.
In April, Kaylee won the South African Junior Chess Championship.
In 2019, 2021 and 2022, she also won medals for South Africa at the African Schools Individual Chess Championship and at the AYCC held in Kenya and Zambia.
Durban Chess Administrator and Kaylee’s former coach, Erik Takawira, said it was wonderful to see Kaylee’s hard work pay off.
“She is highly gifted and motivated. It was impressive to see such a great performance and consistency in such a tough field.
“With more exposure to top tournaments, she will continue to grow stronger,” Takawira said.
The POST