Young Indian Chess Prodigy Shreyanshi Jain Shines at FIDE World Cadets Championship 2026

7-Year-Old Shreyanshi Jain Shines at FIDE World Cadets Championship, Secures Gold and Bronze Medals

Vrnjacka Banja, Serbia – April 23, 2026 – In a remarkable feat for Indian chess, seven-year-old Shreyanshi Jain has made headlines by clinching both Gold and Bronze medals in the Under-8 Girls category at the prestigious FIDE World Cadets Championship. This elite global event saw 437 participants from 40 countries competing across various age groups, making her achievements all the more significant.

Shreyanshi’s Gold medal came from the challenging Blitz Solving Competition, a unique format that tests players’ calculation skills, pattern recognition, and decision-making under intense time pressure. Unlike traditional chess matches, participants must solve complex positions against the clock, making it one of the most demanding formats in competitive chess. Shreyanshi stood out by solving 7 out of 12 high-difficulty positions, showcasing her exceptional clarity and speed of thought.

Abhijit Hatkar, Founder of Upstep Academy and a seasoned player rated over 2000, emphasized the importance of Shreyanshi’s accomplishment. “Chess solving is not something you prepare for at the last minute. The students who succeed at a world level in this format develop positional instinct and decision speed over time. Shreyanshi’s gold shows that her foundation is strong enough to hold under a completely different kind of competitive pressure,” he stated.

In addition to her Gold medal, Shreyanshi also secured a Bronze medal in the Rapid event, scoring an impressive 8 out of 11 points. Entering the tournament as the 9th seed, she outperformed several higher-ranked players and gained +56 Elo rating points, further solidifying her rapid ascent on the global chess stage.

Shreyanshi’s journey into chess began at the tender age of five and a half, when she would quietly observe her elder sister’s online sessions. What started as mere curiosity soon blossomed into a deep passion for the game. Trained at the Mumbai-based Upstep Academy of Chess, her development has focused on conceptual clarity, decision-making, and exposure to competitive formats beyond traditional play, including chess solving—a discipline rarely introduced at early stages.

Reflecting on her development, Pankit Mota, Coach & Performance Head of Upstep, remarked, “At this age, it is never easy for a child to cope with the demands of competitive chess—long hours of training, continuous tournaments, and the mental pressure that comes with it. What stands out in Shreyanshi is her ability to stay composed and think clearly under pressure.”

Her success in Serbia builds on an already impressive record in India. In 2025 alone, she secured multiple major titles with perfect scores, including the National Under-7 Girls Champion and the Rajasthan State Under-9 Champion. She also represented India at the Asian Schools Chess Championship, winning three medals across formats—Gold (Rapid), Silver (Classical), and Bronze (Blitz)—making her the only Indian player to achieve this distinction in the tournament.

Shreyanshi’s exposure to elite-level chess includes a memorable simultaneous match against chess legend Viswanathan Anand in 2024. The structured programs at Upstep Academy, such as the Grandmaster Accelerator Programme (GAP), integrate insights from top-level play into training, further enhancing her skills.

Despite initial hesitation regarding international travel, Shreyanshi’s family ultimately decided to proceed with the tournament, thanks to the encouragement and support from her coaches. Her mother shared, “As parents, our first priority is always our child’s safety. We were unsure about sending her abroad and had even thought of skipping the tournament. But the confidence and support from her coach and the team at Upstep gave us the belief to move forward.”

That decision has proven to be a defining moment—not just for Shreyanshi, but for Indian youth chess as a whole. With consistent performances on both national and international stages, Shreyanshi Jain is emerging as one of the most promising young players in the country, combining talent with discipline, composure, and the ability to deliver under pressure.

Her latest achievements mark not just another victory, but the arrival of a young Indian player ready to compete—and win—on the world stage.

For more information on her training and achievements, visit Upstep Academy.

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