University of Greater Manchester chess ace Kelechi makes his move on brain-bending BBC TV show

Chess ace Kelechi Nkwonta will be showing off his moves on national TV next week.

Kelechi, who works at the University of Greater Manchester, will be one of the talented players featured on the BBC2 show Chess Masters: The Endgame on Monday 31 March.

The show, hosted by Sue Perkins, follows 12 rising stars of the UK’s booming chess community as they compete in a range of brain-bending puzzles and nail-biting eliminators to be crowned champion.

Kelechi, aged 39, came from Nigeria in 2020 to study in Bolton. After graduating in computer studies he gained a Master’s degree in data analytics.

His research involved analysing chess games using ‘big data’, which means helped him to uncover trends, patterns, and correlations using large amounts of complex raw data. Kelechi was then successful in applying for a job in the University’s IT department, managing its IT network and systems.

He became interested in chess around 20 years ago after being introduced to the game by his older brother and he would play at home with his family.

His sister Chinwe, also an accomplished player, who died five years ago, encouraged him to keep playing “as she knew I was even better than her”.

Kelechi said: “My whole family plays. My brother and sister were good players and they both won medals.

“I wasn’t interested in playing competitively, but Chinwe suggested I meet with the university coach in Nigeria and he said I needed to play other people to test myself.”

Kelechi says he spent hours studying a particular opening series of moves called the ‘French defence’, which you play if you begin the game playing with black pieces.

“It was around that time that I began to realise it was possible to get to a top level and I played a lot of competitions at university in my early 20s, but I used to hate losing, I used to feel so bad if I lost,” he said.

Kelechi’s mother died in 2016 and he suffer bouts of ill health, he says he took a break from chess to concentrate on his studies.

He said: “From 2015 to 2021 I didn’t play, but I watched people and when I came to Bolton, via the Students’ Union I set up a Chess Society for all ability levels in 2021, as I was doing my Master’s.

“When I graduated, I didn’t want to stop playing chess and I found out about Bolton Chess Club based in the Victoria Hall. So, for the past four years I have played for them and for Manchester County, competing with other clubs.”

Kelechi was encouraged by the producers to consider applying for the programme and he says the experience was “amazing”.

“It was really special to be with fantastic people who are as passionate about chess as I am. We were all speaking the same language and I still keep in touch with people I was on the show with.

“My family has started watching the show and I am humbled because, for example, my young nephews have become really interested in the game.

“Getting younger people involved is what it is all about. People are finding out about chess and how to learn and in my opinion that means the aim of the programme has been achieved.

“Having lost my sister who was so passionate about chess, I wanted to do something to remember Chinwe. It’s one way I can continue to feel really close to her.”

Kelechi is featured in Chess Masters: The Endgame on BBC 2 on Monday 31 March at 8pm.