Odisha FIDE Master Harshit Ranjan Sahu inched closer to International Master (IM) title as he secured his third and final IM norm at the Budapest One-Week IM-B International Chess Tournament, which was held in Budapest, Hungary from 8 to 14 August 2026.

Harshit finished runner-up in the nine-round tournament, garnering seven points. While remaining unbeaten, he won five games and drew four. The 20-year-old player from Cuttack also earned his first two IM norms in Hungary earlier this year.

Besides securing the third IM norm, Harshit has increased his FIDE rating 2365. He needs to reach 2400 mark to become the 10th International Master of Odisha, and join the nine existing IMs, namely: Sekhar Chandra Sahu, Swayangsu Satyapragyan, Debashis Das, Anwesh Upadhyaya, Swayams Mishra, Sidhant Mohapatra, Padmini Rout, Rakesh Kumar Jena and Sambit Panda.

Son of Dr Amaresh Sahu and Suchismita Sahu, Harshit trains at Bhubaneswar-based PRO-CHESS-TA, a professional chess training and coaching centre, run by the State Government, and takes occasional coaching from Centre Administrator and IM Swayangsu Satyapragyan.

“Harshit is a talented and fearless player. He is also very hard-working. The State Sports Department is supporting him to compete abroad. Harshit has a bright future and he is likely to clinch the IM title by getting the remaining rating points at the Kanizsa Open International Tournament, being held in Nagykanizsa, Hungary from August 15 to 23,’’ said Satyapragyan.
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PHOTO: Harshit Ranjan Sahu receives his third IM norm certificate at the Budapest One-Week IM-B International Tournament in Hungary on 14 August 2026.