Chennai's Velammal Vidyalaya Wins Gold at World Schools Chess Championship

New Delhi, Aug 7 (PTI): Chennai's Velammal Vidyalaya, the school that nurtured chess prodigies like youngest reigning world champion D Gukesh and grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa, has further burnished its reputation by clinching the gold medal at the World Schools Team Championship in Virginia, USA.

Velammal Vidyalaya, located in Chennai's Mogappair neighborhood, has been a driving force in the city's chess revolution, offering expert training to hundreds of aspiring chess players.

"After eight thrilling rounds, the 2025 World Schools Team Championship concluded today in Alexandria, Virginia,” the International Chess Federation (FIDE) announced on Thursday.

“Hosted on the picturesque campus of Episcopal High School, the event brought together some of the world's most talented young chess players. Rising above the rest with a flawless score, Velammal MHS School from India clinched the gold medal, winning all eight of their matches," the statement added.

FIDE remarked that Velammal School's triumph adds another chapter to India's expanding list of chess titles. "With India making waves across all levels and formats of chess, this victory adds yet another title to the country’s growing collection,” it stated.

“Velammal MHS is no stranger to success—its alumni include Grandmasters R. Praggnanandhaa and Leon Mendonca. So it was little surprise when the team entered the final round with the top spot already secured," FIDE added.

Since 2005, Velammal School has produced numerous grandmasters, including SP Sethuraman, Mendonca, K Priyadharshan, B Adhiban, Vishnu Prasanna, Visakh NR, Vignesh NR, M Karthikeyan, C Aravindh, Karthik Venkataraman, V Pranav, S Bharath, Arjun Kalyan, P Karthikeyan, and N Srinath.

Among the female grandmasters from the school are R Vaishali, a Grandmaster and sister of Praggnanandhaa, Varshini S, R Rakshitta, and B Savitha Shri.

"They also have a champion like Anand to look up to,” remarked the school's chess coordinator S Velavan in December last year. "Since most of the children coming here have a genuine interest in chess, we don't have to push them. They balance studies and chess well, and, in fact, the chess players excel further in their academics," he added.

Velammal Vidyalaya, which has previously won the FIDE World School Teams Championship five consecutive years, follows the ‘7 to 17 program’ introduced in schools by former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in 2013.

In other results, Kazakhstan’s National School of Physics and Mathematics secured the silver medal. They had the same number of match points as The Harker School from the USA but edged them out on tiebreaks. The Harker School finished third, ahead of Astana 2 RSPM.

Velammal Vidyalaya's Pranav KP, who played as a reserve on board five, alongside Imangali Akhilbay (Kazakhstan NSPM) on board two and Edisa Berdibaeva (Kazakhstan NSPM), ended with perfect scores, winning all eight of their matches.

Overall, Velammal Vidyalaya concluded their eight games with a total of 16 points.

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