World School Individual Championship was organised this year at Antalya in Turkey and two Pune kids have secured the first and third places. Arush Dolas won the gold medal while Nivaan Khandadia won the bronze medal. Both Dolas and Khandadia have earned the title of Candidate Master (CM) with their podium finishes. The title is given by the world chess body The Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE).
Arush won the U-7 open tilte with a score of eight points in nine rounds. He is a student of the The Bishop’s School in Pune. Nivaan, the youngest rated chess player settled for the third place with 6.5 points. He is from the Global Indian International School. Arush gets his chess training under the watchful eyes of Mrulalini Kunte, Woman International Master. Nivaan has already set a record of playing 500 competitve chess games in several tournaments. He hails from the South Mumbai Chess Academy (SMCA).
