Courtesy: X
On Sunday, September 22, the Indian men’s team made history by winning the Chess Olympiad gold for the first-time at the SYMA Sports and Conference Center in Budapest, Hungary. After Arjun Erigaisi and Dommaraju Gukesh got the better of Jan Subelj and Vladimir Fedoseev from Slovenia in their games respectively with the black pieces, securing at least a tie in their match, India took an unassailable lead in the 45th Chess Olympiad standings in the round 11 ahead of China, clinching the tournament for the first-time ever.
Notably, as of this writing, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and Vidit Santosh Gujrathi are battling against Anton Demchenko and Matej Sebenik from Slovenia respectively in their games with the white pieces, looking to end the tournament on a high for their team. But regardless of their eventual result in both those games, India will receive the 45th Chess Olympiad trophy in the post-tournament presentation later today in Budapest, Hungary.
Dommaraju Gukesh stayed undefeated right throughout 45th Chess Olympiad
The official X account of International Chess Federation (FIDE) shared a post on the platform, congratulating all the members of the Indian men’s team for their monumental achievement. They wrote, “Congratulations to Gukesh D, Praggnanandhaa R, Arjun Erigaisi, Vidit Gujrathi, Pentala Harikrishna and Srinath Narayanan (Captain)! Gukesh D beats Vladimir Fedoseev, and Arjun Erigaisi prevails against Jan Subelj; India secures at least a tie in their match against Slovenia, and clinches the gold!”
Meanwhile, in the women’s competition at the 45th Chess Olympiad, it’s still all to play for the Indian team, who are currently 1-0 ahead against Azerbaijan in their match in the round 11 with three games still to be completed as Kazakhstan, Poland, and the USA are their nearest competitors for the title. India took the lead after Divya Deshmukh defeated Beydullayeva Govhar of Azerbaijan with the white pieces.
