Mediaboss Marketing

Young prodigy Punithamalar Rajashekar from Malaysia broke the record for the fastest time to arrange a chess set blindfolded, proving that she can break a record with her eyes quite literally closed.

She broke the previous record by achieving the jaw-dropping time of 45.72 seconds.

The talented girl has won several awards, including Asias Outstanding Child Award of the Year 2022-2023, and has showcased her skills in various competitions, such as Malaysias Kids Got Talent.

The record attempt took place at Punithamalars school, with members of the Parents and Teachers Association and the school management all there to witness the event.

You can see the attempt here:

As one might expect, Punithamalars passion with chess goes beyond arranging the chess set in record-breaking time. She is also an excellent chess player, who started playing when she was five years old.

She is the best player at her school, which she represented at a district chess competition.

She also regularly participates in nationwide tournaments and is a FIDE (International Chess Federation) registered member.

My dad is my coach, she told us, and we play together almost every day.

Punithamalar got the idea to attempt a world record after watching a documentary about extraordinary human achievements.

Seeing people push their limits and accomplish incredible feats really inspired me, she explained. [] I was particularly drawn to the idea of setting a personal goal and pushing myself beyond my limits, and attempting a world record seemed like the perfect way to do that.

I had already participated in various events such as Kids Got Talent, and felt that I wanted to do more to get recognition. My father suggested that I should focus on my passion, so my family and I decided I should break this particular record.

Know a kid who'd love this story? We've got a special version of it just for them on our kids' website!

Regarding her training for the attempt, she commented: I studied videos of previous record holders to understand their techniques and strategies.

I began my preparation 4 months before the actual attempt, with a combination of physical and mental training.

Her coach dad supported her throughout the entire process, whilst her family and teachers motivated her during the toughest training sessions.

Besides playing chess, Punithamalar also likes to memorize facts and pictures, and she has participated in various school competitions for storytelling and public speaking.

Her favourite subject is maths and, when she grows up, she wants to become a space scientist.

On breaking a world record, she said that it was a life-changing experience, that she felt pride and uniqueness, and that she hopes it will inspire others to reach for their own extraordinary goals.

Lastly, the young chess champion revealed that she intends to attempt another record in the blindfolded category!

We cannot wait to see what record young Punithamalar will break next.

Want more? Follow us on Google Newsand across our social media channels to stay up-to-date with all things Guinness World Records! You can find us on Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, Threads,TikTok, LinkedIn, and Snapchat Discover.

Don't forget to check out our videos on YouTubeand become part of our group chat by following the Guinness World RecordsWhatsApp channel.

Still not had enough? Click hereto buy our latest book, filled to the brim with stories about our amazing record breakers.

Read more:
10-year-old from Kids Got Talent breaks chess record - Guinness World Records

Image Caption

The 50+ champs! (courtesy Mark Livzhitz/FIDE)

The U.S. Team won the 2023 FIDE World Chess Championship 50+ in Struga, N. Macedonia on the heels of a 40 sweep of Poland in the last round on Thursday, September 28. Full results are available here.

Image Caption

Final standings for the 50+ section

Team USA was in the driver's seat when we last checked in on Struga, but suffered a 31 setback at the hands of Italy in round seven.

With GMs Jaan Ehlvest and Alex Yermolinsky being held to draws with the white pieces on boards two and four, GMs Alexander Shabalov and Igor Novikov both got into early trouble as Black out of the opening. There's a joke about playing the Sicilian against Italians here somewhere.

Round eight saw a reversal of fortunes, with the U.S. out-rating their opponents from Uruguay by at least 500 points on each board. The team took care of business with a 40 sweep, and got a bonus gift from Iceland, who held Italy to a tie thanks to a nice miniature from their fourth board.

With draws on boards one and three, Italy was able to tie the match thanks to GM Michele Godena setting some serious problems for his opponent in an objectively equal endgame.

The draw was enough to bring the U.S. back into a tie for first headed into the final round. To make things even better, Italy had to face a tough Macdeonian team that held the U.S. to a draw earlier in the tournament. Indeed, Italy suffered the same fate, drawing the match 22.

Before any game finished, Team USA already clinched their match, with GM Gregory Kaidanov winning emphatically:

And Yermolinsky and Shabalov shortly following suit:

Novikov added a fourth win for good measure, and the U.S. are the champions!

Image Caption

(Left-to-right) Novikov, Ehlvest, Shabalov, Yermolinsky, Kaidanov (courtesy Valeria Kaidanov)

According to the unofficial standings, all five members of the U.S. team earned individual medals as well. Kaidanov, Ehlvest, and Novikov earned gold medals on boards two, three, and four respectively, with Yermolinsky earning a silver on board five and Shabalov a bronze on top board.

Image Caption

Shabalov (R) earned a bronze medal on top board, behind British GM Michael Adams (gold, center), and Italian GM Alberto David (courtesy Mark Livshitz/FIDE)

Image Caption

Jaan Ehlvest (board three) was one of three Americans to earn an individual gold medal (courtesy Mark Livshitz/FIDE)

Continued here:
U.S.A. Wins FIDE World Senior Team Championships 50+ | US ... - uschess.org

MUMBAI: Young talents Tvesha Jain and Amogh Desai stole the limelight, scoring shock victories over higher rated players in the second round of the Rs 2.59 lakh prize money Accurate Springs Classical FIDE Rated Chess tournament, organised by Indian Chess School at the Russian Centre for Science and Culture, here, on Sunday. On board 4, 13-year old Amogh Desai (Elo1124) recorded the biggest win of his career by crushing fourth seed Saurabh Lokhande (Elo1689) from the white side of a Scandinavian defense in just 29 moves. A similar result was seen on board 6 where 9-year-old Tvesha Jain (Elo1121) shocked sixth seeded veteran CK Kolambkar (Elo1675) from the white side of the French Tarrasch opening in 35 moves. A minor flutter was seen on board 19 where R Mithun (Elo1083) held the higher rated Deepak Soni (Elo1446) to a draw. On the rest of the top boards, the seeded players won convincingly, including top-seeded IM Vikramaditya Kulkarni, Amardeep Bartakke, Pratik Shenvi. These three players are among 38 players sharing the lead with two points each. They are followed by 11 players with a score of 1.5 each. Key Results (Round 2-points in brackets): IM Vikramaditya Kulkarni (2) bt Raj Yuvan (1); Aaradhay Parte (1) lost to Amardeep Bartakke (2); Pratik Shenvi (2) bt Nilesh Deshpande (1); Amogh Desai (2) bt Saurabh Lokhande (1); Yash Kapadi (2) bt Advay Dhene (1); Tvesha Jain (2) bt C K Kolambkar (1); Arnav Kherdekar (2) bt Prranamya Panagaonkar (1); Sumedh Kamble (1) lost to Om Gada (2); Vishal Parab Ram (2) bt Mitansh Deshmukh (1); Yatharth Jain (1) lost to Sudeep Pillai (2).

Originally posted here:
Tvesha Jain, Amogh Desai score shock wins - Times of India

A generation divide is growing in British chess.

The ageing survivors ofthe 1970s Bobby Fischer boom learnt their skills in giant weekend congresses and thriving chess clubs. The groups best players became Englands first grandmasters, won Olympiad silver medals behind Soviet gold and wrote dozens of books. They competed only in face-to-face games across the board, and played fast blitz games just for relaxation and training.In more recent years, they have gravitated to the national league, the 4NCL, which stages its matches atweekend hotel venues.

This week, they are watching closely as Englands over-65 and over-50 world senior teamsdefend their crowns at Struga, Ohrid Lake, North Macedonia. There are several rounds to go, but the omens are not favourable, as the 65-plus team lost a key match to Germany while the 50-plus squad were beaten by the US.

Economic headwinds are a threat. Congress entry fees have soared since the 1970s, but prizes have not increased. Venues for clubs and tournaments are becoming scarce and expensive. Volunteers to do the organisational work are fewer. All this was discussed at length in an interesting thread on the English Chess Forum.

For Generation Z, on the other hand, the future looks bright. They learnt their skills from videos and computer programs, play dozens of blitz and bullet games every day, and know their openingsin great depth. Their principal heroes are the world No 1 Magnus Carlsen and the popular streamer Hikaru Nakamura, and when these two met last Friday in the final of Chess.coms annual Speed Championship, a global audience of nearly 50,000 watched online.

The event, a brilliant clash of concepts and tactics at speed, did not disappoint. The lead changed hands several times before Carlsen edged it at 13.5-12.5. Its final dramatic gamewas settled only after Nakamura missed mate in two, Carlsens reply forced a win, and an agreed draw settled the match. Another highlight was this weeks puzzle diagram (see above).

Puzzle 2539

Magnus Carlsen vs Hikaru Nakamura, chess.com Speed Championship 2023. Black to move. What would you play against the world No 1?

Click here for solution

Go here to read the rest:
The generation divide in British chess - Financial Times

The 38th edition of the European Chess Club Cup and the 27th European Club Cup for Women kick off on Sunday, 1st of October in Durres, Albania.

The event broke the participation record with 110 teams coming from 34 European federations. 84 teams will compete in the Open section, and 26 teams take part in the Womens competition. A total of 720 players including 150 grandmasters and more than 400 titled players will represent their clubs.

The events will be played in 7 rounds, swiss system, with time control of 90 minutes for 40 moves plus 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move, starting from move one.

The top seeds of the Open event are Superchess (Romania, Rating average 2711), Novy Bor (Czech Republic, Rating average 2665), Anieres Le Grand Echiquier (France, Rating average 2657), Offerspill Sjakkubb (Norway, Rating average 2650) and Schachclub Viernheim 1934 e.V. (Germany, Rating average 2649). The best rated players of the event are: GM Magnus Calrsen (Offerspill Sjakklubb), GM Viswanathan Anand (Superchess), GM Richard Rapport (Superchess), GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (Schachclub Viernheim 1934 e.V.), GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (Anieres Le Grand Echiquier), GM Vincent Keymer (Novy Bor).

Monte Carlo (Monaco, Rating average 2496) headlines the starting list of the Womens tournament. Superchess (Romania, Rating average 2454), Garuda Ajka BSK (Hungary, Rating average 2432), SP Gaz Ukraine (Ukraine, Rating average 2388) and Tajfun SK Ljubljana (Slovenia, Rating average 2364) are the next four top seeded teams. The best rated players of the event are GM Mariya Muzychuk (Monte Carlo), GM Anna Muzychuk (Monte Carlo), GM Bella Khotenashcili (Garuda Ajka BSK), GM Elisabeth Paehtz (Monte Carlo), and GM Nino Batsiashvili (Superchess).

The Opening ceremony of the event will be held on Saturday, 30th of September, in the evening. The tournament schedule can be seen below:

The total prize fund of the event is 45.000 EUR with 29.000 EUR reserved for the Open competition and 15.000 EUR reserved for the Womens tournament. In addition to team regular prizes and prizes for best individual players per boards, two individual prizes (1 in Open and 1 in Women) of 500 EUR, will be given to the players with the best performance from a Balkan Chess Federation member federation club. The playing venue of the tournament will be the official hotel of the ChampionshipsGrand Blue Fafa Resort/5-star (*****).

Live broadcast of the event will be available on the ECU YouTube channel with commentaries by WIM Fiona Steil-Antoni and GM David Howell.

Detailed information about the event can be found on the official website.

Facebook page of the tournament

Excerpt from:
European Open & Women's Chess Club Cups 2023 start in Durres ... - European Chess Union