Latest news with #Olympiad
Economic Times
12 hours ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Sports tech startup KhiladiPro raises $1 million in round led by Shastra VC, MGA Ventures
Sports tech startup KhiladiPro has raised $1 million in a funding round led by early-stage funds Shastra VC and MGA Ventures. The round also saw participation from angel funds will be used for developing its proprietary AI models, expanding its reach in domestic markets, and enhancing support systems for athletes. Founded in August 2023, the Bengaluru-based company provides standardised athletic assessments for children. The firm has over 60 AI models. Its flagship products include sports ability tests for badminton and cricket, the Khiladi Ability Index (KAI), which places all users on a unified rating scale, Olympiad for schools, and content play Khiladi Klub for high-potential youth athletes. It follows a transactional revenue model, charging a fee for each assessment conducted per child. 'Assessment is a key gap in the market. Around two crore children attend academies in the evenings, but there's no standard metric to track progress…So, assessments are crucial to provide a benchmark for all this time invested, helping kids understand where they truly stand,' cofounder and chief executive Utkarsh Yadav told ET. According to the firm, India's sports technology market is projected to reach $1,479 million by 2033. Over the past four months, KhiladiPro has partnered with around 75 to 80 academies, reaching about 40,000 students. The platform is currently carrying out between 2,000 and 3,000 assessments each plans to complete 200,000 assessments by the end of the current financial year, while also broadening its range of sports to cofounder Nirav Shah, the company is receiving inbound interest from international markets and is now exploring expansion into Australia and the UAE.'There are many sports tech companies using hardware sensors to track physical movements or biomarkers, but no one has been able to achieve the level of accuracy we have using just mobile devices and visual AI,' said Shah, noting that this is a widespread sports tech sector has seen increasing interest from investors due to its potential for innovation and growth. Last year in October, Str8bat raised $3.5 million in a funding round led by Exfinity Venture May 2024, Stupa Sports Analytics raised Rs 28 crore in a funding round led by Centre Court Capital and Peer Capital, while in February last year, SportVot raised Rs 9.4 crore in funding led by Omidyar Network India.
Indian Express
a day ago
- Sport
- Indian Express
Gukesh's coach says teen had heard comments that he was world champion only because Magnus Carlsen didn't play
Over the past five months since Gukesh became the youngest world champion in chess history after defeating Ding Liren in Singapore, the Indian teenager and his team have tried their best to block out the disparaging chatter questioning his legitimacy as a world champion. With Magnus Carlsen, the greatest player of this generation, abdicating the world champion's throne in 2023 without a pawn marching down the battlefield of 64 squares, Ding Liren took the crown after wrestling it away from Ian Nepomniachtchi. Ding later lost the crown to Gukesh at last year's world chess championship. But the 'what ifs' regarding Carlsen playing in the world championship have refused to die down. After Gukesh defeated Carlsen for the first time in classical chess in round 6 of Norway Chess in the early hours of Monday at Stavanger, Gukesh's trainer Grzegorz Gajewski said the win would give him a lot of confidence. But perhaps, more importantly, Gajewski said that he hoped the win would earn the Indian teenager more 'credit'. READ MORE: A bang of the fist, two apologies, a pat on the back and a history-making win – How Gukesh took down Carlsen 'I think this win over Magnus is going to give him a bump. First of all, he had never beaten Magnus. Secondly, as a world champion, he keeps facing these comments that, 'ok, you're the world champion only because Magnus didn't play, etc, etc. You know, you try not to hear those comments. But then you lose to him, and then you lose to him again, and that's not a bit pleasant. Now, he's beaten him. So, I hope this is going to give him some credit and a lot of confidence,' Gajewski told Indian media at Stavanger after the 19-year-old's win over the world no 1. Carlsen was, in fact, asked by the Take Take Take app in an interview before the Norway Chess tournament began if 'Gukesh was a worthy world chess champion in his opinion'. OH MY GOD 😳🤯😲 — Norway Chess (@NorwayChess) June 1, 2025 Carlsen's measured response had been to say: 'He won the Candidates ahead of a field of world-beaters and he's done incredibly well in classical chess over the last couple of years including giving one of the all-time best performances at the Olympiad. Is he the best player in the world? Remains to be seen! But is he a worthy world champion? By what they measure that by I think he certainly is!' Players like former world champion Garry Kasparov have also made comparisons between Gukesh and Carlsen recently. The Russian had said that World no 1 Magnus Carlsen is 'widely considered, by all metrics, as a better player' than the reigning world champion from India. READ MORE: Meet Bjarte Leer-Helgesen, man who saw Magnus Carlsen take first steps on chess board, then become prison chaplain who played chess with jail inmates Gajewski revealed that after Gukesh had lost the opening game of Norway Chess to Carlsen, there was plenty of self reflection from Gukesh. It was during this that they came to the conclusion that their time management needed to improve. Against Carlsen on Sunday, Gukesh stuck neck-and-neck even on the clock before a mad time scramble ensued at the end which Gukesh won after an uncharacteristic blunder from Carlsen. 'After the first game, as I recall, we generally discussed the mistakes that were made. He was quite critical of his own game, but at the same time, the game was a high level game. We saw that the main problem was time management, and because of the time trouble, he managed to lose the position that he should not have lost. Things happen in time troubles. So we decided that we have to correct this time management, and already in the game with Hikaru, we could witness this improvement and progress. Even today, it was a little bit better. Even though the position was a little bit bad, he took some time but okay, in the difficult situation, you just have to think because if you make one more mistake, it would be immediately over.' Gukesh said. Asked what will change because of this, Gajewski said: 'It just gives a huge bump of confidence. Because once you've done it, you know you can do it again. And that's the plan.'
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Chess player Sara Khadem on making the tough moves in life
Stavanger, Norway: In early 2020, after her passport was confiscated resulting in a temporary travel ban from Iran, Sara Khadem didn't know what to do with her life. The Covid pandemic extended the frustration, and forced Sara to even ask her husband, an Iranian movie director who worked at an advertising company then, for a job in his office. Chess was the farthest from her mind for the International Master. 'I stopped looking at chess,' Sara said. 'I was thinking of what else I can do.' Five years on, she is among the six women featuring in a strong field in the ongoing 2025 Norway Chess Women. This invitation has helped rekindle her motivation, which had gone missing during a period of upheaval and uncertainty. The trickling test of a six-month travel ban and the pandemic grew into a storm when, in 2022 at the World Rapid and Blitz Championships in Kazakhstan, Sara refused to wear a hijab. Amid protests in Iran against the mandate for women and heightened tension, Sara, with her husband and one-year-old son, moved to Spain on a residence visa. Now representing that country, she has not returned to Iran since, where an arrest warrant awaits her. 'When you cannot even travel because your own government bans you and they tell you it doesn't matter, like your whole career doesn't matter because we are thinking of something else, then you will reach a point where you don't want to stay,' Sara told a group of journalists here. Sara acknowledged she received support in Iran during her chess journey, and still does from the public. Her thought of emigrating wasn't correlated to what happened in Kazakhstan (it was 'because of my son and the situation in the country'), but not returning to Iran was. 'My first option was to still play for Iran and live outside. Then I realised this wasn't practical because I cannot play in any of the tournaments like the Olympiad and World Cup. I just came to the point where I realised it's not my fault,' she said. Sara isn't the first chess player from Iran to take this route. GM Alireza Firouzja also left Iran protesting the country's boycott of Israel players. He now represents France. 'He had some political issues too, and it's going to be the same (going forward),' Sara said. 'For girls, especially, it's more difficult. If I had to stay in the national team, I had to wear the scarf in order to be able to go back. When I knew this (switching to Spain) was an option for me to decide what I want to do, Iran didn't make sense to me. But still, changing the federation was very difficult. Because I like to play for Iran. I like my country. It wasn't about the country.' Abandoning that country, her family and setting up a life outside – Sara now resides in Marbella – did take its toll. Chess, after her pre-pandemic years of collecting the Grandmaster norms, took a backseat. It even went, as she put it, 'backwards'. 'It was very hard. That's why you don't see me playing so much,' she said. And she is okay with that, in a sport where every day is a race of the ratings. 'I don't want to miss the first years with my son,' Sara said. 'I know a lot of players care about their careers a lot. But I want to make a balance.'
New York Post
4 days ago
- Business
- New York Post
These are the world's best cities for 2025, according to Oxford economists — see how New York fared
We're the best around, and nothing's ever going to keep us down. New York City has been named the best city in the world for 2025 by Oxford Economics' Global Cities Index. This marks the second consecutive year that the Big Apple has topped the annual list, which features more than 50 major metropolises across the globe. Naturally, ranking the 'best' city on Earth might sound a bit loaded, but Oxford Economics tried to keep things objective by evaluating 1,000 of the most populous urban jungles on a variety of metrics encompassing five broad categories: economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. The metropolises were then given scores out of 100 based on their overall performance. 4 The Big Apple snagged the first spot with a perfect 100 score overall and in the economics sector. Tierney – With that method, Oxford Economics could glean 'a nuanced understanding of each city's strengths and weaknesses,' per the site. This year, eight of the top 10 cities maintained their spots, which Oxford Economics experts felt demonstrated these hubs' remarkable resilience against current 'trade tensions' and other threats to 'economic growth worldwide.' 4 London ranked second, due in part to its high GDP. Iryna – The Big Apple snagged the 1st spot with a perfect 100 score overall and in the economics sector. Experts attributed this to the city's large gross domestic product (GDP), enviable income per person, and its abundance of corporate headquarters. NYC didn't perform so well in the governance and environmental sectors — ranking 168th and 161st, respectively — with experts flagging its low economic diversity and high housing expenditures. Coincidentally, the Big Apple boasts the most billionaires on Earth with a staggering 123 10-figure-plus hotshots worth a collective $759 billion. 4 The Big Apple boasts the most billionaires on Earth, with a whopping 123. Luciano Mortula-LGM – London, meanwhile, retained its second-place slot in this metropolitan Olympiad with an overall score of 98.5. The UK powerhouse excelled in the human capital category, notching a perfect 100, which experts felt was due to the city's 'world-leading universities, diverse labor force, and large pool of international headquarters.' Also enviable was their economic performance — a credit to the city's high GDP. 4 Paris scored high when it came to quality of life due to its 'plethora of world-renowned cultural sites and high life expectancy,' per the Index. zigres – Rounding out the top five were Paris, France; San Jose, California; and Seattle, Washington, with Oxford gurus noting that all three meccas have top economics scores. Paris excelled in this regard 'due to the sheer size of its economy,' while 'tech hubs' San Jose and Seattle boasted 'high levels of GDP per person,' per the index. They were also generally happier, according to the survey. 'While these three cities score slightly lower than New York and London on the human capital front, they outperform the top two cities in terms of quality of life,' the authors wrote. San Jose and Seattle landed 91.5 and 88.1, respectively, in that area, compared to NYC's 83.8, while Paris nabbed a 93.2 quality-of-life rating. 'Paris benefits from its plethora of world-renowned cultural sites and high life expectancy, while residents of San Jose and Seattle have among the highest average incomes in the world.' Further, the U.S. had eight cities in the top 20, with Los Angeles, California; Washington, D.C.; and Dallas, Texas, placing 11, 12 and 19, respectively. Here are the top 10 cities: New York, US (100) London, UK (98.5) Paris, France (94.4) San Jose, California, US (94.2) Seattle, US (91.8) Melbourne, Australia (90.7) Sydney, Australia (90.6) Boston, US (90.3) Tokyo, Japan (90.3) San Francisco, US (90.3).
The Hindu
6 days ago
- General
- The Hindu
Three students from Mysuru excel at 2024-25 Olympiad exam
Three students from Mysuru secured top ranks at the SOF Olympiad exam 2024-25. The first rank in international mathematics Olympiad carrying a gold medal and a merit certificate was bagged by V. Sidhvik from KNC Innovative Global School. Thanmayi A. R., a student of Rotary Midtown Academy, obtained the second rank in international Hindi Olympiad, earning a silver medal and a merit certificate. Mourya Gowtham from St Joseph's Central School secured the third rank in international social studies school Olympiad that carried a bronze medal and a merit certificate. A statement from the organisers said this year's SOF Olympiad saw the participation of millions of students from 72 countries, including 30,300 from schools in Mysuru.
