Harika Dronavalli Height, Weight, Age, Body Statistics
Harika Dronavalli is an Indian chess player who is best known for becoming just the 2nd Indian, after Koneru Humpy, a WGM (Woman Grand Master). In 2016, she had achieved her peak position of 5 in the FIDE (Fdration Internationale des checs) womens world rankings. The same year, in November, she had achieved her peak
Harika Dronavalli Quick Info
Height
5 ft 7 in
Weight
61 kg
Date of Birth
January 12, 1991
Zodiac Sign
Capricorn
Spouse
Karteek Chandra
Harika Dronavalli is an Indian chess player who is best known for becoming just the 2nd Indian, after Koneru Humpy, a WGM (Woman Grand Master). In 2016, she had achieved her peak position of 5 in the FIDE (Fédération Internationale des Échecs) women’s world rankings. The same year, in November, she had achieved her peak FIDE rating of 2543. For her services to the sport, the Government of India had honored her with the Arjuna Award (the 2nd-highest sporting honor of India) in 2007; and the Padma Shri (India’s fourth-highest civilian award) in 2019.
Born Name
Harika Dronavalli
Nick Name
Harika
Harika Dronavalli as seen in an Instagram Post in January 2021 (Harika Dronavalli / Instagram)
Sun Sign
Capricorn
Born Place
Gorantla, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India
Residence
Hyderabad, Telangana, India
Nationality
Education
Harika had attended the Sri Venkateswara Bala Kuteer, a private school in Guntur.
Occupation
Chess Player
Harika Dronavalli as seen in an Instagram Post in February 2020 (Harika Dronavalli / Instagram)
Family
Father – Ramesh Dronavalli (Deputy Executive Engineer at a Local Civil Institution)
Mother – Swarna Dronavalli
Siblings – Anusha Dronavalli (Older Sister)
Others – K. S. Ravindra aka Bobby (Brother-in-Law) (Film Director, Screenwriter). She has a niece.
Build
Slim
Height
5 ft 7 in or 170 cm
Weight
61 kg or 134.5 lbs
Boyfriend / Spouse
Harika has dated –
Karteek Chandra (2018-Present) – Harika had started dating businessman Karteek Chandra in January 2018 and the couple got married in August 2018.
Harika Dronavalli and Karteek Chandra, as seen in August 2021 (Harika Dronavalli / Instagram)
Race / Ethnicity
Asian (Indian)
Hair Color
Black
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
Slender frame
Side-parted, long, straight hair
Affable smile
Radiant face
Harika Dronavalli as seen in an Instagram Post in January 2022 (Harika Dronavalli / Instagram)
Harika Dronavalli Facts
She first came into the spotlight in India when she had won the national championship at the age of just 9.
In 2001, she had clinched 2 more ‘Silver’ medals – at the World Youth Chess Championship (girls under-12 section) and the Asian Under-12 Girls Chess Championship. In 2002, she had won the ‘Bronze’ and ‘Gold’ medals in those 2 tournaments, respectively. Later that year, she had secured the ‘Gold’ medal at the Asian Under-18 Girls Chess Championship.
At the age of 12, she had become the youngest WIM (Woman International Master) in Asia. In 2004, aged 13, she had become the youngest WGM (Woman Grand Master) in India. Later that year, she had won her first youth world title and had repeated that feat in 2006.
At the Commonwealth Women’s Championship, she had won the ‘Gold’ medal in 2006, 2007, and 2010. In 2007, she had won the individual ‘Gold’ and ‘Bronze’ medals at the rapid and classical events, respectively, of the Asian Indoor Games. She had also won the ‘Gold’ medal at the 2007 Asian Zonal Women Chess Championship.
In 2008, she had become the 4th Indian player – after Viswanathan Anand (1987), Koneru Humpy (2001), and Pentala Harikrishna (2004) – to win the World Junior Chess Championship.
In 2010, she had secured the ‘Bronze’ medal at the 16th Asian Games in the individual rapid competition. She had also reached the quarter-final stage of the 2011 Women’s World Chess Championship, a 62-player knockout tournament.
Later that year, she had won the ‘Gold’ medal at the Asian Women Chess Championship and the ‘Silver’ medal at the Commonwealth Women’s Chess Championship. In 2012, she had secured the ‘Bronze’ medal at the Women’s World Chess Championship as well as the Asian Women Team Chess Championship.
In 2015, she had won the FIDE World Online Women Blitz Championship for the first time. The players who had finished in 2nd through 4th place all had higher ratings than Harika (2492) at that time.
At the Women’s World Chess Championship 2015 knockout tournament, she had reached the semi-final stage. At the 2016 Asian Women Team Chess Championship, she had won the ‘Gold’ in the rapid (individual) event and the ‘Silver’ medal in the classical (individual) event.
She won the ‘Bronze’ medal, for the 3rd time, at the Women’s World Championship in 2017. She had also reached the semi-final stage of Chess.com’s 2019 Women’s Speed Chess Championships.
In 2020, she was an integral member of the Indian team that had shared the ‘Gold’ medal with Russia in the FIDE Online Olympiad. The teams had to share the title after a major internet disruption had undermined the final match.
