AICF to announce Chess Olympiad squad in a week, after a month's delay
India won bronze in both the Open and Women's categories in the previous edition in 2022.
Chess Olympiad (Representational Image)
The All India Chess Federation (AICF) President Nitin Narang announced on Friday that the Indian squad for the upcoming Chess Olympiad in Budapest this September will be announced in a week.
The squad was supposed to be announced a month ago, but officials cited that the "selection process took time," hence the delay.
"The selection process is underway, and the team should be finalized in a week," Narang told PTI.
The tournament in Hungary begins on September 10, and according to the guidelines, the squad was scheduled to be announced three months in advance.
Uncertainty amongst players
The announcement is crucial on AICF's part, as it would allow the participating players to plan better and train accordingly beforehand.
However, the unexpected delay has led to a bit of frustration among certain players, who remain unsure regarding their participation.
Indian Grandmaster Harika Dronavalli shared her thoughts on the delay, stating that "I am not sure about my participation since the team hasn't been announced yet."
Harika was part of the bronze medal winning squad in the previous edition of the Chess Olympiad in 2022, which was hosted by India for the first time.
Happy memories
India won bronze in both the open and women's category of the 2022 edition of the Chess Olympiad.
In the Open event, the Indian bronze winning team comprised of R Praggnanandhaa, Nihal Sarin, Gukesh D, Adhiban Baskaran and Raunak Sadhwani.
India also had another team in the Open category featuring Pentala Harikrishna, Vidit Santosh Gujrathi, Arjun Erigaisi, Sunilduth Lyna Narayanan and Krishnan Sasikiran who finished fourth.
Koneru Humpy, Harika Dronavalli, Rameshbabu Vaishali, Tania Sachdev and Bhakti Kulkarni were the Indian contingent that won bronze in the women's category.
The Indian team also won the Nona Gaprindashvili Trophy which is awarded to a nation with the highest number of match points in the Open and Women's categories combined.
The upcoming Budapest Chess Olympiad will be the first time the tournament is being conducted there in an official capacity, since it previously conducted it unofficially back in 1926.