Youngest chess national women's champion
Images
Doing something earlier than the GOAT female chess player Judit Polgar did is a fantastic task. However, 7-year-old Bodhana Sivanandan did that when she tied for second place in the UK women's blitz championship. By doing that, she became the youngest national women's champion ever. The previous record holder, Akshaya Kalaiyalahan, was 11 years old. Judit accomplished it at 15, although it was in the Hungarian National Championship, which was not women only. Bodhana achieved this without a professional coach. Who knows how far she can go?
Quotes
I don't like to jinx young players by over-praising them, but 7 year-old Bodhana Sivanandan looks like a really big talent. Good luck to her.
Nigel Short
References
-
Chess: seven-year-old breaks record to share English women’s blitz title
Bodhana Sivanandan earned a place in the record books last Saturday when the Harrow schoolgirl, just seven years old, tied for second prize in the UK women’s blitz championship at Leamington Spa. As joint winner of the English title she broke the existing age record for a national women’s champion by more than four years in a remarkable performance against opposition led by internationally seasoned rivals.
The Guardian
-
Chess: Seven-year-old achieves historic performance in UK women’s blitz
Sivanandan’s overall performance was rated at 2076 Fide blitz points, master standard, and she gained 328 points, which might be a record for Fide rating improvement in a single day. Her best win was a fine example of active defence against an early attack.
Financial Times
