Mangaluru: Mangalurean chess prodigy and Karnataka Ekalavya awardee Viani Antonio D’cunha emerged as the winner of the fifth Liffre Open International chess tournament held in France on October 30.
Viani defeated Indian Grand Master Sundararajan Kidambi to clinch the championship with an unbeaten score of 7.0/9.
In the Blitz event, Viani scored an 8.0/9 and only lost one game in the competition’s third round. Rafael Lemasle, the tournament runner-up, finished one point behind Viani.
The 24-year-old chess champion scripted history when he became the first person from the Dakshina Kannada district to earn the title of “International Master” after his FIDE rating surpassed the 2400 mark back in August 2016.
Since then, Viani has morphed into a chess coach himself by training students for the past few years. Apart from focusing on basic endgame skills, Viani also emphasizes the need to develop techniques and psychological abilities as well.
This edition of the Liffre Open also witnessed the participation of three other Indians, P Konguvel, Satyapragyan Swayangsu, and Sundararajan Kidambi, all of whom finished within the top ten contestant rankings.
