Bhubaneswar, Dec. 16: The Odisha Open and 15 th International
Grandmasters Chess Festival kicked off at the Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan
Deemed to be University (SOA) here on Sunday with around 700
participants from 20 countries vying for the top honours.
The tournament was declared open by the former Governor of
Andhra Pradesh and Chhatisgarh Mr. Biswabhushan Harichandan.
Expressing his happiness over the enthusiastic participation of
players of different age groups, Mr. Harichandan described it as a grand
event which would further popularize chess among the masses.
The eight-day tournament, which has a total prize money of Rs. 40
lakh, has been organised by the All Odisha Chess Association (AOCA) in
association with SOA and Empreo Group.
Around 120 players with Elo rating of 1900 or more were
competing in Category-A while those with Elo rating of less than 1900
were vying for honours in Category-B. Players with Elo rating of less
than 1600 were competing in Category-C.
The total prize money in Category-A will be Rs. 25 lakh with a top
prize of Rs. 5.5 lakh while the prize money for Category-B and Category-
C will be Rs. 7.5 lakh each.
Mr. Babu Singh, MLA, also attended the inaugural program as
Guest of Honour. Those who were present during the ceremony were
Dr. Abinash Samal, Chairman of the Organising Committee for the
tournament and Managing Director of Empreo Group, Prof. Jyoti
Ranjan Das, Co-Chairman of the Organising Committee and Dean
(Students’ Welfare) of SOA, Mr. Debabrata Bhatta, Secretary of AOCA
and Tournament Director, Mr. Shankar Prasad Mishra, Treasurer of
AOCA and Ms. Sunita Barma, Sports Officer of SOA.