Chess Olympiad gold medal win a magical moment for us: Viswanathan Anand
Chennai: The legendary Viswanathan Anand and women's top player Koneru Humpy on Monday termed India's maiden gold medal win in the Chess Olympiad as a "magical moment" which will spur the further growth of the sport in the country.
India and Russia were on Sunday declared joint winners of the 2020 Online Chess Olympiad after the final was marred by server malfunction. Russia were initially declared winners after two Indians -- Nihal Sarin and Divya Deshmukh -- lost in the final after suffering a disconnection with the server.
India lodged a protest against the controversial decision which was reviewed.
For Anand, a five-time world champion and the country's first Grandmaster, it was his first Olympiad medal and he described it as a "magical moment".
"The tournament went like a dream for me. A special gold for me. A special moment for youngsters. Winning the gold is simply a magical moment," Anad told reporters during an online media interaction, along with all the other 11 members of the Indian team.
"I hope this will be the start of many things for India," Anand said of the country's first gold medal in the Chess Olympiad.
Indian men had previously won a bronze in the 2014 edition, which was the country's best finish before this gold.
"The Olympiad win is very special...A very special medal I will add to my collection," he added.
Praising the younger players in the team, he said they played a huge role in the victory, adding it proved the depth of Indian chess.
On the question of lack of government recognition for Indian chess players in the last few years, Anand said, "I hope this result will have a positive impact and they (government) will look at chess they did years ago.
"Several years ago, they had recognised that this is one of the sports where we do incredibly well. I hope we will once again start coming in for Arjuna and Dronacharya awards," he added.
Humpy, the world rapid champion, described the triumph as a golden moment for Indian chess and said great teamwork was key for the win.
"Really a special and golden moment for Indian chess. Talented youngsters like Nihal Sarin, R Praggnanandhaa, Vantika.. did well. Great teamwork did it for us. We had an advantage of having a mixed team," she said.
She said having Anand in the team was a great motivation for everyone.
On playing online, she said, "I never had an idea of playing online chess. I am comfortable playing over the board. The pandemic has forced us to play online. It is a different experience. Slowly, getting used to it," she added.
Team captain Vidit Gujrathi said the victory was possible due to the great work by all players.
"All the players did a great job which brought us the gold medal. It was a great experience to work with Anand," he said.
Youngsters Praggnanandhaa, Nihal Sarin, Divya Deshmukh and Vantika Agrwal said it was a matter of pride to be part of the Olympiad gold medal winning team and also to play alongside the likes of Anand, Humpy, P Harikrishna and D Harika.
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UDF leaders see local body poll trends as pointer to 2026 Assembly elections in Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Buoyed by the strong performance of the Congress-led UDF in the local body polls, KPCC president Sunny Joseph said on Saturday that the front's results indicated the people had rejected the LDF government.
According to early trends, the UDF was leading in more grama panchayats, block panchayats, municipalities and corporations than the LDF.
The local body polls were held in two phases in the state earlier this week.
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Speaking to reporters here, Joseph said the people of Kerala had extended their support to the UDF.
"We could expose the LDF government’s anti-people stance and the people understood it. The LDF’s fake propaganda was rejected by the people. The UDF is moving towards a historic victory," he said.
He said a united effort, proper preparations, good candidate selection and hard work had resulted in the Congress and the UDF’s victory in the elections.
Asked about the prospects in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, Joseph said the party was studying the matter and would comment later.
LDF convenor T P Ramakrishnan said the results would be closely examined.
According to him, the government had done everything possible for the people.
"Why such a verdict happened will be examined at the micro level. People’s opinion will be considered and further steps will be taken," he said.
He added that decisions would be taken after analysing the results. "If any corrective measures are required, we will initiate them and move forward," he said.
AICC leader K C Venugopal said the results showed that people had begun ousting those who, he alleged, were responsible for the loss of gold at Lord Ayyappa’s temple.
"This trend will continue in the Assembly elections as well. It is an indication that the people are ready to bring down the LDF government," he said.
Venugopal said the UDF had registered victories even in CPI(M) and LDF strongholds.
"I congratulate all UDF workers for their hard work. Congress workers and leaders worked unitedly," he said.
Referring to remarks made by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan against the Congress on polling day, Venugopal said the voters had responded through the verdict.
"I do not know whether the chief minister understands that the people are against him. Otherwise, he does not know the sentiment of the people. The state government cannot move an inch further," he said.
He said the results indicated a strong comeback for the UDF in Kerala.
Asked whether the Sabarimala gold loss issue had affected the LDF in the local polls, Venugopal said the CM and the CPI(M) state secretary did not take the issue seriously.
"We took a strong stand on the matter. The BJP played a foul game in it," he alleged.
On the BJP's role in the local body elections, Venugopal alleged that the party operated with the CPI(M) 's tacit support.
"The CPI(M) supported the central government on issues such as PM-SHRI, labour codes and corruption in national highway construction. The CPI(M) is facing ideological decline, and the state government’s policies are against the party’s own decisions," he said.
Meanwhile, LDF ally Kerala Congress (M) leader Jose K Mani said the party could not win all the wards it had expected in the elections.
He congratulated winners from all parties and said the party would closely examine the losses and identify shortcomings. "Later, we will take corrective measures," he added.
Senior Congress leader and MP Rajmohan Unnithan said the trends in the local body elections indicated that the UDF would return to power in the 2026 Assembly elections.
"We will win 111 seats as in 1977 and return to power in 2026. The anti-government sentiment of the people is reflected in the elections," he said.
Unnithan said the people were disturbed and unhappy with the present government.
"The trend indicates the end of the LDF government," he added.
CPI(M) MLA M M Mani said the people had shown ingratitude towards the LDF despite benefiting from welfare schemes.
"After receiving all welfare schemes and living comfortably, people voted against us due to some temporary sentiments. Is that not ingratitude," he asked.
Mani said no such welfare initiatives had taken place in Kerala earlier.
"People are receiving pensions and have enough to eat. Even after getting all this, they voted against us. This is what can be called ingratitude," he said.
Muslim League state president Panakkad Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal said the results were beyond expectations.
"The outcome points towards the Secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram, indicating that a change of government is imminent. We are going to win the Assembly election," he said.
