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Surat Chess Club

Junior Rapid Chess Championship 2026

Sunday, 6 September 2026 at HopUp Sports Arena, City Light, Surat

38 players. Three categories. Five rounds.

A long row of chess boards with digital clocks between them, children playing on both sides, at the Junior Rapid Chess Championship 2026 at HopUp Sports Arena, City Light, Surat

How the day went

The Junior Rapid Chess Championship 2026 was played on Sunday 6 September 2026 at HopUp Sports Arena in City Light, Surat. Thirty eight players entered across three age categories, Under 7, Under 11 and Under 14, and each category played its own separate event. Entry was open to every young player in the city rather than to club students alone, and for many of the children on the day this was their first chess tournament in Surat.

Round one, down the long table at HopUp Sports Arena.

Games were paired by the Swiss system and played at a rapid time control of 15 minutes each with a 5 second increment, with International Arbiter Prashant Raval as chief arbiter. The Under 14 section produced the most interesting result of the day. It was won by an unrated player, who finished ahead of the only FIDE rated entrant in the championship. Full standings for every section of the junior chess championship are published on chess-results.com, linked under each table below.

Final results

Top five in each category. The three sections were paired and scored separately.

Tap any photograph to open it at full size.

Children playing along the second row of tables at HopUp Sports Arena, boards and clocks set out down the length of the hall
Boards and digital clocks lined up down the playing row, young players facing each other at every table during the junior chess championship in Surat
A young player in glasses resting his hand against his mouth as he thinks through a position at the Junior Rapid Chess Championship 2026
A girl in a red T-shirt studying the pieces in front of her during a round at the chess tournament in Surat
A young player reaching out to move a piece, his opponent's hand still resting on the board beside the clock
A hand playing a move beside a red digital chess clock counting down the rapid time control at HopUp Sports Arena, Surat
A boy in glasses reaching across the board to play his move while his opponent watches from the other side
A young player in an orange T-shirt lifting a piece, eyes fixed on the board, at the junior chess championship in Surat
A girl in a green T-shirt leaning on the table as she works out her position during a round
A young player in glasses concentrating on his game, the numbered board card and clock in front of him
A young girl in red studies the position at her board during the Junior Rapid Chess Championship 2026
A boy in a white polo makes his move with the clock beside the board
A boy in a blue T-shirt stands up to make his move during a round at HopUp Sports Arena
A boy in a navy sweatshirt weighs up the position during a round
Rushi Shah with six of the youngest players before the first round at HopUp Sports Arena
A tournament official at a board as the players look up during a round

Prizes

Every player who entered went home with something.

  • Trophies for first, second and third in every category
  • Medals for fourth and fifth in every category
  • Medal for the best girl player in each category
  • Medal for the youngest participant overall
  • Certificate for every participant
  • A HopUp game pass for each category winner
First place trophies for the Junior Rapid Chess Championship 2026 lined up on the prize table, each engraved with the Surat Chess Club name and the date
The first place trophies, engraved for each category and dated 6 September 2026.
A young winner being handed his trophy at the prize giving of the Junior Rapid Chess Championship 2026 in Surat
A girl receiving her trophy and certificate beside the prize table, medals and ribbons laid out next to a chess board and clock
The Under 7 prize winners standing together with their trophies raised and certificates in hand at HopUp Sports Arena, Surat
Prize winners from the older categories holding their certificates and trophy after the Junior Rapid Chess Championship 2026 in Surat

A note on the format

If this was your child's first tournament, here is what the terms on the results sheet mean.

Swiss system
Nobody is knocked out. Every player plays every round, and after each round you are paired against someone on a similar score. A child who loses the first game still plays all the rest, against opponents closer to their own level.
Rapid, 15 minutes plus 5 seconds
Each player starts with 15 minutes on their own clock for the whole game, and gains 5 seconds every time they make a move. When your clock runs out you lose, so the clock matters as much as the board. A game lasts about 35 minutes at most.
Separate age categories
Under 7, Under 11 and Under 14 were three separate tournaments running side by side. Pairings never crossed between them, so a six year old was never paired against a thirteen year old.
Equipment
Boards, pieces and digital clocks were all provided. Nobody needed to bring anything.

Thank you

Thank you to all 38 players for the way they played and for how they handled both winning and losing, and to the parents who gave up a Sunday to bring them and to wait. Thank you to HopUp Sports Arena for the venue and for the game passes, and to International Arbiter Prashant Raval for arbiting all three sections.

Surat Chess Club runs coaching in Vesu through the week, and organises tournaments and Play & Learn Sundays across the year. The next one will be listed on the events page when the date is fixed.