World crown will inspire kids to play professionally

BENGALURU: Indian chess is blazing a trail – with a double Olympiad sweep and now an 18-year-old world champion in the same year.

- HT Correspondent

"This is Chess 2.0 for India," All India Chess Federation (AICF) president Nitin Narang told HT. "It was Viswanathan Anand who started this whole revolution. I remember even as a kid, we realised what a big deal his World Championship win was. As a president, I'll be very honest, I have seen in other sports too – where there's this sudden surge, followed by a dip. Now, with Gukesh's win, we have momentum. It is going to lay the foundation for the next generation of chess players to come into the sport."