An 11-year-old chess prodigy from northwest London has become the youngest woman grandmaster of all time, following a strong performance at the 46th Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
Bodhana Sivanandan, who represented England at the tournament that concluded on Sunday, secured the highest female-only title in chess, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) confirmed.
A Record-Breaking Rise
In an interview published on YouTube on Sunday, Sivanandan told FIDE she is determined to build on her achievement rather than rest on it.
“I’m happy to do it, but I want to keep going and keep making history as well, instead of just stopping here,” she said.
The title caps a remarkable ascent for Sivanandan, who previously became Britain’s youngest female chess champion and the youngest person to represent England at an international tournament in any sport.
Composure on the Top Board
Asked whether she felt the pressure of playing on the top board at the Olympiad, Sivanandan said she simply focused on enjoying the experience.
“Not really, I just tried to enjoy it,” she said.
She noted that the event was her second Olympiad. “It kind of felt very similar to the last one except I was playing on a different board,” she added.
From Lockdown Curiosity to Global Stage
Sivanandan’s interest in chess began during the Covid-19 pandemic when she was five years old, after a friend of her father gave the family toys and books.
“In one of the bags, I saw a chessboard, and I was interested in the pieces,” she told the BBC. “I wanted to use the pieces as toys. Instead, my dad said that I could play the game, and then I started from there.”
Her father told the BBC in 2024 that “nobody at all” in the family had previously excelled at chess.
Benefit Beyond the Board
Beyond the travel and competition, Sivanandan said chess supports her schoolwork.
“It links to loads of school subjects so it’s really useful there as well,” she said.
Her latest milestone follows another historic feat: in August 2025, she became the youngest female player to defeat a grandmaster. At 10 years, five months and three days old, she beat 60-year-old grandmaster Pete Wells, breaking a record set by American Carissa Yip, who was 10 years, 11 months and 20 days old when she defeated a grandmaster in 2019, according to FIDE.
