~ 10 Grandmasters to participate in the tournament to be held in Kolkata from Nov 22-26 ~ 

~ Drawing of lots ceremony for TSCI 2019 held today ~

Tata Steel Chess India - Rapid & Blitz 2019 is all set to begin tomorrow, November 22, 2019, at the iconic National Library in Kolkata. The tournament will witness eight of the world's top fifteen Grandmasters and the three top Indian players in action. Participating Grandmasters include world champion Magnus Carlsen, Viswanathan Anand, Ding Liren, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Levon Aronian, Anish Giri, Wesley So, Hikaru Nakamura, Pentala Harikrishna and Vidit Gujrathi.

The drawing of lots for the 2nd edition of Tata Steel Chess India (TSCI) was held today in Kolkata. The drawing of lots was done by Mr Chanakya Chaudhary, Vice President, Corporate Services, Tata Steel, Mr Bharat Singh Chauhan, Secretary, AICF, and Mr Sourav Ganguly, former captain of Indian Cricket team and current President, BCCI.  

Earlier this month, Mr Chanakya Chaudhary, Vice President, Corporate Services, Tata Steel, and Mr Bharat Singh Chauhan, AICF, unveiled the grand trophy that the combined winner of the Rapid & Blitz legs of the tournament will receive. This special bronze trophy, crafted by sculptor Madhusudan Naskar draws inspiration from the sport and has been based on the Knight piece.

The tournament is a 10-player field, high-level, all-play-all tournament. The Tata Steel Chess India - Rapid & Blitz 2019 will be a part of the Grand Chess Tour (GCT). The Grand Chess Tour is a circuit of international events, each demonstrating the highest level of organisation for the world's best players. The tour was created in partnership between the Saint Louis Chess Club and Chess Promotions, Ltd.

The Grand Chess Tour, inspired by chess legend Garry Kasparov, and launched in 2015, includes two classical and five rapid and blitz tournaments. The Kolkata leg, from November 22-26, 2019, will be the penultimate event of the eight-leg Tour which has expanded this time to four continents - Africa, Asia, Europe and America. TSCI 2019 is the first GCT tournament ever to be held in Asia.

All TSCI 2019 games will be LIVE on the GCT website:
https://grandchesstour.org/2019-grand-chess-tour/2019-superbet-rapid-blitz-live

Visit the TSCI Facebook page for regular updates:
https://www.facebook.com/tschessindia/

Tata Steel has a long-standing association with chess, having been the main sponsor of the famous chess tournament at Wijkaan Zee, The Netherlands, which is one of the most prestigious events in the international chess calendar. In India, too, Tata Steel supports inter-school, district and State-level competitions in Jharkhand. Tata Steel intends to make Tata Steel Chess India a world-class and most sought-after event in professional chess in the years to come.

About Tata Steel
Tata Steel group is among the top global steel companies with an annual crude steel capacity of 33 million tonnes per annum. It is one of the world's most geographically-diversified steel producers, with operations and commercial presence across the world. The group (excluding SEA operations) recorded a consolidated turnover of US $22.67 billion in the financial year ending March 31, 2019. In 2018, Tata Steel acquired Bhushan Steel Ltd (now renamed as Tata Steel BSL Ltd).

A Great Place to Work-Certified organisation, Tata Steel Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, associates and joint ventures, is spread across five continents with an employee base of over 65,000. Tata Steel retained the ‘Global Steel Industry Leader’ position in the DJSI 2018. The Company has been recognised as the Climate Disclosure Leader in ‘Steel category’ by CDP (2017). Besides being a member of the World Steel Climate Action Programme, Tata Steel has won several awards including the Lighthouse recognition for its Kalinganagar Plant – a first in India, Prime Minister’s Trophy for the best performing integrated steel plant for 2016-17, ‘GreenPro’ certification for products (Tata Pravesh Steel Doors, Tata Structura, Tata Pipes) by CII, Authorized Economic Operator  (AEO) status (Tier 2) by the Directorate of International Customs (Ministry of Finance, Govt. of India), ‘Corporate Strategy Award’ by Mint (2018), Golden Peacock Award for Risk Management (2018) and Best Risk Management Framework & Systems Award (2019) by CNBC TV18. The Company also received the ‘Most Ethical Company’ award from Ethisphere Institute for the eight time (2019), Steel Sustainability Champion (2018) by the World Steel Association, Dun & Bradstreet Corporate Awards (2019), Golden Peacock HR Excellence Award by Institute of Directors (2018), ‘Best Companies To Work For’ recognition by Business Today, 'Asia's Best Integrated Report' award by the Asia Sustainability Reporting Awards (2017), among several others.

Last year, the Company launched a corporate brand campaign #WeAlsoMakeTomorrow.

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Disclaimer:
Statements in this press release describing the Company’s performance may be “forward looking statements” within the meaning of applicable securities laws and regulations. Actual results may differ materially from those directly or indirectly expressed, inferred or implied. Important factors that could make a difference to the Company’s operations include, among others, economic conditions affecting demand/supply and price conditions in the domestic and overseas markets in which the Company operates, changes in or due to the environment, Government regulations, laws, statutes, judicial pronouncements and/or other incidental factors.