14-year-old Goan Leon Mendonca
has become the 67th Indian Grandmaster by winning his third and final
norm at the Vergani Cup in Italy, according to various media reports.

Mendonca, who achieved the feat
at the age of 14 years, 9 months and 17 days is the second Grandmaster to have
emerged from the coastal state.

The teenager achieved his first
GM Norm in the Rigo Chess GMRR earlier in October and got his second within
weeks in the 1st Saturday event in Budapest in November, getting
both within a span of 21 days.

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In the Vergani Cup organised in
northern Italy’s Bessano del Grappa, Mendonca finished second with 6.5 points, with a 0.5 point gap separating him and Ukrainian Vitaly Bernadskiy (7 points).

Reportedly, Mendonca had to wait
significantly long because of the coronavirus pandemic, as after leaving for
the Aeroflot Open back in February, 2020, he alongside his father got halted due
to the pandemic-induced lockdown and subsequent travel restrictions in Europe.

The father-son duo, however, utilised
their time well during the period, as Mendonca took part in several tournaments
in a bid to up his ELO rating, which, in turn, from March to December crossed over
from 2452 to 2544.

“Yeah.. I am delighted to become
a GM. It has come after a lot of hard work. I can’t thank several people
including my parents, coach Vishu Prasanna and sponsors for the success,” the
recently crowned GM was quoted as saying.

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The Goan youngster had partook
in a camp organised by Microsense in Chennai in 2019, where Grandmasters such
as Vladimir Kramnik and Boris Gelfand trained several Indian players.