The Hindu in School (THiS) Chess Competition 2016, held at Army Public School on K. Kamaraj Road on Saturday and Sunday, witnessed good participation, with more than 200 children turning up for the event, presented by Thyrocare and held under the aegis of the United Karnataka Chess Association (UKCA), which is affiliated to the All India Chess Federation.
In the junior category (from class 5 to 8), Pranav V., a student of Velammal Vidyalaya, Mel Ayambakkam, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, bagged the first prize. The class 5 student, who was also the national champion in the Under-9 category in 2015, was on a personal trip to Bengaluru as his father is from the city. Pranav, who also stood fourth in the Asian-level chess competition last year, said he loves playing chess and it has helped him improve his grades in academics too. “I was pretty confident of bagging the top prize,” he said.
Theju K.V., a student of Sri Chaithanya Techno School, Hosur, Tamil Nadu, came second, while Abhinav Bhatt, a student of Kendriya Vidyalaya, RWF, Yelahanka, took the third prize. Aryam Bhomik, a student of Army Public School, K. Kamaraj Road, came fourth.
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In the senior category (class 9 to 12), Arya Gopal, a student of Army Public School, PRTC, bagged the first prize. The class 9 student took to the game seriously when he was in class 5. “Though chess skills are inborn, you need a coach to hone them. Earlier, I was a passive player. However, my coach told me to play aggressively. He also told me to study the opening moves of grandmasters and super grandmasters. I love the way Magnus Carlsen plays, and in future, I aspire to be a super grandmaster like him,” he said.
Aaron Aryan Fernandes, a student of National Hill View Public School, Rajarajeshwarinagar, came second. Diya Wadhera, another student of the same school, bagged the third prize, while Ajan Antony, a student of Army Public School, K. Kamaraj Road, came fourth.
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Kakkera Venkateswaralu, general manager, Bank of Baroda, Karnataka, AP and Telangana zone, was the chief guest at the valedictory function and gave away prizes to the winners. He said that his bank has always encouraged sporting talents and that Indian grandmaster Koneru Humpy was one of the beneficiaries. The winners received trophies and certificates from The Hindu , apart from gift vouchers . All the participants received certificates.
Vasanth B.M. of UKCA was the chief arbiter, while the deputy arbiter was Saleem. The event was supported by Chess Shoots Academy. Bank of Baroda was the regional partner, while Sapna Book House and Ramanashree Brunton hotel were the gift partners.
In the tournament held in Mysuru on Saturday, over 100 students took part. The event was supported by Mysore Chess Centre. The tournament held in Shivamogga on Sunday attracted over 150 participants.
In the junior category, Basavesh Mrutyunjayappa, Vedant Anirudha Kulkarni, Manya Hegde, Renganayaki, and Srivastav Manishika were given consolation prizes. In the senior category, it went to Nitin Krishna M., Jagadish, Annapurna B.A., Kavyashri, and Aishwarya M. Inchal.