Bodhana Sivanandan Becomes Youngest Woman Grandmaster in Chess History

Bodhana Sivanandan has become the youngest Woman Grandmaster in chess history at the age of 11. The Indian-origin British prodigy secured her third and final Woman Grandmaster norm while representing England at the 2026 Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The achievement was confirmed by the International Chess Federation (FIDE).

Record broken at the Chess Olympiad

Sivanandan played all 11 rounds on England’s first board in Samarkand and scored eight points. Her performance completed the requirements for the WGM title, which demands sustained high-level results and an international rating of 2300.

She surpassed the previous record held by Russia’s Kateryna Lagno, who earned the title at 12 years and four months. Sivanandan’s achievement came less than two years after she became the youngest person to represent England in any sport at an international level.

From lockdown hobby to international star

Born in London in 2015 to a family with roots in Tamil Nadu, Sivanandan began playing chess during the Covid-19 lockdown after receiving a chess set from a family friend. Her progress was rapid. At seven, she won all 24 games at the European Schools Championship, and by 2023 she was already competing strongly against experienced grandmasters.

England selected her for its women’s team at the 2024 Chess Olympiad in Budapest when she was nine. At the 2026 Olympiad, she returned not as a newcomer but as England’s leading player.

More records follow

Sivanandan continued her remarkable run in July 2026 at the Dole Open in France, where she defeated Marc'Andria Maurizzi, the reigning French champion and a grandmaster rated 2,628. At 11 years and four months, she became the youngest girl recorded to defeat a grandmaster rated above 2,600 and also earned her first International Master norm.

In August, she won the women’s title at the British Chess Championships in Coventry after defeating Ireland’s Trisha Kanyamarala in a playoff. She has also won national blitz and rapid championships.

“I’m happy to do it, but I want to keep going and keep making history as well,” Sivanandan told FIDE.

Still in primary school, Sivanandan has already established herself as one of chess’s most remarkable young talents. Her progress toward open titles such as International Master suggests that the latest record may be only the beginning.