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Aravindh Chithambaram
Indian chess grandmaster (born 1999) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Aravindh Chithambaram Veerappan (born 11 September 1999) is an Indian chess grandmaster. He won the Indian chess championships twice, in 2018 and 2019.
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Personal life
Aravindh Chithambaram Veerappan was born on 11 September 1999 in Thirunagar, Madurai, Tamil Nadu.[1][2] His father died when he was three and his mother worked as a Life Insurance Corporation agent to support the family. He learned to play chess at the age of seven from his paternal grandfather, who introduced him to the game in an attempt to quell his desires to constantly leave the house and play cricket with other boys.[3]
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Chess career
Aravindh won the Indian U19 Chess Championship at the age of 12. He competed in the World U14 Chess Championship in 2012, placing second to Kayden Troff.[4]
He won his first major tournament in 2013 when he scored 9/11 for a performance rating of 2728 at the Chennai Grandmaster International Open, defeating four grandmasters and two international masters in the process.[3] This result earned him his first grandmaster norm; at the time he had not achieved any of his international master norms.[4]
He earned his international master title in 2014 and his grandmaster title in 2015.[5][6]
In 2024, Aravindh won the Chennai Grand Masters tournament on blitz tie-breaks (2-0) against former World Rapid and Blitz Champion Levon Aronian. His overall tournament win was possible after a crucial win in Round 6 of the event against Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi.
In March 2025, Aravindh won the 2025 Prague Chess Festival Masters by a full point. He went undefeated and scored 6/9 in the event, winning 3 games.[7]
In June 2025, Aravindh won the Stepan Avagyan Memorial on Sonneborn-Berger tiebreak against R Praggnanandhaa. He went undefeated and scored 6.5/9 in the event winning 4 games.[8]
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Esports Career
In April 2025, Aravindh became one of the first Indian chess grandmasters to be signed by an esports organization, joining S8UL Esports, a leading Indian esports entity.[9] Along with fellow grandmaster Nihal Sarin, he was selected to represent India in the Esports World Cup 2025, scheduled to be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.[10]
This marked a historic moment for Indian chess, as it was the 1st time competitive chess was included as a discipline in an international esports event. Aravindh expressed enthusiasm for the opportunity, noting the significance of esports in elevating the global profile of chess and providing new platforms for players to showcase their talent.[9]
References
External links
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