Anshul Bhatt is a bridge player from Mumbai, India. He was the youngest winner of all three gold medals in Under-16 Pairs, Teams, and Overall Performance at the 7th World Youth Transnational Bridge Championships held in Salsomaggiore Terme, Italy, 2022. Later that year, he was selected as the Personality of the Year by International Bridge Press Association.
Bhatt has participated in various open category local, national, and international tournaments. He won the Junior National Bridge Championships (U-26) in Mysore, India, in August 2018, and the Junior National Bridge Championship (U-21) in December 2021. He is the youngest player to have represented India at a World Event and was the youngest participant at the 5th World Youth Bridge Championships in Lyon, France, in August 2017. He was chosen as the flag bearer for the oath-taking to open the Championship and also won the prestigious Joan Gerard Award there.
Personal life
editAnshul Bhatt was born in 2008 in Mumbai, India. He studies at Dhirubhai Ambani International School, Mumbai, India. Bhatt is a squash player, and attended a camp where he was trained by Ritwik Bhattacharya. Bhatt wrote https://www.news18.com/sports/squash-serenity-and-self-realisation-8839389.html
Bridge
editBhatt started playing bridge at the age of six and a half years. He played his first tournament at Indian Gymkhana in Mumbai at the age of 7. He was the youngest to represent India[1] at the age of 8 at any World Youth Bridge Championships in Lyon, France. At the event, he was also the youngest recipient of Joan Gerard Award[2] in the U-16 category.
At the age of 12, he delivered a TED talk at Shoolini University titled "Bridge - A Game for life[3][4][5]" in 2021.
Bhatt won three gold medals – Pairs[6][7] Teams (as Captain) and Overall Performance – for India at the Under-16 World Bridge Transnational Youth Championships in August 2022 at the 7th World Youth Transnational Bridge Championships held in Salsomaggiore Terme, Italy by the World Bridge Federation.[8]
Bhatt was trained by Eric Kokish, who died in 2023 - "Convincing and Complete - A Tribute to Eric Kokish"[9]) and Keyzad Anklesaria from India.
Awards and recognition
editIn December 2022, Bhatt joined was selected as the joint 2022 - Personality of the Year by International Bridge Press Association.[10]
Times of India did a front-page story on Bhatt "Meet the 14-year old who Bill Gates wants to partner with[11][12]". . Gates also posted on instagram - https://www.instagram.com/p/CpTSqfPsa02/
Sachin Tendulkar had a conversation[13][14] Bridge: When Sachin Tendulkar’s phone calls spurred Anshul Bhatt to three gold medals at U16 Worlds with Bhatt before the World Championships talking about handling pressure and playing competitive sports. He also met with Bhatt after the gold medals.[13][14]
Kiran Nadar wrote about Bhatt in her Forbes article "Bridge-ing Generations: From old-gen pastime to a recognised sport".[15][16]
References
edit- ^ "5th World Youth Bridge Championships - Interview Anshul Bhatt". YouTube. 21 August 2017.
- ^ "The Joan Gerard Youth Awards | World Bridge Federation". Retrieved 2024-05-19.
- ^ TEDx Talks (2021-06-01). Bridge: A Game for Life | Anshul Bhatt | TEDxShooliniUniversity. Retrieved 2024-09-09 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Bridge: A Game for Life | Anshul Bhatt | TEDxShooliniUniversity". YouTube. June 2021.
- ^ TEDx Talks (2021-06-01). Bridge: A Game for Life | Anshul Bhatt | TEDxShooliniUniversity. Retrieved 2024-05-19 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Anshul Bhatt becomes World Champion". 11 August 2022.
- ^ Lema, Fernando (2022-08-11). "Anshul Bhatt becomes World Champion". Youth World Bridge. Retrieved 2024-05-19.
- ^ "World Bridge Federation". Retrieved 2024-05-19.
- ^ "Convincing and Complete - A Tribute to Eric Kokish". 19 June 2023.
- ^ https://www.ibpa.com/archive/Awards/2022_IBPA_Awards.pdf
- ^ "Meet the 14-year-old who Bill Gates wants as his bridge partner". The Times of India.
- ^ "Meet the 14-year-old who Bill Gates wants as his bridge partner". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2024-05-19.
- ^ a b "Bridge: When Sachin Tendulkar's phone calls spurred Anshul Bhatt to three gold medals at U16 Worlds". 24 August 2022.
- ^ a b Judge, Shahid (2022-08-24). "Bridge: When Sachin Tendulkar's phone calls spurred Anshul Bhatt to three gold medals at U16 Worlds". Scroll.in. Retrieved 2024-05-19.
- ^ "'Bridge'-ing Generations: From Old-gen Pastime to a Recognised Sport - Forbes India Blogs".
- ^ "'Bridge'-ing Generations: From Old-gen Pastime To A Recognised Sport - Forbes India Blogs". Forbes India. Retrieved 2024-05-19.