Ten-year-old Vedant Shetty has brought pride to St. Vincent and the Grenadines after taking 1st place in the Under-10 category at the CARIFTA Hybrid Chess Championship, one of the Caribbean’s premier youth chess events.
Held on 11–12 July 2026, the CARIFTA Hybrid Chess Championship marked the return of the CARIFTA Chess Championships after a seven-year hiatus, bringing together more than 500 players from 15 Caribbean nations across multiple age categories.
Representing St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Vedant delivered an outstanding performance, scoring 8.5 points out of 9 to secure the Under-10 title. His score was the highest achieved by any player across all age categories, making it one of the standout performances of the championship.
In addition to winning his age category, Vedant also competed in the highly competitive Open Category, where players of all ages faced one another. Despite being only 10 years old, he scored 5.5 points from 9 rounds, finishing in a multi-way tie for fifth place on points among 101 participants.
Under the tournament’s tie-break system, he was officially ranked 22nd overall. His victory has also earned him qualification for the 2026 Central America and Caribbean Youth Chess Championship in Costa Rica.
To support Vedant’s future tournaments OR Youth Chess development in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, please contact the Federation at svgchessf@yahoo.com.
