NEW DELHI: India’s prime-ranked chess star Arjun Erigaisi has issued a public plea to expedite the return of his passport forward of the celebrated World Rapid & Blitz Championships, set to happen in New York City from December 26-31.
Erigaisi, at the moment ranked primary in India for speedy chesstook to social media to spotlight the delay in his passport’s return following its submission for visa stamping.
“Last week, I submitted my passport to you for visa stamping and it still has not been returned. I request you to please expedite the process and return my passport as soon as possible as I need it for my travel to New York for World Rapid & Blitz Championship,” Arjun wrote on X.
The upcoming occasion marks the primary time the FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Championships will probably be held within the United States.
The competitors, hosted at Wall Street’s Cipriani venue, options an up to date match construction, together with a knockout element within the blitz format.
The championships are set to appeal to the world’s prime chess expertise, together with defending champion Magnus Carlsen, who has dominated the occasion in recent times.
Erigaisi is one in every of 4 main Indian Grandmasters registered for the competitors, alongside Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, new world chess champion Gukesh Dommaraju, and Vidit Gujrathi.
Representing India on the worldwide stage, the younger GM hopes to showcase his velocity chess expertise towards a star-studded lineup that features famend gamers like Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, and Alireza Firouzja.
The match affords a mixed prize fund of almost $1.5 million, making it one of the vital profitable occasions on the chess calendar.
With over 300 gamers competing throughout Open and Women’s sections, the six-day championship guarantees excessive-stakes motion, that includes each the normal Swiss format in speedy play and a newly launched knockout stage in blitz.
