Biography

Pentala Harikrishna Height, Weight, Age, Family, Facts, Spouse, Biography

Pentala Harikrishna Quick Info
Height 5 ft 10 in
Weight 72 kg
Date of Birth May 10, 1986
Zodiac Sign Taurus
Spouse Nadezda Stojanovic

Pentala Harikrishna is an Indian chess player who is widely acknowledged as one of the finest chess players ever produced by the country. In September 2001, aged just 15, he had become the then youngest Indian chess grandmaster. He had won the Commonwealth Chess Championship in 2001, the World Junior Chess Championship in 2004, and the Asian Chess Championship in 2011. He had also won the ‘Gold’ medal in the mixed team event at the 2006 Doha Asian Games; and the ‘Bronze’ medal at the 2010 World Team Chess Championships as well as in the men’s team event at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games. His other notable victories include the Tata Steel Group B in 2012 and the Biel MTO Masters Tournament in 2013. Between 2000 and 2012, he also represented India in 7 different editions of the Chess Olympiad. In November 2016, he achieved his peak position of 9 in the FIDE (Fédération Internationale des Échecs) men’s world rankings. The following month, he achieved his peak FIDE rating of 2770. For his services to the sport, the Government of India honored him with the Arjuna Award (the 2nd-highest sporting honor in India) in 2006.

Born Name

Pentala Harikrishna

Nick Name

Hari

Pentala Harikrishna as seen in an Instagram Post in March 2021
Pentala Harikrishna as seen in an Instagram Post in March 2021 (Pentala Harikrishna / Instagram)

Sun Sign

Taurus

Born Place

Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India

See also  Purnima Net Worth, Age, Height, Weight, Boyfriend, Husband, Biography, Dating, Kids, Bio-Wiki

Residence

He splits his time between Prague, Czech Republic, and Hyderabad, Telangana, India.

Nationality

Indian

 

Occupation

Chess Player

Pentala Harikrishna as seen in an Instagram Post in November 2021
Pentala Harikrishna as seen in an Instagram Post in November 2021 (Pentala Harikrishna / Instagram)

Family

  • Father – P. Nageswara Rao
  • Others – Ranga Rao (Grandfather)

Build

Slim

Height

5 ft 10 in or 178 cm

Weight

72 kg or 158.5 lbs

Girlfriend / Spouse

Pentala has dated –

  1. Nadezda Stojanovic (2018-Present) – Pentala got married to former Serbian chess player Nadezda Stojanovic in March 2018 at a ceremony held in Hyderabad. They have a daughter together named Maya (b. 2021).
Pentala Harikrishna with his wife and daughter, as seen in January 2024
Pentala Harikrishna with his wife and daughter, as seen in January 2024 (Pentala Harikrishna / Instagram)

Race / Ethnicity

Asian (Indian)

Hair Color

Black

Eye Color

Dark Brown

Sexual Orientation

Straight

Distinctive Features

  • Slender frame
  • Side-parted, wavy hair
  • Bespectacled
  • Affable smile
  • Often sports a light stubble
Pentala Harikrishna as seen in an Instagram Post in December 2021
Pentala Harikrishna as seen in an Instagram Post in December 2021 (Pentala Harikrishna / Instagram)

Pentala Harikrishna Facts

  1. Pentala had started learning how to play chess from the age of just 4. His first chess coach was his grandfather Ranga Rao.
  2. He made rapid strides after this and was an extremely successful junior player winning the Indian national chess championship in the under-8 (1993), under-10 (1995), under-14 (1999), under-15 (1998), and under-18 (1998) tiers.
  3. He had also won the under-10 title at the World Championship in 1996 and the under-18 title at the Commonwealth Chess Championship in 1999.
  4. He had become a part of the Indian team for the 2000 Chess Olympiad (October-November 2000) at the age of just 14. At the tournament, he had scored 6.5 out of 11 rounds and earned his first Grandmaster norm.
  5. His 2nd and 3rd norms came within a few months after the 1st with a 6.5/13 result in the Corus Group B event and a 7/11 result at the Asian Individual Chess Championship.
  6. This last norm had secured his Grandmaster title, having reached the required FIDE rating of 2500. It had also qualified him for participation in the 2002 FIDE World Chess Championship.
  7. When he won the World Junior Chess Championship in 2004, he had become just the 3rd Indian player to have achieved the feat after Viswanathan Anand (1987) and Koneru Humpy (2001).
  8. As of May 2024, he was one of only 3 Indian players to have defeated long-term world champion, Magnus Carlsen, in any time format. The other 2 players to have done so are Viswanathan Anand and Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa.
See also  Adhiban Baskaran Height, Weight, Age, Family, Facts, Spouse, Biography

Featured Image by Pentala Harikrishna / Instagram

Related Articles

Back to top button