It is not easy for any sports person to make a comeback after staying away from the game for a long time. But when a player decides to do so, he/she is sure to come out with flying colours. At the age of 30, this Chess Champion we are about to introduce wouldn’t have dreamt of winning a silver medal in the Under 2000 rating at the Amateur World Chess Championship, especially after being away from the game for almost six years. The chess player we are talking about is none other than our city’s own M.P. Ajith. Having come from a poor family background, Ajith has struggled a lot to rise to this level. In fact, he has been borrowing money to participate in national level tournaments. Just to inform the uninformed, Ajith had to mortgage one of his aunt’s gold chain to book his flight ticket to Greece apart from getting sponsorship from a few individuals and a company.
by S.N. Venkatnag Sobers
This 30-year-old chess champion has been playing for more than 20 years. He has a unique style of attacking his opponent which is considered to be rare among chess players. Ajith, who has won many tournaments, in fact had to stop playing chess for six years since 2008. Playing chess for many years and winning tournaments did not get Ajith the deserved recognition and this forced him to quit the game and try his luck with other sports such as athletics.
Ajith, along with practising for athletics, also started running a stationary shop, when his father M.R. Prakash passed away suddenly in 2013. Since then the family has been struggling to lead their lives. With no proper job to cater to their needs, Ajith and his mother Padmavathi, have been living in a small house in T.K. Layout.
Speaking to Star of Mysore, Ajith said that he lost all his money in repaying his father’s loans. They even had to sell his mother’s gold jewellery to stay afloat.
“My father went to Dubai to make some money during 1994 and came back in 1996. A person, who got close to my father, took money from him assuring him a partnership in an LPG agency. After taking the amount the person never returned and later we got to know that this person was a conman. Dejected because of the loss, my father fell sick and died. Later, I had to clear all his loans. I have even had to sell many of my trophies and medals for meeting our daily needs,” he added.
After having endured a lot of hardship, Ajith made up his mind to return to Chess in 2014. On his comeback trail, Ajith faced a lot of stiff challenges which he overcame. He won the National Amateur Chess Championship in his category at Nagpur in 2015 before heading to Greece where he won a silver medal.
Ajith said that he decided to take to chess again after seeing an announcement of cash rewards by the State Government for talented sports persons. Having won the silver medal in the Amateur World Chess Championship, will the State Government recognise his achievements? Only time will tell.
Today, Ajith continues to coach young kids who have taken up Chess. Though he wants to quit coaching, as it affects his preparations for future tournaments, Ajith has no other option. He also has no computer or laptop, which is essential for his preparation. Ajith borrows a laptop from his students to practise.
In fact, S.N. Jatin, who won the gold medal in the World Amateur Chess Championship in Under 1700 was coached by Ajith for the past three months. Ajith has been looking for sponsorships as he is focused on taking his game forward and becoming a Chess Grandmaster. Such sports talents must be encouraged and brought to the limelight.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / by S.N.Venkatnag Sobers / May 07th, 2016