Phiona Mutesi, Female Chessplayer from Uganda

I have no idea what was going on in this Gambit blog by Dylan McClain.  What was he trying to say?  What was his point?  That this young woman from a poor African country, a young woman who does not even know her own birthdate, is some kind of calculating fraud?  Is that what you were saying, Dylan McClain?

January 5, 2011, 5:10 pm
ESPN Discovers a Chess Prodigy. Or Not.
By DYLAN LOEB MCCLAIN

ESPN the Magazine has a story in the current issue about a young chess player from Uganda named Phiona Mutesi. The story is titled “Game of Her Life” with a smaller headline, “For 14-year-old chess prodigy Phiona Mutesi, chess is a lifeline.”

Written by Tim Crothers, the article tells the story of how Phiona went to play in the Chess Olympiad in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, last year, and about her impoverished upbringing. It is a touching story, full of vivid detail.

Crothers spent time with Phiona in Uganda and at the Olympiad and he interviewed her opponents in the competition, including Dina Kagramanov, the Canadian champion, who was generous in her assessment of Phiona’s skill, saying, “Anybody can be taught moves and how to react to those moves, but to reason like she does at her age is a gift that gives her the potential for greatness.”

But will Phiona achieve greatness? Is she a prodigy? Rest of article.

I think everyone should read the online article at ESPN, and judge for themselves about Phiona Mutesi and her life:

Updated: January 4, 2011, 5:58 PM ET
Game of her life: For 14-year-old chess progidy Phiona Mutesi, chess is a lifeline
By Tim Crothers
ESPN The Magazine