India added two Grandmasters to its chess ranks at the end of June 2026, pushing the country’s total count to 97. Fourteen-year-old Ethan Vaz from Goa became the 96th GM by winning the Sarajevo GM Mix tournament in Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Harshavardhan GB from Chennai became the 97th GM at the 2nd Chola Chess GM Norm Round Robin Tournament in Chennai. The double achievement brought India within striking distance of 100 Grandmasters, a milestone that once seemed improbable after Viswanathan Anand became the country’s first GM in 1988.
Who Are Ethan Vaz and Harshavardhan GB?
Ethan Vaz, born on 3 September 2011 in Raia, Goa, is a chess prodigy who learned the game at the age of six. His parents, Edwin Vaz and Linda Fernandes, were software professionals in Japan who returned to India after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. Ethan became the world’s youngest International Master at age 12 in 2024. He is also the third Grandmaster from Goa after Anurag Mhamal and Leon Mendonca. Currently in Class 10, Ethan has won multiple medals at the Commonwealth Chess Championship and qualified for the World and Asian Youth Championships.
Harshavardhan GB, a 22-year-old from Chennai, Tamil Nadu, started playing chess at age four under the guidance of his father, FT Gopalakrishnan K. He earned his International Master title in 2020. He has been training under Grandmaster Deepan Chakkravarthy after earlier mentoring by Visweswaran Kameswaran. Harshavardhan’s first GM norm came by winning the Asian Juniors Championship in 2022, and his second norm was at the Asian Continental in 2025, which also earned him a spot in the FIDE World Cup. He is the latest addition to Tamil Nadu’s long list of chess Grandmasters, a state that has produced the highest number of GMs in India.
What It Takes to Become a Grandmaster
The Grandmaster (GM) title is the highest distinction a chess player can earn, awarded by FIDE (International Chess Federation), the world governing body for chess, founded in 1924 and headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. To become a GM, a player must achieve two conditions: cross a FIDE rating of 2500 at least once, and earn three GM norms in qualified international tournaments.
A GM norm is a performance rating of 2600 or higher across a minimum of nine games in a FIDE-approved tournament. It requires players to face titled opponents, including Grandmasters and International Masters, under strict tournament conditions. FIDE tightened these rules in June 2022, mandating that at least one norm must come from an individual Swiss-system tournament, making the process harder than before.
Both Ethan and Harshavardhan earned their three norms across different tournaments, with each norm requiring sustained excellence against strong competition.
The Road to the 96th and 97th GMs
Ethan Vaz secured his first GM norm at the GM4 Festival Saha Bijeljina 2025 in Bosnia and Herzegovina in October 2025, where he not only achieved the norm but won the tournament outright. He earned his second norm at the GM Mix 11 Fantastico in Senta, Serbia, in January 2026, winning the final round under pressure to secure both the norm and the tournament title. His third and final norm came at the Chess Summer in Sarajevo GM Mix in June 2026, where he went unbeaten with 7 points out of 9 rounds, a tournament performance rating of 2643, and finished ahead of 10 Grandmasters. This feat makes him the youngest current Grandmaster in India and the second-youngest in the world.
Harshavardhan’s path to the GM title was equally dramatic. After earning his first norm at the Asian Juniors in 2022 and his second at the Asian Continental in 2025, he entered the 2nd Chola Chess GM Norm Round Robin Tournament in Chennai needing a strong finish. He started with 3 points from the first 5 rounds but delivered a stunning final stretch, winning three consecutive games against IM Kushagra Mohan, tournament leader GM Michal Krasenkow, and GM Alexei Fedorov. A draw in the final round against GM Mihail Nikitenko gave him 6.5 out of 9 points, an unbeaten tournament record, and a live rating crossing 2507. Harshavardhan’s achievement was significant because he remained undefeated throughout the nine rounds.
India’s Chess Revolution in Numbers
India’s journey from one Grandmaster to nearly 100 has been remarkable. Viswanathan Anand became India’s first GM in 1988 and went on to become a five-time World Chess Champion. For over a decade, he remained India’s only GM before Dibyendu Barua became the second in 1991. The pace of GM production has accelerated sharply since 2020, driven by a strong ecosystem of academies, online training, and institutional support.
| Decade | Number of GMs Produced | Key Milestone |
|---|---|---|
| 1988-2000 | 5 | Anand becomes India’s first GM |
| 2001-2010 | 20 | First generation of post-Anand GMs emerge |
| 2011-2020 | 30 | Rise of prodigies like Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh |
| 2021-2026 | 42 | Explosive growth; India becomes a chess powerhouse |
Tamil Nadu leads the states with the most Grandmasters, followed by Maharashtra and West Bengal. India now has four female Grandmasters: Koneru Humpy, Harika Dronavalli, R Vaishali, and Divya Deshmukh. The country’s success in chess is also reflected in its team gold at the 2024 Chess Olympiad, where both the men’s and women’s teams won medals.
| State | Approximate Number of GMs |
|---|---|
| Tamil Nadu | 35+ |
| Maharashtra | 14+ |
| West Bengal | 11+ |
| Other States | Rest |
The Chola Chess Academy in Chennai, an initiative by Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company along with Chess Gurukul led by GM RB Ramesh and WGM Aarthie Ramaswamy, has emerged as a key institution nurturing future talent. Both Ethan Vaz and Harshavardhan have benefited from Chola Chess programmes, reflecting the academy’s growing impact on Indian chess.
Key Takeaways
- Ethan Vaz (born 3 September 2011, Goa) became India’s 96th Grandmaster on 27 June 2026 at the Sarajevo GM Mix tournament in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
- Harshavardhan GB (22, Chennai) became India’s 97th Grandmaster at the 2nd Chola Chess GM Norm Round Robin Tournament in Chennai, remaining undefeated.
- To become a Grandmaster, a player must cross a FIDE rating of 2500 and earn three GM norms, each requiring a performance rating of 2600 or higher in approved tournaments.
- Ethan Vaz is the third Grandmaster from Goa after Anurag Mhamal and Leon Mendonca, and is the youngest current GM in India and second-youngest in the world.
- Tamil Nadu has produced the highest number of Grandmasters among all Indian states, with 35 or more.
- India’s first Grandmaster was Viswanathan Anand in 1988; the country now has 97 GMs and four female GMs: Koneru Humpy, Harika Dronavalli, R Vaishali, and Divya Deshmukh.
