Born In India, Crowned In Britain: Shreyas Royal’s Fairytale Chess Journey

Indian-origin chess prodigy Shreyas Royal made history by winning the 2026 British Chess Championships recently. The 17-year-old Royal won the overall British title after topping the table following nine rounds, finishing half a point ahead of England’s more seasoned grandmasters. Winning his first British title, the result establishes his status as an emerging world-class talent in chess.

Royal became England’s youngest grandmaster at the age of 15. The teenager from south-east London went on to establish himself as one of the UK’s leading young chess players. At this year’s championship, he quickly showed that he could compete with the established elite, moving into outright contention for the title as the tournament progressed.

“I am ecstatic. This is not my first campaign. I have missed out on a couple of occasions before despite making a good start. But this time I am quite delighted,” Royal told NDTV.

Shreyas, who was born in India, moved to the UK at the age of three with his parents, Jitendra and Anju Singh, from Bengaluru. “I was born in Bengaluru in 2009. My dad was working there then. I moved to the UK at three, so I don’t have too many memories of India. I visit my family there sporadically every couple of years. I do occasionally go to places like Odisha and Kolkata,” he said.

#NewsNight with @SehgalRahesha | Indian-Origin Teen Chess Prodigy Shreyas Royal (@shrez_royal09) Makes History At The 2026 British Chess Championships pic.twitter.com/DG7OFcpf1N

— NDTV (@ndtv) August 10, 2026

“I started playing chess when I was six. I managed to win my first chess event. That was a huge confidence booster.”

He added that Viswanathan Anand is the Indian chess player he admires the most.

“Indian chess is progressing superbly. Viswanathan Anand will probably always be my favourite Indian chess player,” he said.

Around eight years ago, the ECF campaigned with the Home Office to allow the exceptionally talented chess prodigy to continue residing in the UK and hone his talent.

The 2026 British Chess Championships were billed as the biggest in the event’s 122-year history, with more than 1,750 entries and a record £34,000 prize fund for the Open Championship.

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