Pictures BS News Agency.
Bibhash Lodh, BS News Agency: Only 11 years old. Ved Faur is a boy from Nagpur. He is blind. Yet, this amazing boy's success is not stopped. And with that strength, Ved won bronze in the 13th IBCA World Junior Chess Championship for the Blind held in Hersonissos, Crete, Greece.
Representing India, Ved won bronze by getting 6.5 points in the 9-round Swiss format tournament. He fought against 17 competitors. Poland's Michal Rasis won gold by getting 7.5 points. Sweden's William Johansson won silver by getting the same number of points.
The reason for Ved's bronze victory is that he participated in this tournament as the 12th seed. With a rating of 1700. Earlier, Ved proved his skills in the Super Heroes Cup in March. After defeating Darshan Kshirsagar in the pre-quarterfinal stage, he gave a tough challenge to Darpan Inani in the quarterfinal.
A strong coaching team is working behind Ved's success. He plays under the guidance of Jitendra Thakar of Chanakya Chess Academy. He also practices with Grandmaster Swapnil Dhopade and Shubham Lakudkar at Chess Pathshala Academy. HelpChess Foundation has always stood by Ved to bring success in his chess journey. Bhupinder Singh gave him Rs 50,000. In addition, Ved was given a Rana scholarship worth 1 lakh during the 2026 Chess Olympiad to fulfill his dream.
IM Satyapragyan was present with the Indian team in Crete, Greece. His reaction about Ved, 'Ved is a talented player. His hunger to win in a few games impressed me. "Winning bronze in her first international competition is truly an achievement. Her future is bright. She will achieve even greater success."