Viswanathan Anand believes Olympiad win will elevate women's chess in India

Overjoyed by India's remarkable dual triumph at the Chess Olympiad, five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand said that while this marks a promising beginning, there is still much work to be done for women's chess in the country.

India scripted history on Sunday as both its men's and women's teams secured their first-ever titles, achieving a remarkable clean sweep of gold medals at the Chess Olympiad.

But while in recent times, the men's game has surged in popularity with young Indian talents like R Praggnanandhaa and D Gukesh making waves on the world stage, in contrast, the women's game has struggled to match this trajectory.

"It's a very good beginning. I think still a long way to go because we must continuously keep progressing," Anand told PTI, at the sidelines of Tech Mahindra Global Chess League.

"And more important, get more and more girls to play and I think exactly this result will inspire more girls to play, and that is the hope," he added.

The 54-year-old chess icon