At five, Ridit Nimdia has done enough to make his parents proud. From being the youngest player in the world to hold a Fide rating to possessing a green belt in martial arts, the Kandivli lad is the latest wonder kid to have emerged from Mumbai.
On Friday, the tiny tot scripted history by finishing third in the World School Chess Championship in the picturesque town of Kayseri in Turkey. The Std I student, who finished with 6.5 points from nine games in the U-8 tournament, made his mother’s heart swell with pride yet again. And Richa Jain is understandably over the moon.
“A woman GM from Ukraine came up to me and said that Ridit is the rebirth of Viswanathan Anand. I was thrilled to hear that,” Jain, who accompanied her son for the 11-day event, told DNA from Kayseri on Friday.
Iran’s Mahan Saberi, aged seven-and-a-half, tookhome the gold medal for finishing with 7.5 points. Ridit had to settle for bronze as he registered one loss more than local favourite Emirhan (6.5 points).
Ridit was the top seed but Jain isn’t too disappointed with the third-place finish. “Yes, he was expected to win the title. However, you must remember that he was the youngest player at the tournament. He even won an award for the same. Age does matter at this level.”
Ridit, who turns six next month, is just like the next-door kid who hates to part with his toys, loves homemade cheese pizza, sleeps eight hours a day and religiously quarrels with nine-year-old sister Pihu.
Jokes apart, his biggest strengths are speed and tenacity. The U-7 national championship, to be held at Jamshedpur in November, is something everyone associated with Ridit is looking forward to. A top-2 finish there will win earn him a spot at the world youth championship in Greece next year.
Jain is particularly pleased with Ridit’s ever-increasing stamina levels. “His game on Friday lasted over five hours. And that’s really good,” she says.
Comments