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Numbers in the News: Chess
Chess recently experienced a surge in popularity. Here are some facts and figures about this centuries-old game of strategy.
ESCURIAL LIBRARY, FOL. 63 RECTO./CC VIA WIKIMEDIA
1,400
The number of years that people have been playing chess, which originated in India.
SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
10120
The estimated number of possible chess games—1 followed by 120 zeros.
YVONNE HEMSEY/GETTY IMAGES
1997
The year in which a computer first beat a world champion in a game of chess.
10 MILLION
The number of active players on the popular website www.chess.com as of January 2023.
NICOLE CRAINE/SHUTTERSTOCK
12 YEARS, 4 MONTHS
The age of Abhimanyu Mishra when he became the youngest person to gain the title of Grandmaster—the International Chess Federation’s highest ranking for a player.
TAKE IT FURTHER: What’s your favorite board game? Take a poll to find out how many students in your class also play it.
SOURCES: PHILOSOPHICAL MAGAZINE (1950), CHESSGAMES.COM, CHESS.COM, GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS, CNN