Chennai: Sunday was a historic day for Indian chess. The Indian team were declared joint-winners along with Russia in the FIDE online Olympiad after the grand finale was hit by server malfunction and internet disruptions.
Viswanathan Anand, a recipient of both the Arjuna and the Khel Ratna, said award recognition is due for the sport’s practitioners in India.
“I hope this will lead to all sorts of positive things including the reconsideration in the Sports Ministry of the Arjuna award and the Dronacharya awards for chess. It has been a long time,” he said.
Anand hailed the mixed team format chosen for the Olympiad by FIDE (the international chess federation), played online for the first time due to Covid-19.
“The whole team contributed; that’s what made this very, very special gold medal to add to my cabinet. I hope especially youngsters, when they go on to achieve much more in their careers, look back at this moment as a very special one,” he said.