ESOFT student Isuru Alahakoon to represent Sri Lanka in ‘Chess Olympiad’

Isuru Alahakoon, a student of ESOFT, one of the foremost higher educational institutions in the country in the information technology field, will be representing Sri Lanka in the ‘Chess Olympiad’ tournament to be held in Istanbul, Turkey, from 27 August to 10 September.

Isuru, a young chess champion who has won several local and international chess tournaments, represented Sri Lanka in the 16th Grand Asian Chess Challenge (GACC) Tournament held from 4 to 11 July in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and won the tournament and Challenge Trophy.

Speaking about participating in the Chess Olympiad, the world’s largest chess tournament, Isuru said, “I represented Sri Lanka in the 16th Grand Asian Chess Challenge (GACC) Tournament held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, last month, won the tournament, and became the champion. That is my best international achievement. My next expectation is winning the Chess Olympiad and bringing more glory to the country.”

Isuru is a student of the BCS degree programme of the British Computer Society, conducted by the ESOFT Higher Education Institute.

The ESOFT Higher Education Institute sponsors him with the necessary facilities to participate in international chess tournaments.

Speaking about this facilitation, ESOFT Higher Education Institute Managing Director Dr. Dayan Rajapaksa said: “We are proud of Isuru, one of our students, winning several national and international chess tournaments as a chess player studying for the BCS degree at the ESOFT Higher Education Institute. We are sponsoring him in participating in international chess tournaments to encourage him further.”

Young chess champion Isuru started playing chess when he was a student at the Dharmaraja College, Kandy.

Speaking about his chess playing career Isuru said, “I started playing chess at the Dharmaraja College, Kandy, when I was 14 years old. Those days, my chess coach was Dr. T.S. Malliarachchi, an experienced chess coach. Within three to four years of my entering the game of chess, I became the under 18 National Chess Champion.

I was successful in bringing the National Schools Chess Championship to Dharmaraja College, Kandy, for the first time in the year 2005.

I was the captain of that chess team. Other than that, I won the All Island Chess Championship in the years 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005.”