Eleven year old Bodhana Sivanandan completed the requirements for the open International Master title on 23 October 2026 at the European Club Cup in Budva, Montenegro. At 11 years, seven months and 16 days, she broke the 38 year old age record for the youngest female International Master set by Judit Polgar in 1988. She also became the seventh youngest player in history, male or female, to qualify for the title.
Bodhana Sivanandan Record Breakthrough at Budva
Bodhana Sivanandan secured her third and final International Master (IM) norm in the seventh and last round of the European Women’s Club Cup 2026 in Budva, Montenegro. She played on board one for the English team She Plays To Win Lionesses A and defeated Sweden’s Woman International Master Viktoria Johansson. The win took her final score to an unbeaten 5.5 points from 7 games.
Her tournament rating performance was 2465, which is well above the level needed for an IM norm. During the event she also beat International Master Olga Badelka, who is rated above 2400, and drew with Georgian Grandmaster Nino Batsiashvili, a former European Women’s Champion. With this result she crossed the live rating threshold of 2400, so she met both conditions for the open IM title at the age of 11 years, seven months and 16 days.
What Is the International Master Title in Chess?
The International Master (IM) is an open chess title awarded by the International Chess Federation (FIDE). FIDE is the world governing body for chess. It was founded in 1924 in Paris and is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. It controls the rating system, the rules of chess and all official titles. The IM title is open to both men and women and is the second highest open title in chess, below only the Grandmaster (GM) title.
How to Become an IM in Chess?
To become an IM in chess, a player must meet two linked conditions in standard classical chess. First, the player must reach a published FIDE classical rating of at least 2400 at least once. Second, the player must score three IM norms in eligible international tournaments.
An IM norm is a certified high level performance in one event. In general it means a performance rating of at least 2450 over nine or more games against a strong field with an average rating of at least 2230. The field must include titled players from different national federations. The player must also score at least 35 percent in the event. Once all three norms and the 2400 rating are complete, the national federation applies to FIDE and FIDE confers the title for life.
International Master vs Grandmaster
The IM title and the GM title follow the same method but the bar for GM is higher. An IM needs a 2400 rating and three IM norms at 2450 performance level. A GM needs a 2500 rating and three GM norms at 2600 performance level.
| Feature | International Master (IM) | Grandmaster (GM) |
|---|---|---|
| Awarded by | FIDE | FIDE |
| Open to | Men and women | Men and women |
| Minimum rating | 2400 | 2500 |
| Norms needed | 3 IM norms | 3 GM norms |
| Usual performance per norm | 2450 or more | 2600 or more |
| Rank | Second highest open title | Highest open title after World Champion |
Separate women only titles also exist. The Woman Grandmaster (WGM) is the highest women only title and needs a 2300 rating plus three WGM norms. The Woman International Master (WIM) is a lower women only title. The open IM title which Bodhana has now qualified for ranks above the WGM title.
Judit Polgar and the 1988 Benchmark
Judit Polgar is a Hungarian Grandmaster born on 23 July 1976 in Budapest. She is the youngest of the three famous Polgar sisters and is widely regarded as the strongest female chess player of all time. She stayed as the world’s number one ranked woman from January 1989 until her retirement in August 2014. She remains the only woman to have entered the world top 10 in the open ranking list.
Polgar earned the open International Master title in 1988 at the age of 12. She had made her first IM norm in April 1988 at the New York Open at 11 years and nine months. Later in 1988 she won the boys’ World Under 12 Championship and produced a 2694 performance to win gold with Hungary at the Thessaloniki Olympiad. In 1991, at 15 years and four months, she became a Grandmaster and broke the record of former World Champion Bobby Fischer to become the youngest GM in history at that time. Bodhana’s feat in Budva has now broken Polgar’s 38 year old benchmark as the youngest female player to complete the IM requirements.
Where Is Bodhana Sivanandan From?
Bodhana Sivanandan is a British player who represents England. She was born on 7 March 2015 in London and lives in Harrow in north west London. Her family hails from Tamil Nadu in India, so she is often described as British Indian or of Indian origin.
She plays under the England federation in all FIDE rated events and has led England on the top board at the Chess Olympiad. Her rapid rise has drawn large interest in both Britain and India because of her Tamil roots and her status as England’s leading female player.
Career Profile and Rise of Bodhana Sivanandan
Bodhana Sivanandan first learned chess during the Covid pandemic and played her first tournament at Harrow Chess Club in 2021. In 2022, at the age of seven, she won all 24 of her games at the European Schools Championship. She soon became a triple world youth champion in her age group and crossed a 2000 live rating in February 2024 as an eight year old.
At nine she was picked for England at the 2024 Chess Olympiad in Budapest, becoming the youngest person to represent England internationally in any sport. She scored her first Woman Grandmaster (WGM) norm at age 10 at the Dole Open in 2025. In July 2026 she became the youngest girl to defeat a Grandmaster rated above 2600 in a classical game.
Her big breakthrough came at the 46th Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, in September 2026. Playing all 11 rounds on board one for England, she scored her third and final WGM norm with a 2432 performance and became the youngest ever Woman Grandmaster at 11, breaking the previous age record held by Kateryna Lagno. That event also gave her a second IM norm. She entered 2026 rated below 2200 and ended the Olympiad as England’s number one female player. She now holds multiple Guinness World Records certificates for her age related chess feats.
Youngest Title Holders in Chess History
Bodhana Sivanandan is now the seventh youngest International Master in history among both male and female players. Her age was 11 years, seven months and 16 days when she completed the title requirements in October 2026. Only six players have completed the IM title at a younger age.
| Rank | Player | Country | Age When IM Title Completed | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Roman Shogdzhiev | Russia | 10 years, 3 months | 2025 |
| 2 | Faustino Oro | Argentina | 10 years, 8 months | 2024 |
| 6 | Javokhir Sindarov | Uzbekistan | 11 years, 6 months, 16 days | 2017 |
| 7 | Bodhana Sivanandan | England | 11 years, 7 months, 16 days | 2026 |
| 8 | Bharath Subramaniyam | India | 11 years, 8 months, 8 days | 2019 |
For wider context, the overall youngest Grandmaster record belongs to American Abhimanyu Mishra, who became a GM at 12 years, four months and 25 days in 2021. The youngest IM record among Indian players in recent years was set by R Praggnanandhaa at 10 years and 10 months. Bodhana’s entry into this all time list at 11 underlines why the English Chess Federation has described her as a generational talent.
Key Takeaways
- Bodhana Sivanandan became the youngest female International Master at 11 years, seven months and 16 days on 23 October 2026.
- She secured her third and final IM norm at the European Women’s Club Cup in Budva, Montenegro with 5.5 points from 7 games and a 2465 performance.
- She broke the 1988 record of Judit Polgar, who had become an IM at the age of 12.
- Bodhana is the 7th youngest IM in history among male and female players combined.
- The open IM title needs a 2400 FIDE rating and three IM norms, and ranks above the women only WGM title which she earned in September 2026 at Samarkand.
