Updated September 17th, 2020 at 21:02 IST

India's Olympiad-winning chess team celebrates on Twitter via special chat with fans

India's gold medal-winning chess Olympiad team took to Twitter to indulge in a special chat to celebrate their success while discussing future possibilities.

Reported by: Sreehari Menon
| Image:self
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The Indian Olympiad chess team created history last month by winning their first-ever gold medal in the 2020 Online Chess Olympiad. The International Chess Federation (FIDE) held the tournament online for the first time in history due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis. Now, over two weeks after the Indian Olympiad chess team's triumph, the winners celebrated their success with a unique Twitter chat.

Also Read: Vishwanathan Anand Opens Up On Playing The Chess Olympiad 2020 Virtually

Indian Olympiad chess team celebrates triumph with special chat ft. Viswanathan Anand, Koneru Humpy 

In an exclusive chat hosted by India vice-captain Srinath Narayanan and the comic Samay Raina, the Indian Olympiad chess team had a light-hearted conversation with Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand and captain Vidit Gujrathi along with the other members of the Indian team including Koneru Humpy, Dronavalli Harika, Vantika Agrawal, Nihal Sarin, Divya Deshmukh, Praggnanandhaa and Bhakti Kulkarni. The India chess stars shared the experience of participating in the Olympiad and shared tips for budding chess players on how to prepare for tournaments as huge as the Olympiad.

Also Read: 'Big Moment For Indian Chess': Viswanathan Anand Delighted Post Chess Olympiad 2020 Win

The chat between India's chess champions started with some banter which later progressed to how the landscape of the game has changed over the past few months. When quizzed about his views on FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich’s suggestion of staging a Champions series between India and Russia, Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand said that he likes the idea and added that it is in a similar line of matches Russia has played with different countries including China. Viswanathan Anand also voiced his support for streaming, with Samay Raina being an accomplished streamer himself. The 50-year-old said that the developers added a new demographic to chess and he's very much in favour of it. 

Also Read: 'A Golden Moment', Says Koneru Humpy After India Won Gold Medal In The 2020 Chess Olympiad

Players also talked about their experience as part of the Indian Olympiad chess team, with Divya Deshmukh mentioning that India's 4-2 win over China was one of the key moments in their campaign. When quizzed about the game he analysed the most, Praggnanandhaa revealed he spent a lot of time examining his game against Batsuren Dambasuren from Ongaloia, claiming it as a 'complex' game. Vantika Agarwal took the opportunity to thank everyone on the team for the opportunity, while Viswanathan Anand also mentioned that he enjoyed being part of the team's journey to the gold medal win. 

Also Read: Anand Wants Olympiad Win To Bring In 'long' Due National Honours For Chess Players

(Image Courtesy: Vidit Gujrathi Instagram)

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Published September 17th, 2020 at 21:02 IST