How this 10-year-old chess prodigy became PH’s first female National Master

MANILA, Philippines — Ten-year-old Nika Juris Nicolas, whose formal training only began two years ago, picked up chess when she first tried playing online.

“Nagustuhan ko lang agad (I just took an immediate liking to it),” Nicolas told Rappler in an interview.  

Her mother, lawyer Nikki de Vega, initially thought it would just be a pastime during the pandemic. But not long after, her daughter would start to come home with medals and trophies from various chess competitions.

On June 9, Nicolas was conferred with the National Master title by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP), making her the first female chess player in the country to achieve this feat. 

Her parents did not expect the quick upward trajectory of their daughter’s chess journey. “Our family was surprised, medyo nabago buhay namin because of her tournaments (our lives were changed by her tournaments),” De Vega said. 

In a short span of time, Nicolas became a Pasig City athlete scholar, National Youth champion, Asian Youth medalist, Eastern Asia silver medalist, Woman Candidate FIDE Master, Batang Pinoy champion, and Woman National Master.

Just this year alone, she has participated in roughly 10 championships and tournaments in the Philippines and overseas.

“Even the chess community was surprised, they didn’t know what to do with her. We don’t know what to do with her as well, because it was so fast,” the mom added.  

Last month, Nicolas competed for the first time against boys in the international arena at the ​​ASEAN Age Group Chess Championships for Boys under 12 in Bangkok, Thailand.

She was the only girl playing in the boys division. It was one of her toughest experiences as she went on to finish at 16th place in the standard individual event. 

But regardless of the result, for Nicolas, the battle goes on. Whether it’s a loss, win, or draw, every play she has done pushes her to continue learning and honing her skills in chess.

“Ang goal ko ay mag-train harder para next time matalo ko sila (My goal is to train harder so that I can beat them next time),” the chess prodigy said. 

A curious problem solver

Nicolas is one of three girls in the family. She is the second eldest daughter of lawyers and broadcasters Nikki de Vega and Karlo Nicolas. 

“My husband and I are not chess players. We’re not really fond of chess,” De Vega shared. 

“We don’t know where it came from, but I think bata pa lang siya (when she was younger), when her sisters were playing with dolls, siya LEGOs (she plays with LEGOs). She was reading the almanac, she’s hungry for knowledge, and she likes to solve problems.”

Just eight months into her training, Nicolas joined her first NCFP tournament on February 5, 2022 at the ​​National Age Group Chess Championships for Girls under-10 where she emerged as champion. 

At first, her mother couldn’t believe it. “Nagulat ako nag-champion siya,” she shared. “Sabi ko, ‘okay, baka tsamba-tsamba lang ‘yan’ di ba parang beginner’s luck. And then subsequently, she was winning.” 

(I was surprised that she became the champion. I told myself, ‘okay, maybe it’s just a fluke, you know like beginner’s luck.)

In order to make time for her chess training and tournaments, Nicolas’ parents decided to move her to homeschool at the Victory Christian International School. 

A strong support system

Last year, Nicolas competed against participants who had been playing since they were 5 to 6 years old, which made her nervous.

“Mommy, paano kung matalo ako? (What if I lose?)” De Vega recalled her daughter asking.

“Ako naman, ‘It’s okay, just have fun…’ Kung matalo ka, okay lang. Basta may natutunan ka. Basta you fought a good fight, that’s okay,” she added.

(I told her, ‘It’s okay, just have fun…’ If you lose, that’s okay. As long as you learned something and fought a good fight, that’s okay).

Nicolas’ parents are hands-on and supportive of their daughter’s tournaments, accompanying her in flights and patiently waiting for her games to finish. 

“As a mother, my role is to make sure she feels that we are here for her. So I make sure that I’m just here. So if she needs a hug, kung matalo siya (if she loses), or she needs a hug also because she won,” De Vega shared. 

For her, it’s important that her daughter doesn’t feel pressured to play chess and that her drive to win comes from her own willingness and interest. 

“I always tell Nika, ‘Kung ayaw mo na sa chess, you tell me and it’s okay to stop,’ kasi it should come from her, the passion. But opposite ‘yun, kasi sa kanya ang punishment ay hindi mo siya palalaruin ng chess, doon siya malulungkot.” 

(I always tell Nika, ‘if you don’t want to play chess anymore, you tell me and it’s okay to stop’ because the passion should come from her. But for her, it would work the opposite because it’s a punishment if she can’t play chess, that makes her sad.)

Challenging the norm

After discovering that girls can compete against boys in tournaments, Nicolas has since been actively participating in the boys division. 

According to the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP), it isn’t common for women to compete in the male division. The World Chess Federation (FIDE) maintains separate titles for men such as Grandmaster, International Master, FIDE Master, and Candidate Master, which would have the word ‘Woman’ in the titles for qualified female players. The female title equivalent also has a lower FIDE rating requirement compared to male titles. 

“Nung first time niya, sa Tagaytay, National Age Group eliminations, it was not a pleasant experience. Nabugbog siya nun ng mga lalaki. Talaga, as in nasa ilalim siya,” De Vega recounted. 

(During her first time playing against boys in Tagaytay, at the National Age Group eliminations, it was not a pleasant experience. The boys really beat her, she was at the bottom.)

“You know, she’s not a crybaby pero naiyak siya sa frustration. Parang hindi daw niya matalo, napaka-aggressive daw,” she added.

(You know she’s not a crybaby but that made her cry out of frustration. She said she couldn’t beat them, they were quite aggressive.)

But when she asked her daughter to return to the girls division, Nicolas firmly refused. 

She trained harder and came back for the National Youth and Schools Chess Championships under-11 eliminations for boys held in Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental. In the standard event, she emerged as champion.

“We’re very proud of her. We’re very proud na naabot niya ‘to (she achieved all this) in such a short span of time,” De Vega shared.

“But we’re also scared for her because she chose an unconventional route, which is to fight boys, to fight in open divisions, kasi madaming heartaches doon eh (because there are many heartaches there).”

Competing in the boys division presents many challenges for Nicolas, since she usually finds herself as the only girl among the boys in tournaments. 

The gender imbalance in competitive chess can beset female players. According to Grandmaster and NCFP CEO Jayson Gonzales, there is still a long way to go in bridging the gender gap in chess. 

“With this kind of development, with what happened to Nika, nagkakaroon ng awareness, nagkakaroon ng pagmulat na hindi ito laro ng pang-lalaki lang (there is a growth in awareness, it opens people’s eyes that chess is not just a sport for men),” Gonzales told Rappler. 

“Talagang makikita mo na merong palaging disparity in the data and statistics…. Itong nangyari kay Nika ngayon is extraordinary (You can really see that there’s always a disparity in the data and statistics…. What happened with Nika is extraordinary),” he added. 

Prior to Nicolas earning the National Master title, she was already conferred with the Woman National Master title in February 2023.

But in June 2023, when she placed second in the standard event for the boys under-11 division at the National Youth and Schools Press Championships grand finals in Dapitan City, her performance qualified her for the male title equivalent. 

“Tatlong format ang chess, ‘yung standard, ayun ang pinakamahaba kung saan doon ginagawaran ng mga titulo ang players… Nanalo siya sa lalaki, so it’s only logical to give the award na para sa lalaki kasi doon siya naglaro,” Gonzales explained. 

(There are three formats in chess, the standard, which is the longest format where titles can be granted to players… Nika won in the boys division, so it’s only logical to award her with the male title.)

Against all odds

“Sobrang saya ko talaga (I am very happy),” Nicolas said, recalling the time she was granted the National Master title in Dapitan City.

But after that successful performance, she had to deal with bullying and discriminatory remarks from other people.

“There’s some people who just say very nasty things… nung pumutok ‘yung news (when the news of her win broke out), some people were questioning her credibility,” De Vega said.

“And then others were even making fun of her, na parang, ‘ah, mukhang kumain ng chess player!’ (as though she looks like someone who ate a chess player) because she’s very healthy as you can see. Some were even making fun of her hair.”

“People were commenting on that, on her looks… At sabi ko nga, mas napansin ko (as I said, I noticed this more) because she’s a female, I saw some sexist remarks,” she added.

When Nicolas competed in the ASEAN Championships last month, some mothers of her male opponents tried to get her disqualified by sending complaints concerning the way she dressed.

“Mga ibang players doon, nagtataka kung nag-checheat ba ako, tingin nila baka daw may ginagamit ako na (chess) engine… Mostly, ‘di ko lang pinapansin. ‘Pag inisip ko ‘yun ng madaming beses, baka ma-affect ‘yung game ko,” Nicolas said.

(Other players back then would wonder if I was cheating, they thought I was using a chess engine… I would just ignore them most of the time because if I dwell on it, that might affect my game).  

As Nicolas continues with her journey, the next goals she has in mind would also carry on to challenge the gender norms in chess.

“‘Yung goal ko talaga ay mag-world champion, sa lalaki lalo pa. Gusto ko din mag-Grandmaster na walang ‘W’ [Woman].” 

(My goal is to become a world champion, especially against men. I also want to become a Grandmaster, without the ‘Woman’.)

Nicolas urges other little girls who play chess to face their fears and try playing against boys. She said, “huwag silang matakot sa mga lalaki, laban lang sila (don’t be afraid of the boys, just fight).” – Mia Seleccion/Rappler.com

Mia Seleccion is a third-year communication arts student at the University of Santo Tomas and an intern for Rappler’s Digital Communications team.