Viswanathan anand’s success in the world championships in mexico City is bound to rub off on the grandmasters and International Masters of the country when a host of them queue up in the Capital to participate in the 2007 edition of the Parsvnath Commonwealth Chess Championships to be held between December 2 and 10 at the Siri Fort Complex.

The prominent among the Indian participants would be Asian women’s champion Tania Sachdev, who will vie for top honours in the women’s section with Grandmaster Koneru Humpy and the likes. Among the men competitors will be national champion Surya Shekhar Ganguly and world’s youngest Grandmaster Parimarjan Negi in a field that will see 14 Grandmasters from the Commonwealth countries.

Sponsored by Parsvnath Developers Ltd, the championship carries a total prize pool of Rs 8 lakh and the battle for supremacy among Commonwealth countries will be mostly between Indian and British nationals. Commonwealth Chess Association president and reigning champion Nigel Short, though, is unlikely to defend his title.

In addition to the star participation many up-and-coming players from the country will get a chance to compete among the best in various age categories — from U-8 to U-20. After winning five gold medals in the recent Asian Youth meet at Al Ain in UAE, the Delhi event gives another opportunity for the Indian youngsters to prove their mettle. The event will see participants from 12 countries, including Canada.

“It’s hard to predict now, but we are sure that in terms of participation this might be the most successful Commonwealth championship,” said secretary of Delhi Chess Association Bharat Singh Chauhan. He also added that Anand’s success will rub off on the youngsters to make most of the occasion.

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