Final report :Asian Junior Open & Girls Chess Championships 2026 in Mumbai from 16-26 August 2026

The Asian Junior Open & Girls Chess Championships 2026 was held at Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, from 16th to 26th August 2026. The Championships were organised by the Maharashtra Chess Association (MCA), under the aegis of the All India Chess Federation (AICF), Asian Chess Federation (ACF) and FIDE, with the support of the Government of Maharashtra and the Sports Authority of India (SAI).

The Championship was organised under the leadership of  GM Abhijit Kunte, Major DhyanChand Awardee and Executive Committee Member, MCA; Mr. Niranjan Godbole, Tournament Director and Secretary, MCA; Mr. Salil Ghate, Organising Secretary and Secretary, TDCA.

The Championship consisted of six separate individual events:

Asian Junior Blitz Chess Championship, Asian Junior Girls Blitz Chess Championship,

Asian Junior Rapid Chess Championship,  Asian Junior Girls Rapid Chess Championship,

Asian Junior Chess Championship and Asian Junior Girls Chess Championship.

Asian Junior Blitz Chess Championship:  The championship was formally inaugurated by Mr. Jayraj Phatak, IAS, former Commissioner of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), in a glittering ceremony attended by several distinguished personalities and former chess players from Mumbai and was played over seven rounds on 17 August 2026.

In the Open section, IM Mayank Chakraborty (2438) of India was the top seed, followed by Artem Pingin (2430) of Russia and FM Amanmuhammet Hommadov (2291) of Turkmenistan. In the Girls’ section, WCM Leyla Shohradova (2131) of Turkmenistan was the top seed, followed by WFM Mrittika Mallick (2118) of India and WFM Mariya Kholyavko of Kazakhstan.

The biggest surprise of the Open section came from Vignesh Vermula, who began the event as the 23rd seed but produced a remarkable performance to emerge as the Asian Junior Open Blitz Champion 2026. Displaying exceptional speed, tactical alertness and consistency throughout the competition, Vignesh finished tied on points with compatriots Sharnarthi Viresh and Nandish V. S, but secured the title on superior tie-break scores.

Winners of Blitz Chess Championship 2026

Asian Junior Rapid Chess Championship: The Asian Junior Rapid Chess Championship was played over seven rounds on 17^th and 18^th August 2026. In the Open section, IM Mayank Chakraborty (2420) of India was the top seed, followed by Artem Pingin (2397) of Russia and Apoorv Kamble (2441) from India. In the Girls’ section, WFM Mariya Kholyavko (2118)of Kazakhstan was top seed followed by FM Prishita Gupta (2072) from India and WCM Leyla Shohradova (2131) of Turkmenistan.

India, Turkmenistan Share Honours at Asian Junior Rapid Chess Championship. India’s Vivaan Vishal and Turkmenistan’s Shohradova Lala emerged champions in the Open and Girls sections respectively at the Asian Junior Rapid Chess Championship 2026 in Mumbai.

Vivaan staged a stunning comeback, winning his final three rounds to finish on 6 points from 7 rounds and claim the Open title outright. International Masters Akshay Borgaonkar and Apoorv Kamble won silver and bronze respectively.

In the Girls section, Shohradova Lala defeated India’s Pratitee Bordoloi on tie-breaks after both finished with 6 points from 7 rounds. Prishita Gupta secured the bronze medal. The prizes were presented by Maharashtra Chess Association President Dr. Parinay Fuke.

Winners of Rapid Chess Championship 2026

Asian Junior Chess Championship: IM Mayank Chakraborty (2500) from India was a top seed followed by Artem Pingin (2477) from Russia and Apoorv Kamble (2441) from India in Open section.  WFM Pratitee Bordoloi (2252) from India was top seed followed by WFM Mariya Kholyavko (2217) from Kazakhstan and  WFM Lala Shohradova (2159) from Turkmenistan in Girls section.

India completed a memorable double at the Asian Junior Classical Chess Championship 2026 in Mumbai, with Mayank Chakraborty and Pratitee Bordoloi winning the Open and Girls titles respectively.

Top seed Mayank scored 7.5 points from nine rounds to take gold, ahead of Russia’s Artem Pingin (7) and India’s Daksh Goyal (6.5). In the Girls section, Pratitee also finished with 7.5 points, while Kazakhstan’s Mariya Kholyavko took silver with 7 points and India’s Nivedita V C won bronze with 6.5 points.

The championship also brought major FIDE milestones. GM-elect Mayank earned another GM norm, while Daksh secured the FM title and an IM norm. Pratitee earned the WIM title and a WGM norm, while Kholyavko and Nivedita secured WIM norms.

The prizes were awarded by Hisham Al-Taher, Secretary of the Asian Chess Federation, at a glittering closing ceremony, bringing the championship to a fitting conclusion.

Winners of Classical Chess Championship 2026

The organisers provided a spacious, comfortable, and air-conditioned playing venue, along with a dedicated waiting area for parents. The championship concluded on a positive note, leaving both players and parents satisfied with the arrangements.