Shreyas Royal and 11-Year-Old Bodhana Sivanandan Claim Titles at 112th British Chess Championships

The 112th British Chess Championships concluded at the University of Warwick on 9 August 2026, crowning 17-year-old Shreyas Royal in the main championship and 11-year-old Bodhana Sivanandan in the women’s title. The nine-day classical event, which began on 1 August, featured a deep field of established and emerging British players, including Luke McShane, Michael Adams, and Harry Grieve in the main event, and Trisha Kanyamarala in the women’s competition.

A New Generation Takes Centre Stage

The championship delivered a notable generational shift. Royal, aged 17, earned his first British title, navigating a field stacked with seasoned campaigners. The main championship drew attention not only for its top-board battles but for the unusually high number of young participants contending at the highest level of British over-the-board play.

Sivanandan, meanwhile, became the women’s champion at 11 years old, a record-breaking age for the title. The women’s competitors played within the main championship rather than in a separate section, and Sivanandan’s path to the crown featured only one loss, which came against Royal, the eventual main event champion. She secured the women’s title via a tie-break match against Kanyamarala.

Players and Venue

The field reflected both continuity and renewal within British chess. Veteran grandmasters McShane and Adams were among the headline entrants, providing stern tests for the rising cohort. Grieve also featured prominently in the main championship standings. The event ran from 1 August to 9 August 2026 at the University of Warwick.

Tournament Highlights

• Royal, 17, won the main championship title.
• Sivanandan, 11, won the women’s title via tie-break over Kanyamarala, setting a record as the youngest women’s champion.
• Women competed inside the main championship rather than a separate event.
• Sivanandan’s only defeat in the championship came against Royal, the main event winner.
• Established names McShane and Adams were among the participants, alongside Harry Grieve.

Source

This report is based on information published by The Week in Chess (TWIC).

Official source: https://theweekinchess.com/chessnews/events/112th-british-chess-championships-2026