In a two-day inter-school event held at St Xavier’s School, Sector 50, four players were shortlisted for the state-level championship.
Participants of the inter-school chess championship
In a two-day inter-school chess championship held at St Xavier’s High School, Rosewood City, Sector 50, Gurgaon, four children were shortlisted for the state-level championship.
The event, held over the weekend, was organised jointly by St Xavier’s High School and Mind Sharpener Chess Academy. The championship was presided over by arbiter Raj Kumar.
Among others, Amity International, DPS Sushant Lok, ITL Public School, GD Goenka, The Shri Ram School, Heritage, Scottish High and Suncity World School participated in the event.
Four rounds were held on April 29, and three the next day.
The winners in the boys’ category were Aditya Dhingra from ITL Public School; Lokesh Hans from Government Model Sanskriti Senior Secondary School; and Arnav Haldi from The Shri Ram School.
In the girls’ category, sisters Kanishka and Riddhika Kotia from Suncity World School took the first and second positions, respectively. Himakshi Chauhan from DAV Public School secured the third position. There were two special awards as well — Rudra Vedant bagged the Best Xaverian in the boys’ category and Arushi Bansali won the Best Xaverian in the girls’ category.
The chief guest at the event was Himanshu Sharma, the 47th Grand Master of India. He was felicitated at the event with a shawl, a souvenir and a cash prize of Rs 11,000. In his address to the students, he said, “Whenever you play, always think of the opponent’s moves and ideas. While playing, stay focussed on the game. And yes, there’s no substitute for hard work.”
Also present at the event were Advocate Naresh Sharma, secretary-general of the Haryana Chess Association; Anil Kumar Paranami, president of District Chess Association; Rajpal Chauhan, its general secretary; Satish Singla, its vice-president; Nicholas Gomes, principal of St Xavier's High School; and Geeta Kanwar, coordinator of the middle wing.
