Vaishnav Sumesh emerged as the champion of the 2026-10-02 1st IMAC-BMC Academy Juniors/Kids Rapid Chess Championship, held at the IMAC-BMC Event Hall in Segayya, Kingdom of Bahrain.The one-day chess championship attracted 54 junior and young chess players, producing a highly competitive seven-round battle. After all seven rounds were completed, three players finished on 6 points each, with the final standings decided by the tournament tie-break system.
Vaishnav Sumesh secured the Championship Trophy, followed by Hridik Dhananjaya Shetty in second place and Ruhaan Choudhary in third place.
🏆 OVERALL TOP 10
- 🥇 Vaishnav Sumesh – Champion
- 🥈 Hridik Dhananjaya Shetty – 2nd Place
- 🥉 Ruhaan Choudhary – 3rd Place
- Navaneeth Krishna KP
- Jeff George
- Alvin Johnson
- Dhruva Roy
- Liam Johnzel Gallardo
- Gunjan Pal
- Janet George
👧 TOP FEMALE / GIRL PLAYERS
🥇 Nivedya Kandampully – Champion
🥈 Deekshita M. – 2nd Place
🥉 Chrisha Maria Basil – 3rd Place
4. Harshita M.
5. Rukshini Ramesh
♟️ UNDER-10 CATEGORY
Born 2016 & 2017
🥇 Mithun Karthik – Champion
🥈 Advit Pathak – 2nd Place
🥉 Reyansh Gupta – 3rd Place
4. Guru Aadithya Gurumoorthy
5. Dray Anthony Llorca
O8U CATEGORY
Champion:AadhiPrasad
2 Inban Mahalaksmi Nalan
3 Anvay Gopalakrishnan
4 Daniel Emil
5 Divit Trivedi
⭐ BEST PERFORMING IMAC-BMC STUDENTS
Boy: Mrithik Barath
Girl: Hridha Basil
2 Inban Mahalaksmi Nalan
3 Anvay Gopalakrishnan
4 Daniel Emil
5 Divit Trivedi
The championship was organized by IMAC-BMC Academy, led by its Chairman and Director, Mr. Francis Kaitharath, who delivered an inspiring message to the participating juniors, kids, and their parents.
Director Francis also announced a special opportunity for the participants, offering free admission to those interested in enrolling at IMAC-BMC Academy in its various programs, including Dance, Karate, Drawing, Painting, and Chess. He also highlighted the different benefits and opportunities available to children and parents through the academy’s programs.The tournament was conducted smoothly and professionally under the direction of Chief Arbiter FA Anthony Pelayo, with the assistance of Arbiters Mr. Eddie Lumanog and Mr. Richard Bayoneta.
The successful staging of the inaugural championship provided an exciting and competitive platform for young chess players in Bahrain to showcase their skills, gain valuable tournament experience, and enjoy the spirit of competitive chess.
Congratulations to all the winners, participants, parents, organizers, and arbiters for making the 1st IMAC-BMC Academy Juniors/Kids Rapid Chess Championship a successful event.
