Odisha chess player Soundarya Pradhan wins silver, gold at Asian Para Games

Bhubaneswar: Visually impaired chess player Soundarya Kumar Pradhan brought laurels for both Odisha and India by clinching silver and gold medals at the Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China.

Soundarya bagged silver in the individual rapid VI B1 Chess event by scoring 5.5 points from seven rounds which included five wins and one draw.

However, it was not a good start for him as he lost to Dinh Tuan Son of Vietnam in the second round. He quickly brought himself back on the track and scored 4 victories and a draw in the remaining five games.

While Gujarat’s Satish Irani Darpan won gold in the men’s individual rapid VI B1 event, Odisha’s Soundarya and Gujarat’s Ashwin Makwana clinched silver and bronze respectively at the event.

The trio won the gold medal at Team Rapid VI B1 Chess by scoring 11.5 points out of a possible 14 and remained two points clear of second-placed Iran.

The tournament was played in the swiss system in Hangzhou, China, from 26 to 28 October 2023.