Sri Lanka’s junior chess talent pool was on full display this past week as the country’s young stars returned from Kuala Lumpur with ten medals from the first-ever Commonwealth Schools Chess Championship, one of the most ambitious new events on the junior calendar.
The championship was staged from October 6 to 11, 2026, at the Cititel Midvalley in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, jointly organized by the Malaysian Chess Federation and the Kuala Lumpur Chess Association. Players from thirteen Commonwealth nations — Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, Canada, India, Kenya, Malaysia, Namibia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, Singapore and Sri Lanka — travelled to Malaysia to compete across fourteen separate Girls’ and Open sections spanning the Under-19 to Under-07 age groups. The smallest fields, such as the Girls and Open Under-19 categories, were decided by round robin, while most of the tournament was fought out over seven or nine rounds of Swiss-system chess, all played at a time control of 90 minutes with a 30-second increment from the very first move. The event ran under Tournament Director AO Najib Abdul Wahab, with IA Thiwanka Tissera serving as Chief Arbiter, assisted by Deputy Chief Arbiters IA Shardul Sharma and IA Syawal Aqmar Shahrir Ariff.
For Sri Lanka, the standout story was a trio of golds. In the Open Under-13 section, CM Thehas Rithmitha Kiringoda topped a tightly packed field, finishing on 7 points from 9 rounds, half a point clear of India’s Nirvaan Nirav Shah and Singapore’s Aaradhya Suyog Bagul, who tied for second on 6.5. In the Girls Under-13 event, K G Dewli Abinadi Chanseya was similarly dominant, dropping just a single game all week to finish on 7 points and claim the title outright. And in the Girls Under-11 category, WCM Sayumi Sithumila Halangoda produced one of the performances of the tournament, winning eight of her nine games to romp to gold.
The Girls Under-17 section turned into a Sri Lankan benefit, with the island taking both silver and bronze behind India’s Ameya A R, who powered to an outstanding 8 out of 9. K P K Hesara Gunasekara claimed silver on 7 points, while W Michelle Bhagya Dabarera matched that score to take bronze on tiebreak, underlining the strength in depth of Sri Lanka’s girls’ chess program. Two further silvers arrived from the Open sections: Nevan Mishal Mohomed Ashad finished runner-up in the Open Under-17 category behind India’s CM Mitul K H, while Losara Methyuga Kulatunge was pipped only by India’s Krishav Kavit Shah in a closely fought Open Under-15 event.
Rounding out the medal count, M A D D D Munasinghe battled to bronze in the Girls Under-15 section, Resadi Dinaya claimed bronze in Girls Under-09, and Sayuru Lonindu Jayasuriya closed out the tournament with bronze in Open Under-09. Several other Lankan juniors narrowly missed the podium, including near-misses in the Girls and Open Under-07 sections, a sign that the next wave of talent is not far behind.
With three golds, three silvers and four bronzes, Sri Lanka finished among the most successful nations at this landmark first edition of the Commonwealth Schools Chess Championship, a result that bodes extremely well for the island’s chess future as these young players continue developing on the international stage.
A huge congratulations goes out to every Sri Lankan player, coach and parent who made the trip to Kuala Lumpur, and to all the medalists and participants from every competing nation who made the inaugural championship such a memorable event. Chess fans back home have every reason to be proud.
