Union sports minister Anurag Thakur felicitates chess prodigy R Praggnanandhaa - WATCH

A day after being greeted by PM Modi, India's new chess hero R Praggnanandhaa is now felicitated by Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur. Praggnandhaa won the silver medal at the FIDE Chess World Cup held in Baku, Azerbaijan. Pragg lost to World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen in the final.

3 things you need to know

• Praggnanandhaa secured silver medal at FIDE Chess World Cup 2023
• Pragg qualified for the Candidates Tournament
• He defeated Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana in the tournament

Also Read | 'We are very proud': Praggnanandhaa's sister Vaishali reacts to Pragg's historic display

Union sports minister Anurag Thakur facilitates R Praggnanandhaa

During the felicitation ceremony in Delhi, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said, "I want to congratulate praggnanandhaa for becoming a grandmaster in chess in a tender age & performing so well in Chess World cup. India has the origin of chess but it took many years for india to conduct a chess olympiad. It was indeed a great olympiad organized in india and for a child’s growth their parent's contribution is very important government & authorities do their job but parents have a different role in past few months’ indian players are performed really well."

On getting the recognition, Praggnanandhaa said, "we are happy that we are getting this support. It is also motivating us to work hard and perform well in the tournaments and bring laurels to the country."

Also Read | 'Had very special visitors at 7 LKM': PM Modi meets R Praggnanandhaa and his family

Brief about Praggnanandhaa 

Born in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, in 2005, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa was introduced to chess very early in his tender years. After winning many national competitions, he made his maiden mark on the global stage in 2013 when he won the World Youth Chess Championship Under-8. At the age of 10, he became the International Master, the youngest at the time to do so, and at just age 12, he completed his Grand Master norm. In 2016, he became the youngest ever to defeat Magnus Carlsen, a record that was later broken by his countrymate Gukesh. He went on to beat Carlsen 3 times in the FTX Crypto Cup 2022. In 2023, he defeated the current World Champion Ding Liren at the Tata Steel Chess Masters 2023. The thing that veneered the victory was that it came in the classical category. He is not the only chess prodigy in his family.