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At Premier Chess Academy (PCA), our vision is to transform kids into the world of chess & support them along the transition. Each and every kid at PCA deserves a special appreciation but we have shortlisted (selection criteria below) the students. Friendly advise, “for student’s those who didn’t make it through – you will make it one day and for those who are the stars of the month – continue the practice as your bar goes up”.

Here we go to recognize the stars of the month (July 2022) at Premier Chess Academy, Middle East!

1. Arnish Ashok Bhat

Arnish started playing chess  just over a year ago when he initiated playing with parents / grand-parents and preferred it over other board games. Before we could realize, he had already understood and mastered the game which made his opponents at home seem like amateurs. His moves were super-quick and he could laterally think across various pieces on the board at the same time. Seeing the spark in him, we decided to enroll him at Premier Chess Academy. Here he excelled and mastered the art of playing chess. Under the professional guidance, Arnish improved his skills tremendously by competing with peers in various routine and organized tournaments. We look forward to Arnish improving his game and in turn also bettering his professional chess rating. Many thanks to Mr. Afinu and the team at Premier for nurturing the talent in Arnish. “

Coach feedback on Arnish :

Arnish is a highly talented kid who loves to play chess. His performance in the class while solving puzzles and practicing games is outstanding. He is always very eager to find alternate solutions and analyze different variations in puzzles. He always looks forward to learning new techniques and different strategies. Hopefully he could reach the great heights of chess in upcoming years. I wish all the very best for Arnish. “

Few games of Arnish :

https://lichess.org/3MeBWLkU/black 

https://lichess.org/qKkVW0nA 

https://lichess.org/M2Yw2ZV6/black 

2. Garvish Sharma

Garvish is 7 years old. He is studying in 3rd class. He loves sports activities. He always plays cricket. After attending chess class, he feels chess is a very interesting game. He loves to take classes. He used to play games at home with his friends and parents. Day by day his interest towards chess is increasing. Thanks to his mentor Anirudhan sir for his Guidance & efforts. “

Coach feedback on Garvish :

Garvish is a very talented kid. He plays practice sessions regularly. He shows a lot of interest in solving puzzles and playing chess. His ability to learn new concepts in a short time and apply the same in the game is remarkable. I also want to say a big thanks to the parents who are always supporting him every time. I am very happy with his performance and I wish him the best of luck for his bright future. “

Few games of Prajayan :

https://lichess.org/dlVM0Glu/black

https://lichess.org/ssG8pQuZ 

3. Zoona Shaheer

Zoona Shaheer, 11 years old. Studying at MES Indian School Doha. Zoona joined PREMIER CHESS ACADEMY during the Pandemic. Zoona has a quick grasping ability. We have been watching her growth in chess, while joining time she doesn’t know more about chess. She was an absolute beginner, now she turned to achieve more heights of statuses this happened because of her trainer Ankush. He encouraged her a lot, now she keeps consistent with her play. We appreciate his skills & training capabilities on this occasion. Hope Zoona will achieve new levels in chess & wish her a bright future! “

Coach feedback on Zoona :

Zoona has shown a lot of improvement in the past few months, She solves puzzles easily in class that is given to her. I hope her interest in chess keeps on motivating her so that she can improve and become a good chess player. She is ready to take challenging Chess advanced topics. I wish her success and a great future ahead. “

Few games of Zoona :

https://lichess.org/eM9vmRz6/black

https://lichess.org/tTx0BLbH

4. Aarav Menon

Aarav is 12 year old and he is in 8th grade at Birla Public School Doha , Qatar. He is a professional badminton player. Apparently, he started showing interest in chess since he started playing with his father and to keep up his interest his Aunt suggested to enroll him to a chess academy  and that’s how we came across Premier Chess Academy. After joining PCA his thinking ability and concentration has improved a lot and he started understanding the game with more interest. He is learning the game under the guidance of Coach Mr.  Anshul Bhatla who is a very friendly and professional coach and also very good at guiding the students. He gives his best to make the class more exciting and about the classes which are two days a week Mr. Anshul makes sure the kids are attending and even if for some reason the class is missed he makes sure that an alternative class is provided. We as parents really appreciate Aarav’s coach for his continuous support and guidance. Thank You.”

Coach feedback on Aarav :

Aarav is very hardworking and a serious in nature boy when it comes to completing a task or solving any problem, he is continuously improving his game at a rapid speed which really impressed me I’ve been looking for him to play professionally in chess too and achieve international rating soon, my continuous support and guidance is always open for him my best wishes for his future. “

Few games of Aarav :

https://lichess.org/6eKuz0Wd

https://lichess.org/AIGPoGCU

5. Shivang Saha

Parents feedback : Shivang is a 6th Grade student studying in Nibras International School, Dubai. Shivang was introduced to Chess during the Covid-19 times when he had no exposure to the outside world. He got to know the pieces and a few moves from the internet and instantly fell in love with the game. Thereafter, we enrolled Shivang to Premier Chess Academy after reading positive reviews about it. Chess has now become a part of his daily life. His chess skills have sharpened tremendously under the superb guidance of his coach Dr. Raksha Jajoo. Shivang is interested in playing Football and Cricket as well. Shivang now waits for the time when he can play in-person and face-to-face chess events with his opponents which would add a social element to the game. He aspires to be a Chess Grand Master in future.

Coach feedback on Shivang :

Shivang is a very brilliant kid. He never misses his class. He is very attentive in class. Very keen to learn new things. He is a quick learner and a good listener.  He always tries to implement the ideas and techniques he learned in class. His interest and dedication towards chess will surely help him reach the heights in this game. I wish him all the best for all the near success. “

Few games of Shivang :

https://lichess.org/DF7pSJoC

https://lichess.org/BrP9O8nb 

https://lichess.org/oNWFTEkQ/black 

6. Hananah Khan

Hananah is an 11 year old creative girl who has been homeschooling for more than 4 years. She loves sports. She loves swimming and nowadays she is learning self defense using Jujutsu. Her father and grandmother are very good at chess and that is why she wanted to learn chess to compete with them. PCA has been phenomenal in her chess learning path. We are thankful to our amazing coach  Mr. Jain Rinku who has been helping her in this journey. Learning chess not only helps her use her time efficiently but also helps her to take right move at right time. “

Coach feedback on Hananah :

” Hananah is a sweet girl who started learning chess a few months ago and got quick improvement in her chess game. She joins her chess classes on time and is always ready to learn new chess techniques and strategies. She starts practicing chess in the early morning and plays games whenever she gets free time. She is a very patient and hard-working girl who wants to improve her chess skill. She plays practice games with her grandparents and tries to give them a hard fight. I am really happy with her dedication and progress. I hope she keeps on improving her chess skills. ”

Few games of Hananah :

https://lichess.org/gsczfBCT/black

https://lichess.org/hOvEViVT

https://lichess.org/NusGnHrz

7. Craig Dylan Lopez

Dylan has always been fascinated with games and tasks that require strategic analysis and critical thinking. He loves solving puzzles and Math problems, watching mystery movies/documentaries/comedy shows and playing video games. That’s why when we stumbled upon chess thru PCA a few months back, he enthusiastically joined the demo session and was hooked on it ever since. Thanks to his coach, Ritish Pathania, he was able to learn how to play chess and enjoy the sessions at the same time. Dylan just joined last February and we couldn’t be more proud of him for his fast progress and great dedication to the game! Currently, 12-year-old Dylan studies at Winchester School Jebel Ali, Dubai as an incoming Year 8 student.  Aside from the above-mentioned interests, he is also into Karate and swimming. “

Coach feedback on Dylan :

Dylan is an enthusiastic kid who is doing lots of hard work in chess right now and if continues like this he will be a very strong chess player. He always looks forward to attending the Chess class, he always tries his best to solve puzzles quickly. He is always excited whenever we solve puzzles correctly. He enjoys playing Chess & always looks forward to learning something new. He loves chess a lot. I wish him very good luck in his Chess Career.

Few games of Dylan :

https://lichess.org/He2GyuCK 

https://lichess.org/0vurC1xD/black 

https://lichess.org/NoDlLgHh

8. Devanath Sandeep

Dev is 8 years old. He is in grade 4 in Monarch International School, Qatar. He is a very curious boy who always keeps on asking doubts in the school as well as at home. But he is very sincere & dedicated in his work. He is very much passionate about the game. I can see a great improvement in his approach and the way he plays the game. Thanks, PCA & his coach Shahid sir for making him love this game. Regards Anjali & Sandeep Avi. “

Coach feedback on Devanath :

Dev is a hard-working kid who enjoys every moment of learning new concepts. Initially, his learning pace was slow but after telling him about his mistakes, he showed drastic improvement! Best part about Dev is his ‘Never give up’ attitude. He is very punctual in class and joins every class on time. He participates in practice sessions with great efforts & always has a learning attitude while playing games. I wish him good luck for his Chess Career. Keep it up Dev. “

Few games of Devanath :

https://lichess.org/JgjzobG4/black 

https://lichess.org/vlI8SKDW/black 

https://lichess.org/siS9pB38 

9. Aalapti Desai

Aalapti is a 9 year old enthusiastic and happy-go-lucky kind of a girl studying in Noble international school at Doha Qatar. She is always ready to learn new skills. She is also pursuing Kathak dance. She also likes  swimming, skating, cycling, learning different languages and traveling. She also reads a lot of books. During pandemic she showed interest in learning chess but due to online study schedules and dance classes she had to wait for six months. Finally through her friend’s referral we became a part of PCA in March 2022. She was thrilled to learn in demo class and very happy with the style of teaching of the Coach Shiva sir. He is very patient and friendly with kids. Under his guidance Aalapti’s zeal for playing better is constantly increasing. Also her thinking patterns, concentration and strategy planning is improving. She always looks forward to attending her live as well as practice sessions. We are very grateful to coach Shiva and PCA for all their dedication and good work. “

Coach feedback on Aalapti :

Aalapti has been very focused ever since she joined the classes and is showing constant improvement. Her tactical vision is constantly improving due to her focus in class & regularity. She is very hard working as well. I wish her a great and bright future ahead! “

Few games of Aalapti :

https://lichess.org/HHw8Slek/black#90

https://lichess.org/ZRHxjLz7/black#39

https://lichess.org/uOl3WKRp

10. Joshua Auldrin Fernandes

Joshua Fernandes is 6 years old and studies in St. Mary’s School Dubai. He is very active, loves to dance and never sits quietly in one place at home, so when we saw his interest in chess, we weren’t expecting it to last for a long time; however he proved us wrong. He started playing chess from the age of 4 on the chess board we got him from a local toy store. He would play against friends and relatives. Age never mattered and as long as they could play the game he wanted to have a match. At the start he would lose most of his games, but that never discouraged him and only got him to learn and practice more. As time went by he grew more and more interested in the game and wanted to improve and be the best. Eventually he has gotten much better with the expert guidance of Coach Utkarsh Gupta from Premier Chess Academy. Besides practicing and playing chess online, Joshua now makes it a point to play at least one game a day on his wooden chess board at home against his brother or dad. He now wins most of the games and has surprised a lot of people he has played against. Joshua was always a witty and smart boy, but Chess has helped him improve his focus and concentration.  We look forward to his progress and development in the game with Premier Chess Academy and hope for the best! “

Coach feedback on Joshua :

Joshua is a quick learner who learns the concepts well & tries to implement them in his games & enjoys every moment of learning. His passion for chess is very authentic. He is always very attentive in class and ready to give answers and the good thing is he never gives up and always plays till the end of the game. He participates in practice sessions with great effort. I wish him good luck in his Chess Career. Keep it up Joshua ! “

Few games of Joshua :

https://lichess.org/ylhL7FdQ

https://lichess.org/t0D00yZv/black

https://lichess.org/9rYyr1Sk

Selection Criteria – July 2022: 

  • Regular in class and practice sessions.
  • Displaying improvement in practices to reach top 3 positions.
  • Puzzle solving and tactics findings in regular class.
  • Generate quest in chess and regular in assignments.
  • Over all – Passion is evident in class, practices, puzzle solving etc.