CUSAT chess tourney begins on June 24

Kochi, June 20 (UNI) Around 300 players, including international masters, will take part in the 18th CUSAT International Rating Chess Tournament, to be held here from June 24 to 30.

IMs R R Lakshman, P D S Girinath, Sudhakar Babu, R Balasubramanian and other leading players like K Ratnakaran, G N Gopal and O T Anilkumar will lead the challenge on the boards.

Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) Union and CUSAT Chess Club are jointly holding the prestigious tournament, having over Rs 1.25 lakh as total prize money, Organising Committee Secretary M S Ananthakrishnan told a news conference here today.

M B Muraleedharan, T J Sureshkumar, C Natarajan, A K Jagadeesh, B T Muralikrishna, Saith Anwar Sasuli, Santharam, U C Mohanan, Jyothilal and Ganesh Bhat are also among the top players confirmed for the event, they said.

The winner will be richer by Rs 15,000 while the runner-up will get Rs 12,500, apart from trophies and certificates.

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