'Remarkable' North London school girl, 10, becomes youngest female to beat chess Grandmaster
Sivanandan's victory at 10 years, five months and three days beats the 2019 record held by American Carissa Yip, who went on to become an International Master. Bodhana gained 24 points during the event, finishing in equal 26th place, which has been recognised as 'remarkable' for a 10-year-old.
She has been stirring up a commotion in the chess world for more than a year, having already won more than three junior world titles. Bodhana has now picked up the title of Women's International Master which is one of the rungs of the ladder to becoming a Grand Master.
Her game against chess Grandmaster Peter K. Wells, 60, may have begun a little rocky, but the young chess prodigy soon turned the tide to earn herself a historic win.
Danny Gormally, the English Chess Federation's expert commentator, said: 'How on earth did she win this? She must be some kind of magician!' He added: "She likes to play simple positional moves, nothing special, very solid player and she tends to outplay her opponents later in the game. There's a touch of a [world number-one] Magnus Carlsen or the great Jose Raul Capablanca about her play. I would imagine Magnus Carlsen is probably one of her chess heroes."
More than 1,000 chess players from around the UK attended the event to compete for the title of British Chess Champion.
The King of Chess, Michael Adams, 53, won the tournament for the ninth time, winning £4,400 in prize money and the British Crown Trophy. Bodhana was not the only child prodigy to compete in the championships. Supratit Banerjee, 11, finished on 6/9, beating two grandmasters and sealing his first International Master title.
The 2026 British Chess Championships will be held at the University of Warwick in Coventry, marking the tournament's 112th event.
Got a story? Please get in touch at katherine.gray@reachplc.com
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