Bengal Chess Association Starts Chess Olympiad Preparations

News Desk, News Nation 360: In a joint organisational partnership with the West Bengal State BJP Sports Cell, the Bengal Chess Association (BCA) successfully held a massive one-day rapid chess tournament at the Kshudiram Anushilan Kendra to commemorate International Chess Day. This event gave FIDE trainer and BCA President Atanu Lahiri a historic public platform to formally announce that Bengal will host a prestigious edition of the Chess Olympiad for the first time in November 2026. A distinguished inaugural delegation comprising state Labour Minister Bhaskar Bhattacharya, 2018 Asian Games bridge gold medallist Pranab Bardhan, BJP Sports Cell chief Dipankar Modak, and Merlin Group Managing Director Saket Mohta—whose corporate conglomerate served as the meet's principal sponsor—attended the high-profile promotional championship, which drew over 400 competitive youth players from 15 districts throughout the state. The competition successfully set the stage for the November Olympiad, a significant, high-impact inclusive sporting event designed to give priority to children from disadvantaged backgrounds throughout the eastern Indian states. This event, which culminated in a lengthy prize distribution ceremony that awarded trophies and cash grants to the top boys and girls across the Under-7, 9, 11, 13, and 15 divisions, reinforced the city's commitment to using strategic sports as a structural tool for holistic youth development and democratic access to global intellectual platforms.

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