FIDE World U9–U17 Rapid & Blitz Chess Championships:
Iran’s Kakavand, Akbari win blitz golds in Antalya
Iranian chess prodigies Ramtin Kakavand and Rosha Akbari captured two blitz gold medals in different age categories at the FIDE U9–U17 Rapid & Blitz Chess Championships in Antalya, Türkiye.
Iranian FIDE Master Kakavand collected eight points from nine rounds to clinch the boys’ under-15 open title, edging Suleyman Akhmet on tiebreaks after both finished level on points. Kakavand’s victory over the Kazakhstani Candidate Master in the fourth round proved decisive.
In the girls’ under-15 category, Women FIDE Master Akbari defeated host representative Latife Yade Gunasti in her final game to top the 18-player standings with 7.5 points from a possible nine.
Kazakhstan’s Asiya Assylkhan, also on 7.5 points, and Slovenian Candidate Master Anja Beber, who tallied 6.5 points, finished second and third, respectively.
Akbari won seven of her games and drew against Assylkhan, with her only loss coming against Uzbekistan’s FIDE Master Rukiya Olimova in the seventh round.
The blitz competitions were held in open and girls’ sections across five age groups — U9, U11, U13, U15 and U17. A total of 310 players, including 98 titled players and two grandmasters, registered for the blitz events.