Aravindh gets top billing in National Challengers

By Gopakumar, IA

Grandmaster Aravindh Chithambaram of Tamilnadu starts as top seed in the 55th National Challengers Chess Championship formerly known as National B Chess Championship that gets underway at Karnavati Club, Ahmedabad from Sunday.

The event will see 13 Grandmasters and 17 International Masters in action in a field of more than 250 players from 27 states and 10 Institutional teams. Grandmasters SL Narayanan of Kerala and MR Lalith Babu of PSPB are are got the second and third seed respectively in this thirteen round Swiss system tournament. The total prize fund of the event is Rupees 5 Lakhs out of which Rs. 1.5 Lakhs is reserved for the winner.

Countries new Grandmasters N Srinath of Air India, Himanshu Sharma of Railways and former National Champion Abhijit Kunte of PSPB amongst those will be eying the winner’s purse apart from the top seeds.

In a colourful opening ceremony on Saturday evening, Test Cricketer Parthiv Patel formally inaugurated the event by making customary first move against Gujarat’s first Women International Master Dhyani Dave and the battles over chequred boards will begin at 3 pm tomorrow.