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Indian and Pakistan teams pose for photos with the Indian flag at the Chess Olympiad in Budapest. (Screengrab)
Pakistan team posed for photos with the Indian flag at the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest.
India made history at the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest as both the men’s and women’s teams clinched their maiden gold medals, marking a monumental achievement in Indian chess on Sunday.
Amid the celebrations, a video has surfaced on social media which shows the Indian and Pakistan teams posing for photos with the Indian flag.
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The incident caught the attention of many fans in India as they recalled that the Pakistan hockey team had been seen holding the flags of China during the Asian Champions Trophy.
ALSO READ | Asian Champions Trophy: Pakistan Hockey Players Seen Waving Flags of China Against India in Final
The men’s team, featuring D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, and R Praggnanandhaa, displayed dominance throughout, defeating Slovenia in the final round. Gukesh, the star performer, won 10 of 11 rounds, propelling India to the top with 21 out of a possible 22 points. The women’s team, led by D Harika, Tania Sachdev, and R Vaishali, secured their gold by defeating Azerbaijan in a tense final.
The All India Chess Federation announced a whopping Rs 3.2 crore in rewards for the historic 45th Olympiad-winning Indian teams during a felicitation ceremony here on Wednesday.
AICF president Nitin Narang made the announcement during the event.
Each player from the winning teams will receive Rs 25 lakh, while the captains of the men’s and women’s teams, Abhijeet Kunte and Srinath Narayanan, will be rewarded with Rs 15 lakh each.
Grandmaster Dibyendu Barua, head of the Indian delegation, will receive Rs 10 lakh, and the assistant coaches will be rewarded Rs 7.5 lakh.
Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi too lauded India’s young chess players for their historic achievement at the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest.
In a video shared on social media, Modi interacted with the chess champions, including R Vaishali, D Harika, Tania Sachdev, Vidit Gujrathi, Arjun Erigaisi, and Praggnanandhaa. In the interaction that took place on Thursday evening, both the men’s and women’s teams, who won gold medals in the event for the first time ever, sat with the PM to share their experience and also ask him about his interest in sports.
(With inputs from Agencies)
