Chennai (Tamil Nadu): The 45th Chess Olympiad was held in Budapest, the capital of Hungary. In the final round, the Indian men's team defeated Slovenia and the women's team won against Azerbaijan and both the teams won gold medals in the team event.
India, which earlier won two bronze medals in 2014 and 2022, shared the gold with Russia in the 2020 Online Olympiad held during the Covid-19 pandemic. So, for the first time in the 90-year history of the Chess Olympiad, the Indian team has won gold solely.
Following this, the Prime Minister and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Sports Minister etc, have congratulated the team. The trio of Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, Vaishali Rameshbabu and Srinath, the captain of the Indian chess Olympiad team, have arrived in the country and received a warm welcome at the Chennai airport.
On arrival in Chennai, they were given a warm welcome at the airport by the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu. After receiving the welcome, the Indian Chess Olympiad team captain Srinath said to the media, "Indian men's and women's team have won the gold medal for the first time in the 45th Chess Olympiad. We are very proud. We have won by scoring more points. We have already won a gold medal together with Russia. But now, We have won the gold medal alone and we have won with more points to show that India is the best team."
Vaishali said, "Very happy. Last time we won bronze medal in Chess Olympiad held in Chennai. It was very sad not to win the gold medal then. But now it is very happy to win the gold medal. Indian men's team has won by the highest margin of points. But the women's team lost one match and won the other two matches, winning both the matches and winning the medal."
Pragnananda opened up to media saying "We came very close and missed out on the gold medal during the last Chess Olympiad in Chennai. It's great to win this time with more points. All the matches played were tough. After defeating the top-ranked USA, the gold medal was assured for our country. We thank everyone" he concluded.
D Gukesh also expressed joy over the victory.
“All of us were in good form in this series. It became clear at the end of the first 3 rounds. I was expecting defending world champion Ding Lirin from China to play with me," he stated.
"Although he didn't turn up, I was ready for a substitute too. Captain Sreenath Vyugam made me play the first board and that's why I and Arjun Erigaisi were able to win consistently. In the last Chess Olympiad held in Chennai, we made it to the final round. Winning the gold in the individual event was an added joy. We are constantly doing a lot of training and effort in both men's and women's categories. As a result, we have now been able to win gold. He also said that this is a victory for the joint effort of the Indian team."
