’Crown comes home… back to roots’: Anand Mahindra, Gautam Adani salute India’s gold winners at the Chess Olympiad 2024

Billionaires Anand Mahindra and Gautam Adani took to social media platform X to congratulate the Indian team for their gold medal winning performance in the Chess Olympiad 2024.

On Sunday, the Indian chess team made history by winning gold medals in both the men's and women's categories at the 45th Chess Olympiad held in Budapest, Hungary. Congratulatory messages have been pouring in for the chess players Gukesh Dommaraju, Arjun Erigesai, Vidit Gujrathi, and others, ever since.

Noting how India cherishes the historic win, Anand Mahindra posted a photo of all the Indian winners, along with the caption:

" It’s OFFICIAL now.

The Crown now belongs to India.

The Crown comes home to the birthplace of Chaturanga—and Chess..

I.4 billion Indians salute this Team of 5."

Gautam Adani congratulates India

Chairperson of the Adani group, Gautam Adani, also paid glowing tributes and saw it as a comeback of Chess to India, where the game originated.

“ What a historic moment for India! Congratulations to both the Men’s and Women’s teams for clinching GOLD at the 2024 Chess Olympiad! 🇮🇳 India is back to dominating the very game of Chaturanga (Chess) that was born on this land. A proud return to our roots!” Adani posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

India's win at the Chess Olympiad

The Indian men's team triumphed over Slovenia, with consecutive victories from D. Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, and R. Praggnanadhaa in their matches. Meanwhile, the women's team secured gold by defeating Azerbaijan with a score of 3.5-0.5.

Arjun Erigaisi was unstoppable, finishing with 10/11. His live rating now stands at 2,797, making him World No. 3, ahead of Fabiano Caruana. Praggnanandhaa R, Pentala Harikrishna, and Vidit Gujrathi also displayed exceptional prowess as India scripted a historic victory.

Chaturanga : The earliest form of chess

While the origin of Chess still remains a matter of controversy, several historians believe it originated from chaturanga.

A war game named after the battle formation, chaturanga, also has mentions in the Indian epic Mahabharata.