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A 10-year-old girl just became the youngest person ever to win the Woman International Master title in chess
Bodhana Sivanandan, from London, took the title at a tournament in Liverpool, England, on Aug. 10
Bodhana “pulled off the win” after she beat “60-year-old Grandmaster Peter Wells,” per the International Chess Federation
A 10-year-old girl just became the youngest person ever to win the Woman International Master Title in chess.
Bodhana Sivanandan, from London, took the title on Sunday, Aug. 10, at a tournament in Liverpool, England, the International Chess Federation announced on X.
“British sensation Bodhana Sivanandan has made history by becoming the youngest female chess player ever to beat a grandmaster!” the Federation wrote in their post.
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Bodhana Sivanandan at a chess tournament in Liverpool, England on Aug. 7
They added that Bodhana “pulled off the win” after she beat “60-year-old Grandmaster Peter Wells in the last round of the 2025 British Chess Championships.”
Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can achieve, and the rank is held for life. Bodhana’s new title, Woman International Master, is the second-highest title for women, and it is second only to Woman Grandmaster, per the BBC.
Bodhana’s victory at 10 years, five months and three days bumped the previous 2019 record, which was held by American player Carissa Yip at 10 years, 11 months and 20 days.
As to where Bodhana got her epic chess skills? Her father says it’s a mystery.
“I’m an engineering graduate, as is my wife, but I’m not good at chess,” he previously told the BBC. “I tried a couple of league games, but I was very poor.”
Bodhana began playing the game during the pandemic when one of her father’s friends left a bag of his belongings at their house before moving to India — and one of the items he left was a chessboard, the outlet reported.
“I was interested in the pieces so I started playing,” she told the BBC, adding that playing chess makes her feel “good” and helps her with “lots of other things like maths, how to calculate.”
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Chess Grandmaster Vladimir Kramnik and Bodhana Sivanandan at the World Chess Clash in 2024
Bodhana typically practices chess for about an hour after school and also plays in tournaments on weekends to keep her skills sharp, the outlet reported.
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While attending Trafalgar Square’s ChessFest in London in July 2024, Bodhana told the BBC that she doesn’t typically get intimidated by her opponents, despite the fact that many of them are old enough to be her grandparents.
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“I don’t really notice who I’m playing. I just play the board,” she said at the time.
“My advice to those wanting to learn is that if you lose a game, you should try and learn from it,” she added.
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