KarunaNews Story

Two ten-year-old girls have recently conquered one of the world’s oldest board games, taking down two grandmasters in chess, men considered to be the kings of the sport. It all started at the 2025 British Chess Championships in Liverpool, England earlier this month. London’s Bodhana Sivanandan (10 years, 5 months, 3 days) beat 60-year old grandmaster Pete Wells to become the youngest female ever to defeat a chess grandmaster. “She’s on course to be one of the best British players ever,” Malcolm Pein, manager of the England chess team, said. A few hours after she defeated the British grandmaster in England, 10-year-old Keya Jha beat American grandmaster Bryan Smith at the Joe Yun Memorial chess tournament in Akron, Ohio. Keya recorded the victory at the age of 10 years, nine months, and two days to become the youngest American female ever to defeat a grandmaster. Both girls started playing chess during the COVID-19 pandemic.