Turkmen chess player Lala Shohradova has written a bright new page in the history of national sport by winning a gold and a silver medal at the Asian Juniors Chess Championships for players under the age of 20. The major continental tournament, which has brought together 157 of the best young chess players from 10 countries, is being held in Mumbai, India, at the ITC Maratha Hotel. The prestigious tournament is organized by the Maharashtra Chess Association under the auspices of the All-India Chess Federation (AICF), the Asian Chess Federation (ACF), and the International Chess Federation (FIDE), The Golden age electronic newspaper reports.

The 20-year-old student of the Yagshygeldi Kakayev International Oil and Gas University and Woman FIDE Master (WFM) began her successful campaign on the opening day of competition, when she won a silver medal in the blitz tournament after a fiercely contested competition, competing as the top seed.

The next discipline was rapid chess, where 60 of the strongest female players from India, Kazakhstan, the Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan competed for the championship title.

After seven rounds, Lala Shohradova, rated 2181 by FIDE, produced an outstanding performance, scoring 6 points out of a possible 7. Finishing level on points with Indian chess player Pratitee Bordoloi, the Turkmen athlete secured first place thanks to superior tiebreak criteria, earning her the championship title. India’s Prishita Gupta won the bronze medal with 5 points.

The Asian Juniors Chess Championships U20 is one of the most prestigious youth competitions on the continent. According to the organizers, past winners of the championship have included Viswanathan Anand, Abhijit Kunte, and Tejas Bakre, while among the women’s champions have been Koneru Humpy, Tania Sachdev, and Ivana Furtado.