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Bodhana Sivanandan, eight, breaks records in the game of chess by winning in Zagreb.
The Harrow schoolgirl, who took first place in the women’s division of the European Open Blitz Championship, is playing in the world’s oldest chess conference at Hastings.
Eight-year-old Bodhana Sivanandan, who created chess history on Saturday by taking home the women’s title in the European Blitz Championship in Zagreb, will return to the game. She is scheduled to play in the 97th edition of the Caplin Masters in Hastings, the oldest congress in the history of chess, which begins on December 28.
Although it started badly since Bodhana Sivanandan came too late for round one and lost by default, her result was similar to that of Judit Polgar, the all-time No. 1 woman, and her 7.5/8 victory on her international debut, at the age of nine, in the unrated division of the 1986 New York Open.
“The taxi driver chose to take us to his favorite west entrance of the venue, instead of the actual location of the playing hall on the east side,” Velayutham, her father, stated. We made it to the hallway, but the door was locked, so to go to the other side of the building, we had to go back around. Running with a youngster in the cold while carrying bags was an awful experience.
Bodhana Sivanandan 5 Winning Games
Because of her stamina, Bodhana Sivanandan bounced back fast, winning four of her following five games and maintaining a high-scoring average. Despite an odd finish, she overcame England women’s coach Lorin D’Costa in the last round, her first victory against an IM.
In a winning position when 1… Nf4, Kf2-g1, and Ng2 are important, D’Costa lost on time. Since White’s bishop and king are not suitable for mating, a draw would often follow Black’s flag. But since a valid checkmate can happen in this position (WK f3, WB e4, BK h1, BP h2, and 1 Kf2 mate), the judge had to declare a win for White by the rules.
Even though it was only classical chess, Polgar beat Romania’s Dolfi Drimer when she was ten years old in Adelaide in 1987. By the time she was eight, the Hungarian had already beaten IMs in casual hurry games.
Sivanandan Match With Grand Master
In the last round, Bodhana Sivanandan played with GM Vladislav Nevednichy, the two-time Romanian champion, making history as the youngest girl to win a match against a grandmaster.
Sivanandan won the women’s prize in Zagreb due to her overall performance. Although the competition rules allowed only one prize per participant, she was both the top finisher among the English team and the top under-12 finisher.
An eight-year-old girl Sets Records
The eight-year-old has already made history. She was the youngest player to win any national adult title when she tied for the English women’s open blitz title at age seven. At age eight, she placed second in the UK women’s open blitz. She is unbeatable after winning 33 games in a row in the 2023 World Under-eight girls fast, blitz, and classical championships. Her maximalist strategy is in the mold of Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov, and Polgar. Thousands watched her amazing clash with 79-year-old former British champion Peter Lee.
Ambition to Become Grand Master
Sivanandan wants to become a famous women’s grandmaster to challenge Chinese competitors for the women’s world championship. She has made a good start, but that is going to be a lengthy and difficult trip.
Summing UP
The original text of this article has been modified to make it clear that Sivanandan is not the youngest player to win a competitive game against a grandmaster, but one of the youngest.