Rainbow Elementary Chess Team competed at the National Junior High Chess Championship in Louisville, Ky. on April 24-26. (CONTRIBUTED)

MADISON – Members of Rainbow Elementary Chess Team ambitiously accepted the challenge to compete with older youth at the National Junior High Chess Championship in Kentucky.

Rainbow chess players traveled to Louisville during the last weekend of April. “Team awards are given to the top 25 teams. Most of the students competing were middle school students,” Ranae Bartlett said.

Bartlett serves as executive director of Madison City Chess League.

More than 900 students competed in the 3-day tournament. Of the 22 students from Alabama, 18 were Madison residents. In addition to Rainbow, students from Columbia and Mill Creek elementary schools and Discovery Middle School also competed.

The K-8 Under 1000 team of Constance Wang, Maanasi Limaye, Alex Edwards, Sam Fellows and Geon Park won eighth place. In individual competition, Wang tied for 20th place and received her first individual trophy at a national tournament.

The K-8 Under 750 team of Victor Lundy, Ben Kosan, Simon Fellows and Corinne Wilhelm placed 17th. “Each member of this team was competing in their first national chess tournament,” Bartlett said. “They did a fantastic job.”

The K-9 Under 1250 team of Hayden Billmann, Jenson Wilhelm, Jonah Tuttle and Boone Ramsey won eighth place. “Although not receiving individual awards, out of 159 mostly middle school students in this section, Hayden placed 34th, Jenson placed 35th and Jonah placed 36th. That was impressive in a very tough section,” Bartlett said.

“Even more Madison students will compete at the National Elementary Chess Championship in Nashville on May 8-10. The elementary nationals are over twice the size of junior high nationals,” Bartlett said.

Currently, about 2,000 students have pre-registered to compete. Off the 55 Alabama students registered to compete, 38 are Madison residents.

For more information, visit madisonchess.com, Facebook/MadisonCityChessLeague or Twitter #rbartlett14.