Viraj Sarawgi, a Grade 5 student at Royal Global School in Guwahati, Assam, has made an impressive debut in the chess world by earning a silver medal at the prestigious Bangkok Rapid Chess Championship.
The competition, held at Kings College in Bang Phong Phang, Bangkok, attracted over 250 players from seven different countries, making it an intense and highly competitive event. Viraj played in the Under-12 division, earning an excellent 5.5 points out of six rounds.
What makes his accomplishment even more remarkable is that he joined the event as an unranked participant. Despite this, he performed admirably, defeating two experienced FIDE-rated opponents, Kultungkijsaree Poom (1502) and Juntongjin Prin (1496). His only loss came against the tournament’s gold medallist, Ayan Mukherjee (1596).
Viraj’s devotion and courageous gameplay have been crucial to his success. He looks forward to Grandmaster D Gukesh and hopes to become a global champion in the future. Coaches Durga Nagesh Guttula and Shrikanth Malladi helped mould his journey.
Viraj’s next task is the Abu Dhabi Junior Chess Championship in August, and he is determined to improve his game and bring more glory to India.
