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Dibyendu Barua carries the Chess Olympiad Torch from New Delhi to Leh

by Shahid Ahmed - 22/06/2022

The second person to become a Grandmaster in Indian chess is Dibyendu Barua. He had to fight various battles from his early days. From legitimizing Chess as a sport which was plagued as a superstition of a board game to winning Individual Gold medal at Novi Sad Olympiad in 1990. He has represented India at the Olympiad for seven consecutive time. Competed with Anand side-by-side in team and also the next generation of Harikrishna, Sasikiran and others. So it was fitting that after Anand, the next person who carried the torch is none other than the Arjuna Awardee who has selflessly paved the path for future generations. Photo: AICF

From Red Fort to Leh Palace

On Monday 20th June 2022, the legend Vishy Anand handed the Chess Olympiad Torch to Union Minister of Law and Justice, Mr. Kiren Rijiju who passed it to India's second GM Dibyendu Barua. He carried the torch from Red Fort, New Delhi to Leh Palace, Leh. It is the second city out of the 75 cities the Torch will travel to before reaching the final destination of the 44th Chess Olympiad at Mahabalipuram.

India's second GM Dibyendu Barua hands over the Chess Olympiad Torch to Lt. Governor of Ladakh, Mr. Shri Radha Krishna Mathur | Photo: AICF

Vishy Anand with the Chess Olympiad Torch | Photo: Aditya Sur Roy
Vishy Anand arrives at Red Fort with the Chess Olympiad Torch | Video: ChessBase India

Vishy Anand handed the Chess Olympiad Torch to Union Minister of Law & Justice Mr. Kiren Rijiju | Photo: AICF
"I am sure this will be the best ever Olympiad" - Kiren Rijiju | Video: ChessBase India
"I hope the new tradition of the Olympiad Torch Relay run for centuries " - FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich | Video: ChessBase India

Kiren Rijiju handed the Chess Olympiad Torch to India's second GM Dibyendu Barua | Photo: Aditya Sur Roy

GM Dibyendu Barua, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich, AICF Vice President Bhavesh Patel along with other officials | Photo: Aditya Sur Roy

L to R: India's third GM Pravin Thipsay, 11th GM Tejas Bakre and second GM Dibyendu Barua | Photo: Aditya Sur Roy

India's fourth GM Abhijit Kunte, GM Srinath Narayanan and GM Vaibhav Suri (behind) | Photo: Aditya Sur Roy

For more photos, please click here.

Dibyendu Barua arrives at Leh Palace with the Chess Olympiad Torch | Photo: AICF

Dibyendu Barua delivers his speech

Dibyendu Barua plays simultaneous exhibition games with the local kids

Local chess enthusiasts grab an opportunity to get photographed with the legend | Photo: AICF

A group photograph at the Leh Palace

The maestro shared on his fb, "An out of the world experience while handing over the Chess Olympiad Torch to Honorable Lt. Governor of Ladakh Shri Radha Krishna Mathur at Leh Palace. Absolutely amazed to witness the enthusiasm of the local community as well as the tourists. I am sure the 44th Chess Olympiad will popularise chess to unscaled heights at every nook and corner of the country."

 

For more photos, please click here.

Recap of Chess Olympiad Torch Relay Day 2 | Video: ChessBase India

Where the Torch is heading next?

Check out the upcoming dates where the Chess Olympiad Torch is heading next. For exact timing and location, please contact your local district/state chess association.

S. No. Date City / State, UT
1 20th June 2022 New Delhi, Delhi
2 20th June 2022 Leh, Ladakh
3 21st June 2022 Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir
4 21st June 2022 Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir
5 22nd June 2022 Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh
6 22nd June 2022 Shimla, Himachal Pradesh
7 23rd June 2022 Chandigarh, Chandigarh
8 23rd June 2022 Patiala, Punjab
9 23rd June 2022 Amritsar, Punjab
10 24th June 2022 Kurukshetra, Haryana
11 24th June 2022 Panipat, Haryana
12 24th June 2022 Gurugram, Haryana
13 25th June 2022 Dehradun, Uttarakhand
14 25th June 2022 Haridwar, Uttarakhand
15 25th June 2022 Meerut, Uttar Pradesh
16 26th June 2022 Noida, Uttar Pradesh
17 26th June 2022 Agra, Uttar Pradesh
18 26th June 2022 Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
19 27th June 2022 Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh
20 27th June 2022 Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
21 28th June 2022 Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh
22 28th June 2022 Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh
23 29th June 2022 Jaipur, Rajasthan
24 29th June 2022 Ajmer / Pushkar, Rajasthan
25 29th June 2022 Udaipur, Rajasthan
26 30th June 2022 Ahmedabad, Gujarat
27 30th June 2022 Kevadia, Gujarat
28 30th June 2022 Vadodra, Gujarat
29 1st July 2022 Surat, Gujarat
30 1st July 2022 Dandi, Gujarat
31 1st July 2022 Daman, Daman & Diu
32 2nd July 2022 Nagpur, Maharashtra
33 2nd July 2022 Pune, Maharashtra
34 2nd July 2022 Mumbai, Maharashtra
35 3rd July 2022 Panaji, Goa
36 3rd July 2022 Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh
37 4th July 2022 Indore, Madhya Pradesh
38 4th July 2022 Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
39 5th July 2022 Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh
40 5th July 2022 Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh
41 6th July 2022 Patna, Bihar
42 6th July 2022 Rajgir, Bihar
43 6th July 2022 Gaya, Bihar
44 7th July 2022 Ranchi, Jharkhand
45 7th July 2022 Kolkata, West Bengal
46 8th July 2022 Siliguri, West Bengal
47 8th July 2022 Gangtok, Sikkim
48 9th July 2022 Cooch Behar, West Bengal
49 9th July 2022 Guwahati, Assam
50 10th July 2022 Shillong, Meghalaya
51 10th July 2022 Imphal, Manipur
52 11th July 2022 Kohima, Nagaland
53 12th July 2022 Aizawl, Mizoram
54 13th July 2022 Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh
55 13th July 2022 Dibrugarh, Assam
56 14th July 2022 Nam Sai Arunachal Pradesh
57 14th July 2022 Agartala, Tripura
58 15th July 2022 Bhubaneswar, Odisha
59 15th July 2022 Puri, Odisha
60 15th July 2022 Konark, Odisha
61 16th July 2022 Raipur, Chattisgarh
62 16th July 2022 Hyderabad, Telangana
63 17th July 2022 Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh
64 17th July 2022 Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh
65 18th July 2022 Bengaluru, Karnataka
66 19th July 2022 Mangaluru, Karnataka
67 20th July 2022 Kavaratti, Lakshadweep (Agatti Island Airport)
68 21th July 2022 Thrissur, Kerala
69 22st July 2022 Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
70 23rd July 2022 Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh
71 23rd July 2022 Puducherry, Puducherry
72 24th July 2022 Port Blair, Andaman & Nicobar Islands
73 25th July 2022 Madurai, Tamil Nadu
74 26th July 2022 Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu
75 27th July 2022 Chennai, Tamil Nadu

 


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