Sikkim team to take part in National Challenger Chess Tourney

GANGTOK, 05 May: A five-member Sikkim Chess Association [SCA] team is looking to improve their FIDE rating in the upcoming the National Challenger Chess Tournament 2014 to be held at Dharmshala in Himachal Pradesh from 09 to 19 May.

The team members are Rakesh Gurung, Thendup Tamang and Rohit Gurung from Tadong SSS, Rahul Gurung from Lumsey JHS and Sushmita Lama from Holy Cross School. All are top rated players of Sikkim. The state team will be accompanied by SCA general secretary, Mahendra Dhakal, who is also an international arbiter.

Mr Dhakal stated that all players are looking forward to further improve their FIDE rating in this prestigious tournament. “The tournament will have around 20 grand masters and 50 international masters so it is not only a good opportunity for the state players but also a chance to improve their ratings. The team is all set and confident to do better in this tournament”, he said.

Mr Dhakal further stated that the state team has been taking part in this prestigious tournament since the SCA was formed and their performance and rating has been steadily improving.

SCA president, HS Sharma and other members of the association have expressed their best wishes to the team. The team is scheduled to leave on 07 May for the tournament.