Bodhana Sivanandan is an 11-year-old chess sensation from Harrow who has left the world gasping in awe. Last Saturday, she smashed a 38-year record that had stood strong like an impenetrable fortress, defeating France's 19-year-old Grandmaster Marc'Andria Maurizzi (2628) in the opening round of the Dole Trophy in Aix-en-Provence. This was no easy feat – Maurizzi is a former world under-20 junior champion and current French champion, with a formidable reputation that precedes him like a storm cloud on the chess horizon.
This electrifying win has catapulted Sivanandan into the annals of chess history as the youngest girl ever to defeat a grandmaster rated above 2600. And she's done it with style, surpassing the record held by Judit Polgar – widely regarded as the greatest female chess player of all time – who achieved her feat at 12 years and two months when she defeated GM Lajos Portisch in the 1988 Hungarian Championship. At just 11 years and four months, Sivanandan's achievement is a testament to her exceptional talent, strategic prowess, and sheer chess magic.
The stakes were high from the start, as Maurizzi presented a seemingly insurmountable challenge. However, Sivanandan showed no signs of nerves, battling on with grit and determination. The turning point came when Maurizzi made a critical blunder that led to the loss of his queen – and from there, it was all over but the shouting. It's a victory that will be etched in her memory for years to come.
But Sivanandan's success isn't limited to this one match. She'd already notched up victories against two grandmasters prior to this event, with neither opponent holding the same lofty rating as Maurizzi. And if that wasn't enough, she bounced back from a loss in the second round by securing an impressive draw with GM Maxim Rodshtein – the current Israel No 2 and former peak-rater of 2710 – in Monday's third round.
The young English talent is now competing for her second Women's Grandmaster (WGM) norm, needing just one more to join the elite ranks. With three norms already under her belt, she's well on track to achieve this goal, having secured her first WGM norm at the age of 10 – another world age record – at the Dole Open in 2025.
As we approach the final stages of the tournament, Sivanandan finds herself among an exclusive group of pre-teen chess prodigies who've defied the odds to achieve greatness. With her sights set firmly on this next milestone, the chess world watches with bated breath as she takes on the best of them – and proves why she's destined for even greater things.