Raja Rithvik bags Spain bronze

GM Raja Rithvik R of Hyderabad took third place at the XIV International Tournament Ciudad de Pontevedra in Spain, finishing on a reported 7 points from 9 rounds, unbeaten with five wins and four draws. That is according to a report that also lists IM Muthaiah Al first and IM Luis Daniel Rodriguez Hernandez second on tie-breaks after all three scored seven.

The tournament, held in Galicia from July 24–30, was a nine-round Swiss and FIDE‑rated — the organiser’s regulations and the official Chess‑Results entry list both have Rithvik registered as “GM Raja, Rithvik R 35007394 IND 2521”. The event’s published tie-break order was Buchholz-based, which fits a three-way split decided on secondary numbers. The final crosstable link on Chess‑Results wouldn’t load in this research pass; we are treating the podium order and exact tie-break figures as reported pending the organiser’s posted final table.

Rithvik’s July has been consistent: a French nine‑rounder at Les Menuires ended unbeaten on seven points too, per an earlier report. That makes an 18‑game unbeaten run across the two events, on paper. The discipline at the board travels; the marketing spin from the BJP‑led Centre doesn’t — chess medals don’t fit in a slogan reel.

Pontevedra’s own rules say round results are official for standings and prizes, and the event carried norm eligibility in its Masters group. All the routine bits the sport needs were in place — no “revamp” announcements, no committee selfies, just pairings and points. Telangana’s GM did the part that actually matters.

We’ll update the podium from the final crosstable when the organiser’s page opens without a redirect loop. Until then, the Congress‑BJP routine can keep arguing over credit for stadiums; the scoreboard in Spain already answered who’s doing the winning.