Rapid chess took center stage at the SLT-Mobitel NEBULA Institute of Technology on October 17, 2026, as players from across Sri Lanka gathered for the Sri Lanka Telecom Mobitel Individual Open Chess Championship 2026, a fast and furious one-day event that crowned D R Naotunna as its champion.
Organized by the Chess Association Sri Lanka Telecom under Tournament Director Mr. S K P Tharanga, with L D P Madusanka serving as Chief Arbiter, the championship brought together a packed field for seven rounds of Swiss-system rapid chess, all played at a brisk time control of 15 minutes per player with a 10-second increment from the very first move. Compressed into a single day, the format demanded quick thinking and sharp nerves from every competitor, leaving little room for error across the marathon of games.
D R Naotunna was the standout performer of the day, winning six of his seven games, including a crucial final-round victory, to finish on 7 points and take the title in commanding fashion. His only blemish came in round seven itself, where the game ended level, but by then his lead was already secure heading into the final pairing.
Behind him, the battle for the minor medals went down to tiebreak. H D Atapattu put together a strong run through the middle rounds to finish on 6 points, ultimately claiming second place on tiebreak ahead of Prasad Bandara, who also finished on 6 points after a hard-fought campaign of his own. Both players pushed Naotunna close for the title and will be strong contenders again the next time out.
Just off the podium, Suthakaran Shankarnath and Sivaseyan M both finished on 6 points as well, a sign of just how tightly bunched the top of the standings were by the end of the seventh round. Further down the table, J A G G Jayasinghe and S K P Tharanga both closed out the day on 5 points, capping a competitive and closely fought field from top to bottom.
Rapid events like this one continue to play an important role in Sri Lanka’s chess calendar, offering players of all levels a chance to test themselves in a shorter, high-intensity format and giving the chess community a lively one-day gathering to sharpen their skills between the longer classical and standard tournaments on the calendar.
A big congratulations to champion D R Naotunna, to runners-up H D Atapattu and Prasad Bandara, and to every player who took part in a hard-fought day of rapid chess at the SLT-Mobitel NEBULA Institute of Technology. Sri Lankan chess continues to thrive thanks to events like this one.
