BHUBANESWAR 14-Aug-2012 394
Odisha Fide Master Rakesh Kumar Jena added yet another feather to his cap by emerging champion in the 26th National Under-11 Chess Championship at Jamshedpur in Jharkhand today. After being held to a draw by Raja Harshit of Maharashtra in the 11th and last round, third seed Rakesh and second seed Karnataka`s KS Raghunandan tied for the top spot with nine points each.
But in the Buchholz tie-break method, Rakesh pipped Raghunandan for the title, which fetched him a cash prize of Rs 20,000, while Raghunandan settled as runner-up. Being champion Rakesh qualified to represent India in the World and Asian U-12 Championships to be held next year at Dubai and Philippines respectively.
Among other six Odisha boys in the open category, 11th seed Sankalp Baliarsingh (8), Ansumal Samal (7.5), Pranab Kumar Patra (6.5), Sambit Panda (5.5), Chintan Nayak (4.5) and Ashutosh Paikaray (3) occupied fourth, 14th, 36th, 67th, 102nd and 131st positions respectively in the final standings, which featured a total of 136 players.
In the girls` category, Woman Fide Master Rutumbara Bidhar turned out to be Odisha`s best performer, finishing seventh among a total of 78 players with 7.5 points in her kitty. R Vaishali (Tamil Nadu) emerged champion with 9.5 points, while Supreetha Potruli (AP) settled as runner-up with nine points.
Among other five Odisha girls, Sweta Senapati (7), Anisha Mishra (6.5), Sovna Sonali Jena (6) and Ankita Sahoo (3.5) finished 11th, 24th, 29th and 72nd in the final standings.
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PHOTO: Leading Odisha players, including open category champion Rakesh Jena (Centre) at the National U-11 Chess Championship in Jamshedpur on August 14, 2012.
