'We parents can only support them'
צילום: רויטרס
All in the chess family
Ordinarily, the seventh place finalists in the national chess competition wouldn't really make news. But when all six players on the team hail from the same family, it's something to write about
Israel's chess season ended this weekend, with 12 teams of 6 players competing for the country's highest chess honors. The greatest story of the competition was the "Porat Mathematics" team.
Porat Math may have only taken seventh place in the standings, but they team raised eyebrows for a different reason: The members of the team are all brothers and sisters.
Shai (21), Dudi (20), Ido (19), Maya (14 1/2), Motke (13) and Chen (8 1/2) Porat live in from Rechovot. Their father, Rami, is part owner of a private math school. Nine years ago he brought home a chess board, and the rest is history.
Climbing the ranks
For the past five years, the family team has made history by climbing the ranks of Israeli chess, capturing first place in each league they have competed in by a wide margin.
"The kids are the ones that play," Rami told Yedioth Ahronoth. We parents can only support them, morally and financially."
The brothers and sisters play in a youth league, and the three eldest – Shai, Dudi and Ido – also compete in an adults league. All three concurrently serve in the IDF.
This past Shabbat, in the league final, the Porats broke another Israeli record when the fourth daughter, Maya, became the youngest player to appear in a professional league match. Although she eventually lost (after four hours) to her 100th ranked (in the world!) opponent, Maya said she was a "bit emotional."
"I've been playing since I was six years old, and I love it. I wouldn't give it up for the world," she said.
"The game helps develop your mind," says Rami. "Take Motke, for example. He's only in seventh grade, but he's already finished his high school matriculation exams in math with distinction, and he is set to begin his B.S. in math next year."
