Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi was just another Indian kid who dreamt of becoming a cricketer in his childhood before an accidental initiation to chess, which he feels was a 'very happy accident'.
The India 'A' and 'B' teams registered comprehensive seventh round victories
India 'B' defeated Germany 3-1 in their final round match to end at third position.
Norway's Magnus Carlsen continues to be the undisputed world No.1 with 2832.5 points, followed by United States' Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura (2802) and country-mate Fabiano Caruana (2798).
Reigning world chess champion D Gukesh has stated that he is open to competing in all formats of chess, including the newly popular freestyle format, but believes that classical chess, with its rich history, will always hold the greatest significance. Despite concerns of a potential split in the sport between supporters of freestyle and classical chess, Gukesh sees no reason for division, highlighting the excitement of freestyle while acknowledging the importance of the traditional format's legacy.
The youngest-ever world champion, Gukesh Dommaraju will take on Magnus Carlsen, the world's highest-rated player, in a highly-anticipated contest at next year's Norway Chess.
It all started as an extra-curricular activity in school, which later became a life-long passion for D Gukesh and led to him becoming one of the best chess exponents in 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.
With her family in tow, Humpy met the PM and described it as a "once-in-a-lifetime privilege."
The IOC launched the first Olympic Values Education Programme (OVEP) in India in May 2022, with the Olympism-themed curriculum being integrated into the school education system in Odisha.
'There are several talented players like R Vaishali, Divya Deshmukh, Vantika Agrawal, so the future is certainly bright.'
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.
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.
'I am still the kid who loves chess. It used to be the coolest toy.'
Former Asian queen Tania Sachdev continued with her dream run as Indian eves roared back to medal contention with an easy 2.5-1.5 triumph over Vietnam in the eighth round of the Women's chess Olympiad in Istanbul.
Shooter Manu Bhaker won two bronze medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics while Gukesh was crowned the World Chess Champion in Singapore, last month.
Arjun Erigaisi breathed a sigh of relief after receiving his US visa to compete in the upcoming World Rapid and Blitz Championships in New York
'Scrapping titles like WIM, WGM and a separate women's category will kill women's interest in chess.'
The five were on Wednesday selected from 56 students, who came for a training camp at Homi Bhabha Centre in Mumbai.
The Olympiad is a unique event designed to discover, encourage and challenge exceptionally gifted young students from all over the world.
'This introduction that has now been in place for sometime could well give that additional flavour for the chess players as they will be able to guess the pressure that a certain player is feeling during the course of a game.'
The 18-year-old Gukesh claimed the title by beating China's Ding Liren in Singapore on Thursday.
Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi believes the government's recent decision to stop cash rewards for attaining GM and International Master titles is 'not ideal' for the parents of chess players.
The US team fought back brilliantly after being trounced in Round 1 by India to win the second and the Blitz tie-break 4.5-1.5, emerging victorious in an exciting semi-final in the FIDE Online Chess Olympiad on Tuesday.
Yashodhan Kanoria of Ruparel College, Mumbai, had also bagged a gold medal at the International Chemistry Olympiad held in Greece in July.
It's been seven years since a chess player got the Arjuna award and the iconic Viswanathan Anand is hoping that India's triumphant campaign at the online Chess Olympiad will change this when the national sporting honours are announced next year.
Teenager Gukesh Dommaraju of India became the youngest chess world champion by beating defending champion Ding Liren of China on Thursday
Indian chess Grandmaster R Vaishali has set her sights on two key objectives this year: delivering consistent performances and securing a spot in the prestigious Candidates Tournament.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday lauded India's young chess players for their historic achievement at the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest, where both the men's and women's teams clinched their maiden gold medals.
In a groundbreaking moment for Indian chess, Arjun Erigaisi has become the second player from India and the sixteenth player globally to surpass the 2800 live rating mark.
Kachiani-Gersinka, while Mary Ann Gomes accounted for Sarah Hoolt as the Indian women's team beat Germany '1' 3-1 in the fourth round of the 32nd Chess Olympiad in Dresden, Germany. However, the Indian men lost narrowly to top seeds Russia in the Open section after P Harikrishna's heroic efforts, that netted him a victory over Peter Svidler, went in vain.
Men's hockey team captain Harmanpreet, under whose leadership India won a second successive bronze medal at the Olympics, said the honour is a recognition of his "fascinating" journey in which he still has plenty more to achieve.
Grandmaster D Gukesh will face his first major challenge since becoming world champion when he begins his campaign in the Tata Steel Chess tournament, which starts on Friday in Wijk Aan Zee, The Netherlands.
With the top spot assured in the pool with a round to go, India was held to a 3-3 draw by a fighting Slovenia.
Ding will face a stern challenge from the 18-year-old Gukesh, who "doesn't make any mistakes at all" and has had a terrific run in 2024.
Newly-crowned World chess champion D Gukesh returned to Chennai on Monday to an enthusiastic reception his fans.
All five students are students of the Indian Institute of Technology.
India was held to a 3-3 draw by lower-ranked Mongolia in the sixth round as favourites China grabbed the top spot in Pool A in the FIDE Online Chess Olympiad on Saturday.
Indian men's chess team, led by five-time world champion Vishwanathan Anand, played a 2-2 draw against the Russian squad in the sixth round of the ongoing 43rd Chess Olympiad, in Batumi, on Sunday.
