'Atmosphere was so chill': Chess Olympiad winners share insights from meeting with PM Modi

New Delhi, Sep 26 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi has hosted India’s young chess players at his official residence for their historic feat at the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest, where both the men’s and women’s teams clinched their maiden gold medals.

The teams presented him with a chess board and the PM also watched Praggnanandhaa and Arjun Erigaisi play a blitz game. Following the meeting, the chess stars shared their experience and said that the Prime Minister has made them feel so comfortable that it didn't feel like they were speaking with the country's Prime Minister.

Led by the stellar performances of D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi and R Praggnanandhaa, the men's team secured the gold medal after a thrilling final round victory over Slovenia.

The women's team comprising Harika Dronavalli, Vaishali Rameshbabu, Divya Deshmukh, Vantika Agrawal, Tania Sachdev secured the gold medal, beating Azerbaijan 3.5-0.5 to clinch the title.

Team captain Abhijit Kunte shared how they came to know that PM Modi mentioned their triumph in his speech in the US.

"He was very keen that the unique feat we achieved in 100 years should be known to the entire world. Just a couple of hours before the PM's speech in the USA on September 22, we secured the victory. When we listened to the speech, the PM proudly shared our win with everyone," he said.

"If you deliver a good performance and receive praise from the Prime Minister, what more could you ask for? The way he spoke made us feel comfortable. He asked about the tournament and joked around. The PM shared how he manages so many things and makes decisions," said Vidit on his meeting with PM Modi.

Vantika Agarwal was elated to know that the PM has remembered her birthday while also recalling her first meeting the PM Modi when she was 9 years old.

"My birthday was on September 20, and PM sir remembered it. I couldn't believe he remembered my birthday. When I was 9 years old, Modiji had organized a mega event in Gujarat. At that time, I had won the Asian Championships. He invited me to that event and felicitated me," she said.

"The way he remembered Vantika's birthday shows how much he really cares for the players and how much it means to him and it's really nice for us to know," Gukesh added.

Tania Sachdeva shared that the meeting has left the teams with a lot of josh and they have learned some valuable lessons from the Prime Minister.

"I learned so much from him and his experiences, especially how to handle pressure.. This meeting with PM left us with a lot of josh. He motivated and inspired us a lot. It's truly a special day for all of us," said Tania.

Vaishali R said, "When I introduced myself, the first thing he asked was, Where is brother? And how are your parents? that makes me feel connected. Very nice of him to ask about my parents... He gives more importance to yoga and meditation, along with physical fitness."

"He has lot of knowledge about lot of things, like chess and its history. He makes us comfortable, and I think that's really important," added chess prodigy and Vaishali's brother Praggnanandhaa.

Harika Dronavalli said all the players got so involved in a conversation that "we forgot we were speaking with the PM".

"He is so down to earth, we were speaking like we were having a normal conversation. I will remember this experience like forever," she added.

"It didn’t feel like he was the Prime Minister of India at all. He was so humble and made sure we were all comfortable. The atmosphere was so, surprisingly, chill. One thing that stood out to me is how humble he is. Despite being the PM of the country, he spoke about how everyone should be open to suggestions and criticism. I think that is such an incredible quality," said Divya Deshmukh.

The men's team of Gukesh D, Praggnanandhaa R, Arjun Erigaisi, Vidit Gujrathi, and Harikrishna Pentala, with Srinath Narayanan as the captain, led throughout the tournament, winning 10 matches and drawing just one. Before the last round, they were 2 points ahead of China.

In the final round, India only needed a draw to clinch the gold medals or for China not to win their match. However, India continued to press for a win and defeated Slovenia 3.5-0.5.

The women’s team had a very strong start, leading the event after 7 rounds, having won all their matches. They stumbled in round 8, losing to Poland and then drawing with Team USA, but made a strong finish. Going into the final round, India was tied for first with Kazakhstan, and the race for the medals was down to the wire.

The team of Harika, Vaishali, Divya , Vantika, and Tania, with Abhijit Kunte as the captain, demonstrated excellent composure and delivered, winning the final match against Azerbaijan 3.5-0.5. At the same time, Kazakhstan only drew with the USA 2-2, making India the sole winners of the event.