Making moves: Halifax teen is a rising star in the world of chess

Josh Hoffman · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 06, 2025 11:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 12 minutes ago

Calix Marchand learned a caller crippled astatine daycare erstwhile helium was four.

"I retrieve coming backmost location and telling my dada astir it and saying, like, I played this crippled with a king and a queen and a knight," helium said.

Since then, Marchand, 13, has since won galore chess tournaments crossed Canada and competed successful matches each implicit the world. 

In December, Halifax's Marchand became the youngest subordinate from the Maritimes to gain the lifelong rubric of nationalist chess maestro by the Chess Federation of Canada. He missed being the youngest chess maestro successful Canada by conscionable 23 months.

The crippled has taught Marchand a batch astir life, helium said.

"I truly similar however it's conscionable a chill analyzable crippled and there's ever … country for improvement," helium said. "I besides truly similar the competitiveness [of the game]."

The adults successful his beingness person besides noticed however Marchand's occurrence successful chess has influenced who helium is arsenic a person. 

'Unmatched' skill

In his young career, Marchand has won events similar the Canadian Youth Chess Championships and Canadian Chess Challenge.

He besides represented his state astatine the World Cadet Chess Championship successful Italy past November.

Chris Felix, president of the Nova Scotia Scholastic Chess Association, described Marchand arsenic "unmatched."

"I've witnessed a fewer rising stars implicit the years successful Nova Scotia and Calix is progressing faster than each of the others successful the past," Felix said.

Despite being ranked successful the apical 100 successful the satellite for his property group, Marchand's cognition is what impresses Felix the most

It's not lone Marchand's occurrence that has rubbed disconnected on other young players successful Nova Scotia, but however helium approaches the game," said Felix. That's made him a relation model.

Celeste Lefebvre, Marchand's mother, believes it has helped her son's confidence. "It's astir apt the biggest thing," she said.

Chess has galore antithetic levels that let a subordinate to proceed to evolve, Lefebvre said. She said she and her hubby ne'er played the game.

But they're much than blessed to enactment their son's passionateness arsenic they've noticed the lessons he's learning arsenic a subordinate and a person.

For 1 thing, Marchand has learned however to lose, his parent said. 

"I deliberation it's really been truly bully from an affectional absorption position for him arsenic good — learning however to suffer and however to recognize that nonaccomplishment allows you to larn from it and determination on."

Marchand hasn't been losing overmuch lately, however. He won the Nova Scotia Scholastic Chess Association yearly expansive prix past period for the 2nd twelvemonth straight.

He's competing successful the Nova Scotia provincial championships successful Halifax this play successful hopes of winning a spot astatine the nationals successful Ottawa adjacent month.

Even though he's ever reasoning 4 moves ahead, Marchand doesn't get excessively acold up of himself and ever respects his opponent.

"In a crippled of chess, thing tin happen. So you conscionable can't underestimate anyone."