Chess boom continues! 16-year-old Ilamparthi AR becomes India’s 90th Grandmaster

Tamil Nadu continues to beryllium the cradle of Indian chess arsenic 16-year-old Ilamparthi AR from Chennai became India’s 90th Grandmaster connected Thursday, aft securing his last GM norm astatine the Bijeljina Open successful Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Born successful 2009, Ilamparthi had earlier achieved his archetypal GM norm astatine the Ha Noi tourney successful Vietnam (December 2023), followed by his 2nd astatine the Singapore International Open (2024). He crossed the 2500 Elo people during the Rilton Cup (2024–25), and the last norm successful Bosnia sealed his grandmaster title.The youngster, who trains nether Shyam Sundar M, is supported by respective initiatives.A pupil of Velammal School, the aforesaid instauration that nurtured stars similar D Gukesh and R Praggnanandhaa, Ilamparthi has agelong been seen arsenic 1 of India’s brightest young minds successful chess. His aboriginal committedness was noticed by the planetary community, with Dutch GM Anish Giri famously donating his Death Match prize wealth successful 2022 to enactment Ilamparthi’s training.Congratulating the youngster, AICF president Nitin Narang posted connected X: “Grandmaster No. 90 for Bharat! Congratulations to Ilamparthi AR connected fulfilling each the requirements to go the 90th Grandmaster of the country. Wishing you galore much laurels and continued occurrence successful making the federation proud.”

Five-time satellite champion Viswanathan Anand, nether whose academy Ilamparthi trains, wrote: “Happy to denote Ilamparthi arsenic a GM! He missed the rubric connected a fewer occasions but came backmost stronger each time. He has a batch of potential, and we anticipation to enactment unneurotic towards greater achievements.”