He started off by taking on 'uncles'. Now, Singapore's Chinese chess champion eyes success at SEA Games

SINGAPORE: As a child, one of Alvin Woo's frequent haunts was a Ghim Moh senior citizens' corner near his home.

There he would hone his skills in xiangqi (Chinese chess), take on all comers and build his confidence.

"I was quite regular. It was not only me, there were quite a lot of other students that would go there," he told CNA, ahead of the 31st SEA Games in Hanoi, where Chinese chess is making its debut.

"They were always open (to us playing). Unless you beat them too many times, if you did that then they wouldn’t want to play with you!" 

More than just winning or losing, these friendly matches helped him to boost his self-belief.

He explained: "That grew my passion. Because if you keep losing, you will feel sian(bored) after a while."

Woo, 38, will be one of four players in action for Team Singapore starting from Saturday (May 14) and he will feature in both the individual and rapid team events at the Games.

A REALITY CHECK

Woo's interest in xiangqi started when he was about seven.

"I was influenced by my father. He started playing with my (older) brother, and then I was just observing and subsequently I got interested," he said.

"I was always into Chinese culture … Last time we didn't have all these things like iPhones, you have less things to play with. And it seemed to appeal more to me than computer games, and then my parents thought that it was better than playing (those) games."

Encouraged by his parents to pursue this interest, he would play with anybody and everybody.

"Last time there was no reliance on the Internet so ... you just have to find someone that is maybe slightly better than you (to challenge)," he said. 

There were also clubs which would host annual competitions. And at the age of 13, Woo would take part in