Bhubaneswar: Chess player and Woman Fide Master Saina Salonika won the individual silver medal in the Asian Youth Chess Championships 2021. The online tournament was organised by the Asian Chess Federation on the ‘Tornelo Platform’ and was played October 22 to 24. Players from 21 Asian countries participated in the Youth Championships in different age categories starting from under-eight to under -18
Saina bagged the silver medal in the under -18 girls’ category. In the nine matches she played, Saina won five, drew three and lost one tie to the eventual champion. Saina who was seeded 13th in the tournament won three of her matches against players from Vietnam. Among her two other victories one was against a Sri Lankan player and another against an Indian counterpart. She played out two of her three draws against Iranian opponents.
Susmita Bhowmick of India bagged the gold medal while Mohammadi Melika of Iran finished with the bronze in the same category.
Till date Saina has bagged 20 international medals including the one she won recently. Saina has also achieved two Women International Master norms till date.