GM Narayanan wins Checkmate COVID-19, donates prize money

Keralite Grandmaster S L Narayanan emerged champion in the Checkmate COVID-19 intenational online blitz tournament in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.

Narayanan and Commonwealth champion GM Abhijeet Gupta were tied with nine points. But the 21-year-old Narayanan claimed the top honours due to a better progressive score.

Narayanan and Gupta donated their prize money, Rs 12,000 and Rs 8,000 respectively, to the Kerala Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund.

The 10-round championship featured 429 players from 16 countries and collected nearly Rs 3.9 lakh.

Ah what a lovely event Checkmate Covid 19 was. Glad I could win it. But the best part is we all managed to chip in for a good cause. Thanks @ChessKerala @ChessbaseIndia for the initiative, the entire proceeds will go to @CMOKerala Distress Relief Fund. Lets fight this together 💪
— SL Narayanan (@GMNarayananSL) May 2, 2020

British chess legend and FIDE vice-president Nigel Short, who participated, said he was glad to be of help in the fight against COVID-19.

"It's a small move, really, but glad to be of help in the fight against Covid-19 in #Kerala, India," he tweeted.

Top-10 spots: 1. S L Narayanan (9 points), 2. Abhijeet Gupta (9), 3. Renato Terry (8.5), 4. Ravi Teja (8.5), 5. Arjun Erigaisi (8), 6. Vaibhav Suri (8), 7. Abhimanyu Puranik (8), 8. Nihal Sarin (8), 9. Runak Sadhwani (8), 10. R R Laxman (8).

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