Pune: Pune youngster Sarthak Yashodhan Deshpande has become the youngest current rated chess player in the country with FIDE ratings of 1,064.
Five-year-old Sarthak is being trained at Kunte Chess Academy in Pune under the guidance of Mrunalini Kunte and team.
At the tender age of 2, prodigy Sarthak could identify 110 countries on the world map and associate flags of these countries.
Sarthak was introduced to the game of chess by his parents at the age of four and he picked up the game at a rapid pace
While in Canada, Sarthak stood on the second position in a regional school level tournament when he was in Junior KG.
In that event, he competed against grade 1 students as he impressed one and all.
At the age of 4, he participated in the Ontario provincial level tournament and had tied for the first position in the Kindergarten section.
After coming back to India, Sarthak has participated in a number of tournaments in places like Pune, Mumbai and Satara and won several trophies and medals in the last six months.
Sarthak is a student of Sri Sri Ravishankar Bal Mandir, Pune and has got immense support from his school in his chess training and participation in various chess events.
