Chess Olympiad: Savitha heroics bring medal; Arjun helps India bag Open silver
Indian chess player Savitha secured a crucial draw in a marathon 83-move match to help the Indian women's team earn a medal at the Chess Olympiad. Her success follows years of significant financial and personal sacrifice by her family.
Why it matters
It showcases the intense personal and economic sacrifices often required for athletes from non-privileged backgrounds to compete at the elite international level.
NEW DELHI: Chess came to the Baskar household not through Savitha but through her older brother, Mugesh, whom their father had originally set out to build a chess career around. Savitha's own interest came from watching him play.By the time both children were training under Chennai-based coach RB Ramesh, a decision had to be made, with the expense of chess becoming heavier with each passing day. The family couldn't sustain two chess careers, and Mugesh stepped back after the eighth standard while Savitha kept going.Her father, Baskar, an electrician in Singapore at the time, eventually quit that job entirely and returned to India to support her career, a transition so difficult that the family once pawned his gold jewellery to fund a national tournament entry fee."Taking that decision was very difficult," Baskar told TimesofIndia.com during an exclusive interaction after it was announced that Savitha would represent the Indian women's team…
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