IIT Madras to host 6th Shaastra rapid FIDE rated chess tournament on March 30

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras will be hosting a two-day International Chess Federation (FIDE)-rated rapid chess tournament on March 30, 31. The tournament will feature six grandmasters, sixteen international masters, three women grandmasters, and a woman international master.

The annual event is open to players of all skill levels, attracting a diverse range of participants, including over 35 students from IIT Madras. As per the official press release, the IIT Madras is the only IIT in the country that organizes an open rapid rating tournament every year. This year the institute is organising the 6th edition of Shaastra Rapid FIDE-rated chess tournament.

The institute said that the tournament's prize fund totals Rs 5,00,000, with the first prize set at Rs 65,000. Over 500 participants from different countries, including India, Australia, England, the USA, and Singapore, will join the event. The age range of participants is vast, from as young as six to seasoned players as old as 72. The top 15 matches will be live-streamed on various online chess platforms so that everyone can follow the games.

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Participating grandmasters

Some of the grandmasters participating in the 6th Shaastra Rapid FIDE rated chess tournament include Srinath Narayanan, captain of the Indian Chess team at the 2022 Asian games where the team won a silver medal; Vishnu Prasanna, Pranesh M, Deepan Chakkravarthy, RR Laxman, Bharath Subramaniyam, Rakshitta Ravi, Srija Seshadri and Varshini V.

Speaking about the event, the director of IIT Madras, V Kamakoti, said” “With the introduction of sports quota for undergraduate admissions at IIT Madras, these events shall further reinforce our commitment to ensure holistic development of students as envisaged in the National Education Policy 2020.”