The first-ever Chess Olympiad Torch Relay reached the city of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu on Monday.
In Coimbatore, Grandmaster Shyam Sundar took the torch forward and received a warm welcome from Chess fans.
"1st Ever #ChessOlympiadTorchRelay Update COIMBATORE- 25th July The coveted Torch reaches Tamil Nadu, the host state for 44th #ChessOlympiad GM Shyam Sundar takes the Torch forward in Coimbatore where he receives grand welcome, take a look #India4ChessOlympiad," tweeted SAI Media.
Earlier, the torch relay reached Puducherry on Sunday.
Lt. Governor of Puducherry Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan received the torch from GM Akash Ganesh at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in presence of other dignitaries on Sunday.
"1st Ever #ChessOlympiadTorchRelay Update City- PUDUCHERRY: 23rd July Hon. Lt. Governor of Puducherry, @DrTamilisaiGuv received the Torch from GM Akash Ganesh at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in presence of other eminent dignitaries," SAI tweeted.
The other cities that have been covered by torch relay so far include Agartala, Namsai, Dibrugarh, Itanagar, Leh, Jammu, Srinagar, Dharamshala, Shimla, Chandigarh, Patiala, Amritsar, Panipat, Gurugram, Kurukshetra, Dehradun, Haridwar, Meerut, Kanpur, Kevadia, Ahmedabad, Dandi, Surat, Jaipur, Daman, Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Panaji, Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior, Jhansi, Gangtok, Siliguri, Kohima, Gangtok, Shillong, Guwahati and Siliguri, Raipur, Bhubaneswar, Puri, Konark, Visakhapatnam, Amaravati, Bengaluru, Mangaluru, Thiruvananthapuram etc.
The torch relay was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and began from Leh.The torch will travel to 75 cities for 40 days before it culminates at Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu. Over 200 countries are participating in the Chess Olympiad. Chess grandmasters will receive the torch at various identified venues.
The 44th edition of the world's biggest chess event will be held in Mahabalipuram near Chennai from July 28 to August 10.
( With inputs from ANI )
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