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The National Junior Chess Championships took place in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu from the 23rd to the 31st of July, 2015. The tournament saw the participation of a strong field of contenders.
One of the most challenging tournaments for aspiring juniors, the championship gives youngsters a wide opportunity to display their skills. This year, the event saw over 200 participants, and was played in both boys and girls categories.
The tournament was played in a swiss system eleven round format, and was won convincingly by Grandmaster Aravindh Chitambaram who led for most of the tournament. The young lad from Tamil Nadu scored a massive 9.5/11 and had a performance rating of 2521.
The girls section was quite the opposite. Two players were tied till the end of the final round. However, Vaishali R, one of the top players in Indian chess today, won the tournament on a better tie-break score. She scored 8.5/11, with Monisha GK in second. It was a disappointing end for Monisha as she was in quite a comfortable position throughout the tournament.
The two winners, Aravindh and Vaishali, are no doubt the best juniors of the country this year. While Aravindh is inching closer and closer towards the Super Grandmaster level, Vaishali is doing her level best to reach greater heights in women’s chess. Incidentally, they share a trainer in RB Ramesh who trains them in Chennai.
With their many achievements, both players have made the country proud. Vaishali also won the National Women Challenger Championship recently, and Aravindh won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Championship held in New Delhi earlier this year.
We hope to see new future world champions in them. More funding and sponsorships are the need of the hour for these players. It is only then can they perform at their optimal best.
