World Junior Chess Championships 2011
The 50th World Junior Chess Championships are underway in Chennai, India.
There are separate tournaments for boys and girls taking place from 1-16 August. Over 120 boys and 60 girls will be competing for the U-20 titles.
The significance of the junior world championships has varied considerably since the inaugural event in 1951, but it always provides an opportunity for talented young players to make a name for themselves.
Previous champions include Boris Spassky (1955), Anatoly Karpov (1969), Yasser Seirawan (1979), Garry Kasparov (1980), Vishy Anand (1987) and Lev Aronian (2002).
Vishy Anand opened the 2011 World Junior Chess Championships in Chennai
The top rated boys this year:
| GM Matlakov Maxim | Russia | 2632 |
| GM Sjugirov Sanan | Russia | 2629 |
| GM Salgado Lopez Ivan | Spain | 2626 |
| GM Shimanov Aleksandr | Russia | 2586 |
| GM Nabaty Tamir | Israel | 2584 |
| GM Ter-Sahakyan Samvel | Armenia | 2558 |
| GM Hovhannisyan Robert | Armenia | 2556 |
| GM Robson Ray | USA | 2554 |
| GM Swiercz Dariusz | Poland | 2553 |
| GM Adhiban B | India | 2542 |
| GM Grandelius Nils | Sweden | 2542 |
| GM Sethuraman S P | India | 2529 |
The top rated girls:
| WGM Paikidze Nazi | Georgia | 2416 |
| WGM Savina Anastasia | Russia | 2398 |
| WGM Cori T Deysi | Peru | 2376 |
| WGM Girya Olga | Russia | 2371 |
| WGM Padmini Rout | India | 2348 |
| WIM Tsatsalashvili Keti | Georgia | 2318 |
| CM Kulkarni Bhakti | India | 2317 |
| WIM Mammadova Gulnar Marfat Qizi | Azerbaijan | 2294 |
| WIM Bulmaga Irina | Romania | 2293 |
| WIM Kazimova Narmin Nizami Qizi | Azerbaijan | 2292 |
| WIM Olsarova Karolina 2282 | Czech Republic | 2282 |
| WIM Eric Jovana | Serbia | 2282 |
The official website with more information and coverage is here. The live games link is here.
More about the history of the World Junior Chess Championships can be found here.
UPDATED: Video of Anand's speech at the opening ceremony:
Photo: Arvind Aaron
