Woman FIDE Master Saina Salonika and Jagdish Barik captured the titles in the Odisha State Women and U-20 Open Online Championships, which was organised by All Odisha Chess Association (AOCA), via Zoom app on 17 and 18 July, 2021.

Saina took the women crown, mustering 5.5 points, while Yashita Rout settled as runner-up with five points. The champion and runner-up were given cash prizes of Rs 1500 and Rs 1000 respectively. A total of 20 players participated in this event.

In the U-20 Open competition, featuring a total of 16 players, Jagdish topped the table with 5.5 points, while Sambit Panda finished runner-up with 4.5 points. The champion and runner-up were given Rs 1000 and Rs 800 respectively as cash prizes.

The championships were inaugurated by KIIT & KISS Sports Director Dr Gaganendu Dash. The top two finishers in both the categories qualified to represent Odisha in the National Senior Women and U-20 Open Online Championships, scheduled to be conducted by All India Chess Federation from 22 to 24 July, 2021.

FINAL PLACINGS:

WOMEN (Top 5): 1. WFM Saina Salonika, Khordha (5.5 points), 2. Yashita Rout, Khordha (5), 3. Smaraki Mohanty, Kendrapara (4.5), 4. Sunyasakta Satpathy, Khordha (4), 5. Shradha Smaranika Nanda, Cuttack (4).

U-20 OPEN (Top 5): 1. Jagdish Barik, Puri (5.5 points), 2. Sambit Panda, Khordha (4.5), 3. Harshit Ranjan Sahu, Cuttack (4.5), 4. Nilsu Pattnayak, Cuttack (4.5), 5. Pratyush Nayak, Cuttack (4).
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PHOTO: File photo of State Women Online chess champion Saina Salonika.