'It will bring the next wave of awareness and pursuit of excellence from people who want to take chess as a game or a competitive sport or even as a career.'
Newly-crowned world chess champion D Gukesh is looking forward to the day when the sport will become a part of the Olympic curriculum, which, he said, would take it to an altogether different level not just in India but across the world.
'I have no idea about such a medal. Never got one,' says Surya Shekhar Ganguly, the national chess champion between 2003 and 2008.
Russian athletes have been banned from many sports and largely cannot compete in Europe due to the sanctions and competition complications caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine that began on February 24, 2022.
World champion D Gukesh will take on Fabiano Caruana of the United States in the two-game quarter-final after the latter picked the Indian in a unique format typical of Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, in Hamburg, Germany.
Following his victory, the 18 year old spoke to International Chess Federation (FIDE) in a freewheeling interview about his love for chess and how he continues to be a student of the game.
Grandmaster R Vaishali was so crestfallen following seven straight losses in the Chennai Grandmasters that she had made up her mind to pull out of the Grand Swiss tournament, but family support steered her to the event where she won the title to qualify for the Candidates next year.
'I see an unjust personal attack by some players, probably due to sheer jealousy.'
Months after a dress-code controversy involving five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) announced a new dress code for the FIDE Grand Swiss and FIDE Women's Grand Swiss.
An "embarrassed" All India Chess Federation (AICF) has filed a police complaint after a Chess Olympiad trophy its team won in the last edition of the tournament at home went missing from its office, forcing the sports body to arrange for a replica of the prized possession and tender an apology.
D Gukesh saw the world championship trophy for the first time on Friday after becoming the youngest ever to win it but said he would wait a while before laying his hands on it.
Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi's decision to share the World Blitz Championship title for the first time in history sparked widespread criticism.
Magnus Carlsen banged the table while his game against World Champion D Gukesh was still in progress, an act that violated chess conduct rules.
'The Indian Open team was extremely well prepared and motivated to win the gold medal.' 'With two players in the world top 10 club, and four players with over 2,700 ELO points (GMs Arjun Erigaisi, D Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa, all below 20) and Vidit Gujrathi and P Harikrishna, it was a solid team.'
In the sixth round Gukesh survived another scare before steering the game to a draw with Firouzja.
Team MGD1, with Grandmaster Arjun Erigiaisi playing on the top board, had earlier made it to the 16-team knockout and beaten Generation XYZA 4-0 in the first round.
Gujrathi, who was a part of India's gold-winning campaign in the Chess Olympiad recently, says the sport's ecosystem needs a major overhaul to ensure players have more balance in life.
FIDE said it will do its utmost to find another organiser for the Olympiad and will provide more information in due time.
'It is not just D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, Praggnanandhaa and Vidit Gujrathi.' 'There are another 20 players just behind them. Nobody imagined this was possible 5 years ago.'
Neither current World Champion D Gukesh nor former world champion Vishy Anand are the top rated Indian chess player.
'The Asian Chess Championship will give great exposure for young chess players. But the AICF is curtailing the number of Indian players with a strange rule.'
Defending champion Ding Liren says the in-form Dommaraju Gukesh is the big favourite to win their World Chess title showdown in November.
Playing chess all year round can take a huge toll on the physical and mental aspects of a player and Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa acknowledged that sometimes he has to completely take his mind off the sport to prepare for the upcoming challenges.
Russian chess Grandmaster Boris Spassky, who took French nationality in 1978, was the 10th World chess champion, holding the title from 1969-1972, when he lost it to American Bobby Fischer in Reykjavik in a contest later dubbed as the "Match of the Century".
Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa, Erigaisi and Vaishali have trained at the Westbridge Anand Chess Academy (WACA) that the bespectacled chess wizard set up four years ago in Chennai. The 18-year-old Gukesh and the 19-year-old Praggnanandhaa have often stated that they would not be where they are without "Vishy sir".
Chess sensation R Praggnanandhaa along with his parents meet PM Modi
World no.1 Magnus Carlsen's fiery reaction after losing to D Gukesh in Norway Chess here was probably because he saw his authority in the game being challenged by someone so young
'We have to change our mindset to grow. We've got to think about our lacunas, our shortcomings and we have to work on that all the time. In three years' time we will not need any government funding.'
Caruana kept his slender half point lead going in to the final round in the 10-player round-robin tournament, a part of the Grand Chess tour.
'The match,' asserted FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich, 'has been played at the highest standards of fair play, no investigation is required.'
India's chess great Viswanathan Anand celebrated International Chess Day on Saturday, with a friendly chess game against his son Akhil.
Chess960, created by former world champion Bobby Fischer in 1996, has been gaining in popularity after an invitational tournament played last year at the Weissenhaus Luxury Resort, which hosted the G7 Foreign Minister summit in 2022.
An eight-year-old Indian-origin boy defeated Polish chess grandmaster Jacek Stopa at the Burgdorfer Stadthaus Open in Switzerland.
Historic moment, hails Anand after four Indians reach FIDE WC quarterfinals
All India Chess Federation (AICF) president Sanjay Kapoor said the federation is also working on organising an Indian Chess League.
Praggnanandhaa has expressed his determination to approach the World Cup final against Magnus Carlsen with a fresh mindset.
Chess governing body FIDE's general assembly agreed to consider lifting parts of a ban on Russian and Belarusian players imposed after Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022, in a vote on Sunday in Budapest.
'It is surprising that Pakistan has suddenly taken the decision of not participating in the FIDE Chess Olympiad, particularly after the team has already reached India'.
...'you are 37. It's quite difficult when you get older to keep that motivation and stay sharp when required.'
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