Kathmandu, March 15 -- FIDE Master Kshitiz Bhandari has won the 'Himalayan Freestyle Chess Championship', a newly formatted competition held for the first time in Nepal by Himalayan Chess Academy (HCA). He defeated Candidate Master Milan Lama in the final on Friday to clinch the title.

In the 'Best of Three' final, Bhandari won both initial games, ending Lama's challenge with a 2-0 victory. He had previously defeated Punam Prasain in the semi-finals, while Lama had overcome Sujan Kafle to reach the title match.

The organiser stated that this was the first time a freestyle chess tournament, initiated by former World Chess Champion Bobby Fischer, was held in Nepal. The tournament saw qualifying rounds from March 9 to 12 with the final pla...