Ever since Viswanathan Anand burst onto the scene in the 1980s, he has inspired a steady rise of Indian chess at the world level. Starting out as the “Lightning Kid” for the speed of his moves to becoming the country’s first grandmaster to its only world champion, Anand has been the pioneer every Indian chess player has wanted to emulate.
The 51-year-old chess maestro from Chennai will now lend a helping hand in nurturing ‘The Next Anand’. A five-time world champion across three different formats and a legend of the game, Anand has seen many talented players emerge after him, though none has risen to the highest levels of the game as he did.
On Monday, Anand officially announced the launch of his chess academy in collaboration with WestBridge Capital, an investment firm focused primarily on business in India.
“I am delighted to announce the launch of WestBridge Anand Chess Academy (WACA). Very happy to partner with WestBridge Capital in realizing a long dream of mine to nurture talent in India,” Anand tweeted.
“This will be a fellowship programme that will aim to take our most talented junior chess prodigies to the top ranks,” Anand announced, tagging his tweet #TheNextAnand.