Now Reading: Indian-origin teens Bodhana, Shreyas sweep British chess titles
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Indian-origin teens Bodhana, Shreyas sweep British chess titles
Indian-origin teenagers Bodhana Sivanandan, 11, and Shreyas Royal, 17, won the women's and open titles at the 2026 British Chess Championships in Coventry. Bodhana became the youngest-ever British women's champion after beating…
The Story in Brief
Indian-origin teenagers Bodhana Sivanandan, 11, and Shreyas Royal, 17, won the women's and open titles at the 2026 British Chess Championships in Coventry. Bodhana became the youngest-ever British women's champion after beating 14-year-old Trisha Kanyamarala in a rapid-chess playoff. Shreyas finished half a point ahead of England's experienced grandmasters after nine rounds to claim his first British title.
Bodhana, from north-west London, learned chess during the COVID-19 lockdown after a family friend gave her a board. Shreyas, who moved from Bangalore to the UK at age three, became England's youngest grandmaster at 15. Former home secretary Sajid Javid said he helped Shreyas's family remain in Britain in 2018. The championships had over 1,750 entries and a record £34,000 prize fund.
The Indian Opinion
These wins are a genuine achievement, not just a feel-good diaspora story. Bodhana’s lockdown discovery and Shreyas’s visa battle show that talent needs opportunity, but also that Indian-origin players are now a force in global chess, not just a local curiosity. The real test will come when both face the top-ranked grandmasters in open international events next year.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
